Autism and Job Interviews

Autism and job interviews: is there a way for autistic people to learn to succeed at interview?

When you are autistic, job interviews can be as painful as the dating process, you are expected to know the rules, but no one will tell you what they are.

Luckily, there seems to be progress in terms of how employers view the value of neurodiversity within their teams, but also support that's available for autistic people.

I spoke to Emily Banks, founder of Stack Recruitment, about her organisation that aims to help autistic people find jobs and educate companies on how their interview and hiring process can be more accessible for autistic people.

RELATED VIDEOS:

(☕If you like my content and just want to “tip” me, you can buy me a single Ko-Fi ☕)

[YoSamdySam]

What do you struggle with in interview settings?

[johntrevy]

Something that annoys me about neurotypical people is that they say they want you to be honest, but they have no problem with themselves lying to you and when you are honest with them they can't handle it. We can't win!!

[RoseThePhoenix]

Occasionally, my autistic traits are a huge benefit. My current job, they asked me how I dealt with repetitive tasks. I told them I find repetition very soothing a lot of the time, and if I'm allowed to listen to music I can just go all day. It took them less than a full day to make me an offer, and I actually really enjoy my job most days.

[gmlpc]

1:51 "Job interviews are a highly neurotypical social dance" - brilliantly put!

[gmlpc]

Processing time is another problem and i suspect many other autistic interviewees have faced. We don't process questions as quickly as neurotypical interviewees which can mean being slow to respond or rushing out a low quality answer, perhaps having misunderstood elements of the question. Even when I've prepared for "typical" questions I've been thrown by slightly different wording.

[ttttiiimmybit]

Job interviews are rubbish, they don’t learn much about you besides how you interact at face value. They want someone ‘easy’ to work with and who will conform without any questions.
Half the time it’s jumping through hoops pretending to be excited about being cooped up in a room for 9 hours a day @ £8 an hour.

[gmlpc]

If employers are serious about autistic inclusion they need to adjust interviews for autistic candidates. One big step forward would be to give autistic interviewees the questions in advance, e.g. the day before, and with advice on any required format. Maybe written answers should be an option, especially when questions are given in advance. This would compensate for processing issues and autistic candidates not decoding so well the unwritten rules of interview responses. They also need to realise that teamwork is not as vital as they always insist and recognise that autistic employees can do excellent work on an individual level. They need to have targets for which they are accountable on the number of autistic workers employed.

[MartKart]

I've noticed the same type of questions they ask in interviews, are the same type of questions neurotypical people have asked me in real life, I don't like or enjoy being asked neurotypical questions at all.

[pww]

If you can find the right job, people with autism are always going to be loyal, hard working employees. Rather than view them as a liability, employers should view them as Unicorns-extremely rare and extremely good, and asset to their company, not a problem. We're honest, reliable, follow the rules, don't engage in office politics and gossip, and can remain focused on the task at hand, without getting distracted.

[daynataylor]

Oh....I thought everyone had to script for interviews and put on a sort of mask. :/ I’ve realized that usually after interviews or appointments I feel like it’s all a blur, almost like I made myself dissociate during the meeting. So weird.

[wanderinggstars]

I had a 90 minute interview for a job at a company that I have worked at before. It was so hard. I cried after it was over because I was so tired for masking the whole time. They asked me questions that made me uncomfortable, they interrupted me when they thought I was going off topic. It all really made me feel so bad.

[jiltedlittle]

Job interviews are a lot like doctors offices for me. I'll talk myself up and walk in feeling really confident. The physical things are the first things I notice. My face is twitching. I'm breathing way heavier. It doesnt matter what I think in my mind, the fear strikes first and I'm left not knowing what to do about it.

[hannahthomnoble]

I've only ever had 2 successful job interviews: one for a video game shop where all the employees were 'alternative' and they happily welcomed my awkward self, and then for a tea shop who deceived me into thinking it was a nice job working in the shop when really it was placard holding in the street with no guaranteed hours, so I turned that terrible job down!

I have a science degree from a good university, but I've never been able to get a 'proper' job. I get too nervous, I'm too honest in my answers, and I struggle to answer questions which to me seem pointless or irrelevant.

I've been unemployed for 3 years, and it's because I've struggled so much in that time and found it impossible to get a job that I ended up seeking an autism diagnosis. Now I'm planning on being self employed, so I can avoid interviews! Job interviews are just the worst environment for me.

[pandora]

My favourite response to that "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" crap is "My strengths include complete honesty. My weaknesses include a low tolerance for cliched, unimaginative interview questions". Sadly, I'm yet to encounter an interviewer that appreciates that answer.

[aayushivasnik]

I'm not diagnosed but I came across a lot of information about autism and neurodiversity on the internet recently and my life makes a lot of sense now. I've only been interviewed once but it was such a pain I shut down in the middle of it and went non verbal and cried all the way home on the 2 hour journey. God do I hate interviews! They suck the life out of me

[tazdragon]

I have cried during job interviewers, I struggle to read subtle body language & social cues, and need extra processing time. I especially struggle with the 'trick questions'! I feel like I'm lying when I tell people positive things about myself. Also, I think I have RSD. This video is hitting pretty hard. Very relevant. Thank you.

[valentinaescobar]

It's difficult for me to predict what they want to hear especially with open questions, so I don't know what to answer.

[chloenatasha]

The only interview I ever did well in was for pets at home because I was able to look up what they ask beforehand. I had memorised a script for every question and I managed to pull through and pretend to be confident 😅 I got the job, but left after one day because I couldn't deal with the customers. Had a full on meltdown 😭🙈

[gmlpc]

Very important video. I've also found interviews very difficult. Employers often say they want answers in a particular format (commonly the STAR formula of situation-task-action-result) backed with very specific examples and it took me a long time to learn this (in some cases it wasn't even mentioned to me). I would echo the point about having examples of how you meet the skills in the job description. However I think most of the time the employers aren't interested in the answers. They have a "pecking order" based on the application forms and then - with a few exceptions - the interview is a social arena where they are really just working out "do we like this person?" and "will they fit in?" - both of which work against autistic candidates....

[KatieM]

I'm good at applying for jobs and doing interviews, it's holding down the actual job afterwards that is the challenge.
Tips for interviews; be comfortable in your attire, nothing new on interview days.
If practical (and not in another country or something) do a 'dry run' of the journey so you are not anxious about finding the right place on the day.
If you have the names of your interviewers then look them up beforehand so you know what they look like and what their professional interests are.
BIG TIP: The people you meet on your interview will be nervous too. Remember, it's an artificial situation for everyone.
***GOOD LUCK!***