35 Examples Of Hilariously Unrealistic Expectations When Applying For A Job
Looking for a job is often a tiresome process as it is. Some places, however, take it to the next level by making the candidate jump through arguably one too many hoops. They present job requirements that seem odd at best, considering the position or the place the person is applying to.
Lots of applicants, surprised about such prerequisites, turn to the online world to voice their frustrations or share a good laugh. We have gathered some of the best real-life examples of just how absurd certain requirements can be. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the comical stories.
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When it comes to finding a job, every position requires the candidate to fit into a certain mold, which usually differs with each vacancy. Every company presents a list of requirements that allow them to sift through the candidates more easily and make the best decision when it comes to finding a teammate.
Such expectations can entail required skills, amount of experience, knowledge of certain tools or programs, and similar assets. Unsurprisingly, higher-ranking positions typically demand criteria that are more difficult to meet. However, some companies, as you can see in these pictures, seem to be asking for too much, considering what they offer in exchange.
I’m not sure if the laws in most counties, but publish/copyright protect prior to submitting. If they print or publish, send them a C&D letter.
A person in one of these examples mentioned having to take a personality test in addition to a couple of other assessments when applying for a busboy position. They likely found it to be excessive, as they compared it to the CIA, and that might diminish their willingness to join the team. In addition to that, such situations usually don’t help the company’s image either.
According to Talentadore, up to 90% of applicants agree that their experience as candidates can determine their decision about working there. Moreover, over 70% of them discuss their experience with others, which might affect their opinions or decisions to apply accordingly, whether it’s a restaurant chain or a large corporation.
Talentadore also revealed that more than half (60%) of candidates have decided not to move on with their application because it was too long or complex. Even though you want to prove yourself suitable for the position, some tasks might not be worth the time or the effort. Especially considering that they are rarely paid for and might take ages to complete.
A lot of companies set unrealistic standards for entry-level employees. The term itself suggests that it shouldn’t require a lot of know-how or other qualifications, however, it often asks for some years of experience, nevertheless. This is especially frustrating when it creates a vicious circle—people are not getting hired because of lack of experience, but they can’t gain experience without getting hired.
Sad to hear a medical operation manager should take a side gig to sustain
S**t, contradictory answers should make you perfect for a job where you have to lie about the quality of the food and the cleanliness of the kitchen.
In addition to sky-high requirements, lack of information from the company’s side is also a common frustration. Statistics reveal that 50% of job seekers feel stressed about not receiving details on pay and benefits during the application process. Equally as many of them are negatively affected by interview schedule changes.
"Your crunchy granola mom customer tells you that lavender oil she bought just doesn't seem to be working on little Timmy's adhd, do you recommend her A. Lemongrass tea, B. Rosemary oil, C. Sprouted chia capsules, or D. Walrus tusk extract? Please explain below."
Another prevailing source of despair for applicants is ghosting. Being left with no answer, especially after spending time trying to meet their often unrealistic expectations, is annoying at best. Sadly, as much as 77% of people have been ghosted by their potential employers.
Based on Zippia’s data, there were nearly 11 million people seeking employment in the US in 2022; they could choose from roughly 11.5 million vacancies. According to Career Higher, in the same year, leisure and hospitality was the industry with the largest employee shortage. It was followed by trade, transportation, and utilities and professional and business services respectively. Education and healthcare came in fourth and fifth.
I can't believe those questions are even asked? What kind of people hit their co-workers?
Have you ever hit a coworker - this is my first job Have you felt the urge to hit a coworker - I don’t know I haven’t had one How many fights have you had in one year - sir I’m 15
Zippia also revealed that nowadays, the average hunt for employment lasts roughly five months. It might not sound uplifting for the job seeker; however, the good news is that the job market nowadays seems to be candidate-driven, meaning they have the advantage.
Thing is, the questions only come with yes or no answers. There should be a middle “Deoends on the situation” answer as well. Human emotion and interaction is so chock full of gray areas, and situations can change on a dime, so you really can’t give a rigidly definite yes or no answer.
Let's see. This personality has a strong work ethic, is organized, and produces high quality work. This other personality doesn't give a s**t, never shows up on time, and does just about anything to avoid doing work. Yeah, I see where this is going.
Another thing to remember is that nowadays social media has a huge impact on nearly every aspect of our life, and job hunting is no exception. Expected behavior online might not be mentioned among the requirements, but headhunters often check it nevertheless. In addition to that, more and more companies use social media for recruitment itself, which is all the more reason to be aware of your online presence.
Applying to a job and having them sell your information to a religious-and well known dangerous- group without your okay should be grounds for a lawsuit.
It's like that movie 'Audition' where a guy sets up interviews with women as a scam to find a girlfriend. We should also be able to kill the rep when they put us through that whole process just to not give us the job.
Why does the concept of working teenagers also doing education confuse managers…
The MENSA admission test has these sorts of things. Or pictures of 3 animals and then pictures of three other animals and it says to pick the one from the second list that is similar to the other three, but the similarity is very hard to guess, like they all have a particular type of bone structure. I had so much fun with that test, but if a potential employer tried to give it to me I would probably find it a waste of time.
Note: this post originally had 63 images. It’s been shortened to the top 35 images based on user votes.
I worked at a clothing/discount store that made me take one of these stupid tests. One of the questions was "true/false employees steal because they're dissatisfied with their job." I don't remember what I answered but I got the job. Later, after bullying and mistreatment by management and coworkers, I remembered that question. Never occurred to me to steal to get back at my employer until they put the idea in my head...
IMO, any company that gives these tests has untrained, untrusted, and/or inexperienced people doing the hiring. If you can't rely on a manager to make a good hiring decision without some meaningless endurance/personality/IQ test, then you have a poorly trained manager and that is the fault of the company.
IKEA; they used to have these terminals where you could apply to work. You answered 10 questions, and the machine would let you know, right then and there, if there was a chance of working for IKEA. "Psychologically Unfit", that's what the algorithm told me. I laughed out loud. Psychologically Unfit to move flat-pack furniture :)
Anything that includes the absurd MBTI which has no more intellectual merit than fortune telling or astrology. Jung himself called it no more than a 'parlor game' and the psychologists on the board at the Myers-Briggs company admit they don't use it in their professional lives because it's just a bunch of meaningless Barnum statements packaged to make a profit.
In this tight job market that shows no end in sight you would think the only question on the application would be, "Are you available right now?"
You would think, but I have 30 years total expirence in retail and I'm having a hard time getting a job. Put in lots of applications, yet no calls. But, nobody wants to work these days!
Load More Replies...
I had a job interview years ago where they gave us these questions where there were a load of random images and you had to work out what the next image was. 100 questions in 15 mins, none of us completed it. The whole thing was completely unrelated to the job I was applying for.
I once worked at a company that got taken over by this weird multinational conglomerate (from memory they were headquartered in Canada) who had an obsession with having clear health and safety records. They instituted an online candidate screening test that asked people to agree to the most unrealistic safety expectations. One example question: "by following the health and safety guidelines, it is not possible for me to be injured at work. All workplace injuries are preventable if I follow guidelines. Agree or disagree". If you disagreed, your application would be automatically rejected. It was the most insane thing.
I have to admit I've got to the age when I look at these test and say to the recruter don't waste your or my time, job doesn't pay enough to qualify for these questions. It's true the lower the pay the more stupid the recruiting process
High School Assistant Principal "interview" about 16 years ago had the following: traditional formal interview, a skills assessment, composed a memo and a parent letter, then did a role play in front of a dozen people with an assistant superintendent playing the role of a teacher who refused to call parents. 4+ hours, didn't get the job. Current job, we met at an omlette place and talked while eating breakfast. Hired before the check arrived. I love small businesses.
A psychologist friend once told me that using the Meyers Briggs personality test was about as effective as using astrology. Your answers can vary depending on how you're feeling at any given moment.
As much as I hate those stupid test, I prefer them to having them ask me to bring in or upload my resume. So I work hard on this beautiful resume, only for them to ask me to write it all down on the paper application or retype it all in the online app. That is straight up infuriating.
HR manager: "We have the results of your personality test, Mr. Smith... " results-of...9cb710.jpg 
I worked at a clothing/discount store that made me take one of these stupid tests. One of the questions was "true/false employees steal because they're dissatisfied with their job." I don't remember what I answered but I got the job. Later, after bullying and mistreatment by management and coworkers, I remembered that question. Never occurred to me to steal to get back at my employer until they put the idea in my head...
IMO, any company that gives these tests has untrained, untrusted, and/or inexperienced people doing the hiring. If you can't rely on a manager to make a good hiring decision without some meaningless endurance/personality/IQ test, then you have a poorly trained manager and that is the fault of the company.
IKEA; they used to have these terminals where you could apply to work. You answered 10 questions, and the machine would let you know, right then and there, if there was a chance of working for IKEA. "Psychologically Unfit", that's what the algorithm told me. I laughed out loud. Psychologically Unfit to move flat-pack furniture :)
Anything that includes the absurd MBTI which has no more intellectual merit than fortune telling or astrology. Jung himself called it no more than a 'parlor game' and the psychologists on the board at the Myers-Briggs company admit they don't use it in their professional lives because it's just a bunch of meaningless Barnum statements packaged to make a profit.
In this tight job market that shows no end in sight you would think the only question on the application would be, "Are you available right now?"
You would think, but I have 30 years total expirence in retail and I'm having a hard time getting a job. Put in lots of applications, yet no calls. But, nobody wants to work these days!
Load More Replies... I had a job interview years ago where they gave us these questions where there were a load of random images and you had to work out what the next image was. 100 questions in 15 mins, none of us completed it. The whole thing was completely unrelated to the job I was applying for.
I once worked at a company that got taken over by this weird multinational conglomerate (from memory they were headquartered in Canada) who had an obsession with having clear health and safety records. They instituted an online candidate screening test that asked people to agree to the most unrealistic safety expectations. One example question: "by following the health and safety guidelines, it is not possible for me to be injured at work. All workplace injuries are preventable if I follow guidelines. Agree or disagree". If you disagreed, your application would be automatically rejected. It was the most insane thing.
I have to admit I've got to the age when I look at these test and say to the recruter don't waste your or my time, job doesn't pay enough to qualify for these questions. It's true the lower the pay the more stupid the recruiting process
High School Assistant Principal "interview" about 16 years ago had the following: traditional formal interview, a skills assessment, composed a memo and a parent letter, then did a role play in front of a dozen people with an assistant superintendent playing the role of a teacher who refused to call parents. 4+ hours, didn't get the job. Current job, we met at an omlette place and talked while eating breakfast. Hired before the check arrived. I love small businesses.
A psychologist friend once told me that using the Meyers Briggs personality test was about as effective as using astrology. Your answers can vary depending on how you're feeling at any given moment.
As much as I hate those stupid test, I prefer them to having them ask me to bring in or upload my resume. So I work hard on this beautiful resume, only for them to ask me to write it all down on the paper application or retype it all in the online app. That is straight up infuriating.
HR manager: "We have the results of your personality test, Mr. Smith... " results-of...9cb710.jpg
