I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Penguin Random House (New York, NY) in Dec 2018
Interview
First thing you need to know about interviewing for Penguin Random House is that they're obnoxious and don't respect your time at all. If you get a response from them for a position (which I did only after a dozen attempts and despite have "connections" within the company) they don't give you a specific time to schedule the phone interview. Instead, they ask you to choose a slot where you have to commit to keeping yourself free for three hours so they can call you when it suits them.
After a successful phone interview, I was told that I would hear back from the hiring manager next week regarding the in-person interview. After ten days of radio silence, when I reached out to them again, I was told that they were still in their first round of interviews for the internship (which was scheduled to begin two weeks from then). I reached out to them again a week before the internship was scheduled to begin and still haven't heard back from them.
The least they could've done is give me a concrete no. It takes all of two minutes to send that email template. Instead, they strung me along for over a month. I missed out on opportunities that I had put on hold because I was told that there would be a next round of interview and it never happened.
I have never interacted with a company as unprofessional as Penguin Random House before. Just because they're a leader in book publishing, it doesn't give them the right to treat interviewees with such utter disrespect and disregard.
I applied online. I interviewed at Penguin Random House in Apr 2026
Interview
Had a quick hr screening. Ayesha was very helpful and helped me prepare for the actual interview.
The second internview was with a designer and production specialist. They were very lovely. I already had tons of experience, and I was probably overqualified for this internship. But in the end, they decided not to go with me. I think it really is all about vibes. If you can connect with the two people you'll be working with, that's how you'll increase your chances. Overall, I had lovely conversations with them, but I'm sure there another candidate that was the perfect pick.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
(This internship was for art & design, and they did not ask anything about my design capabilities) How do you stay organized when juggling multiple projects?
I interviewed at Penguin Random House (London, England)
Interview
It was a self recorded interview using the platform Hireview. There were three questions in total, with around 2 minutes to answer the question with 1 minute preparation. In my opinion, it's a not so easy format for an interview as I much prefer face to face interviews.
I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Penguin Random House (New York, NY) in Apr 2025
Interview
The HR interview went really well. Be prepared for questions about organization and task management. Also, research the imprint you’re interviewing with it shows initiative and that you’re genuinely interested.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
how do you stay organized?
How do you communicate a message to alot of people at once