Frontend interview at ride-sharing company: Miscommunication led to unexpected rejection

Frontend
1

I recently had a strange experience during a frontend interview at a well-known ride-sharing company. The task was to create a simple messaging app. They gave me a function that looked like it was mocking an API call, but when I asked if I needed to use it, the interviewer said I could do as I wished.

So, I went ahead and created a basic component that met all the stated requirements. I even finished early and asked if I should treat it like a real API call using useEffect. The interviewer said no.

Later, I found out I was rejected because I didn’t use the provided function or implement it as if it were a real API call. I’m confused because I specifically asked about this twice during the interview.

I’m wondering if the interviewer maybe didn’t understand React well enough to guide me properly. It feels unfair to be rejected for not doing something I was told wasn’t necessary. Has anyone else experienced something like this? How would you handle this situation?

2

man, that sucks. communication was off. i’ve been through cases like this. maybe ask the recruiter, but don’t stress. the process can be weird sometimes.

3

oh wow, that’s a bummer! :confused: have u thought about reaching out to the interviewer or HR for clarification? it might help to understand where the miscommunication happened. maybe they could give u some insights for future interviews? what do u think about trying that approach?

4

This situation highlights a common issue in technical interviews: miscommunication. It’s unfortunate that the interviewer’s guidance contradicted the evaluation criteria. In such cases, it’s advisable to document your decision-making process and assumptions clearly in comments or a README file. This approach demonstrates your thought process and can protect you from misunderstandings. Additionally, it’s worth considering implementing both approaches when time allows – your interpretation and the provided function – to showcase versatility. Moving forward, use this experience to ask more detailed questions about expectations and evaluation criteria in future interviews.