I was asked, by HR, to provide a letter of recommendation. a) IFPRI was not transparent to potential candidates to alert their referees that a letter of recommendation would be required. b) HR was not clear in what they were asking, others would have just written an email response saying this person was great, hire them. c) HR was not clear where in the process the candidate was to be asking for the letter. d) they gave 3 days to write a full letter of recommendation. If it had been a less stellar former student, I would not have even responded to the email.

Applied online, and two weeks later I received an email from a reference of mine saying they had been contacted to provide a reference letter. The next day I received an email from HR to set up a STATA test, HR interview, and Hiring Manager interview(s). Was a bit uncomfortable that my references had been contacted but I had not been contacted previously. The HR rep was great, but the interview with the hiring managers was incredibly difficult (2:1). It did not feel that they knew what they wanted from the applicant for this position, and I was unclear if they had read my resume before walking in the door. I was told I would hear within two weeks and I have not yet heard after a month. IFPRI has an outstanding reputation but the interview process is excruciating without good communication from the HR rep. I was honest in my strengths and limitations but it seemed the job description should have reflected a greater attention to statistical methods if that is what they desired in a candidate.