Application Process & Interviews at Santos

I was recruited via the internship program. I took an online interview, online capability test, then on-call video interview with presentation. After successfully obtaining and completing the internship, my performance was assessed via a final presentation on a 3-month project and I was offered the Graduate position.

The interview process was fine, I feel like it took a while to hear back about the internship and also the graduate position.

Phone discussion with HR and manager, certification checks, video interview and presentation.

I was hired as a vacation student based on an aptitude test and video interview. After my vacation work, I received a call inviting me to the graduate program.

Hiring process needs improvement. Long waiting periods and non-transparent hiring criteria.

Several cognitive assessments were required upon application to the program, these seemed fairly standard. The interview was enjoyable and felt both personal and professional and attempt was made to get to know me.

The hiring process is very slow. Communication is often not great. There are many stories of people not hearing back for months after doing interviews. This even happens with people already working with the company.

Very slow

Relatively standard hiring process for a grad program. Takes a long time to hear anything back

The interview I completed was for the vacation program which then counted as my interview for the graduate program. The assessments and recorded interviews were pretty standard and similar to those completed by other companies in the industry. The actual interview I completed was virtual which felt a bit less personal than if the interview was conducted in person. I also remember there being a very large amount of time between the initial assessments and the final actual interview and then the actual interview was held around my exam time at university which was stressful at the time.

There was an online assessment, phone screening then formal interview.

The process is not so clear, especially for external hiring mid-year outside the grad program. Uncertainty around when we'd get a call back made it difficult to not accept other offers.

There is a massive disconnect between HR and teams particularly if you are being required to relocate. HR can tell you one thing such as "we miss read your transcript and realised you do not have honours and we do not want you study and work at the same time, so we would like to retract your first contract that has you starting next year but instead if you sign the graduate contract to start in two years time you can do an industry sponsored honours with us next year," then they will not respond to any of your emails. You then get a phone call from management (4 weeks before university starts, when you were supposed to have your project selected months ago) saying that they had no idea who you were and have not got anything set up for you so instead you should just apply for a any last minute honours with your university. In the end, as your samples get delays as you applied late your honours project gets extended and you are required to do full time work and full time studies despite them not allowing this in the first place.

The assessment process for the graduate program is fairly typical of most companies, with interviews and assessment centres. Some years have included a presentation or team building exercises.

I did not have a formal interview.

Rolled onto the grad program from a summer internship. Internship hiring process was well organised with good communication, however not much information/clarity was provided when transitioning to grad role.

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It was a few years ago now as an intern, but it was pretty good. Application -> online assessment -> interview w/ pre-recorded qns -> real interview + presentation. I got offered a grad contract with no further interviews

Most hiring occurs through the vacation program first. Only 1 face-to-face interview between vac work and graduate offer.

Initial interview and assessment process was smooth with prompt response.

Greatest strength/weaknesses. Areas of study. Examples of overcoming challenge etc. Asked to give a presentation on a technical project of mine (~30min, typically honours project).

Some general behavioural questions as well some technical process questions that weren't too bad.

Generic questions about past experiences handling problem solving, team work and working towards solutions with limited information.

How do you exceed expectations?

Questions covered all aspects of my education, and life. As above I feel like it was both professional and personal which stood out. Effort was truly made to know more about me.

A lot of questions focused on safety and how I have demonstrated safe working practices.

My experience, why I want to work at Santos, why I would be a good fit. Standard interview questions

I can't remember what specific questions but I remember doing a presentation about a project that I had completed either at a previous company or during my university studies which was a good way to show my knowledge and some skills in a way that was more hands on than just answering questions.

There were a few behavioural questions along with having to present a 10 minute presentation on a project we had helped to complete.

Typical interview questions. I actually apparently missed one of the interview rounds so was asked to later fill this out after I had started working in the office, which was a bit unexpected.

The questions were quite generic in terms of what experiences do you have and why do you want to join the oil and gas industry.

Asked about university qualifications, past work experience etc. and did a short presentation of a technical project from university.

A mixture of technical and soft skills questions.

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Can't recall

Mostly soft-skill questions.

some technical questions relevant to the team. Mostly behavioural questions including how I deal with conflicts etc.

Cannot recall exactly as was interviewed for vacation program over 3 years ago. Was, however, asked a question along the lines of an example of when I overcame adversity.

What's your best piece of work? When did things go wrong and what did you do? Why do you want to work for Santos in particular? I remember getting asked some reservoir engineering specific questions around phase envelopes and IPR curves.

I was asked about previous challenges I had to overcome in previous projects, both technical and people related problems. I gave a presentation on a previous project which had some more technical questions. This was really fun and interesting.

Be comfortable and confident talking in-person. Be willing to express teamwork capability, enthusiasm for learning and willingness to express the Santos Values.

Come up with different scenarios in their experience that they can talk to about different things. Like overcoming challenges, working well in teams etc.

Prepare a list of scenarios where your contribution was impactful, and work out a range of ways that you contributed to a positive outcome. Include things you learned and could have done better. Practice using a single scenario for a range of questions.

Learn about what the company does. Remember that there are lots of great smart students that are applying, think of something that sets you apart.

Be open and honest, remain true to yourself.

Get familiar with answer questions in the STAR format.

I would suggest they do their research on the company and its assets in general so they can know what to expect and confirm they are truly interested in working in this industry on the types of projects being completed as Santos does have some quite unique assets different to other companies in the industry.

Look into Santos and its core business operations and where it operates. Having a good knowledge of this will help you when asked what you know about Santos.

I'm in an engineering role, so my suggestions are just the typical preparations for a interview. There is a lack of technical questions so focus on the soft-skill side of things and bring typical stories of past experiences and how you handled them.

You may be asked what sis your ideal role or where do you see yourself in 5 years time and even though it looks like that the company aligns with your goals, you may be put in a very different role and in a different location.

Probably apply for other jobs in the meantime as Santos takes a long time to get back with correspondence about your job application. Even if you have been verbally told you have the job - continue to look because Santos is able to change their minds (from experience). Try to keep in touch with your team leader and people in your business unit as they are able to put a face to your name and vouch for you to get things moving along.

Learn about the purpose of the company and practice an engaging presentation for your uni project.

Enthusiasm to learn and a humble approach goes a long way!

Can't recall

Apply to the vacation program the year before if you want a grad role.

Applying through the vacation program is the best approach. Applying straight for a graduate position is very competitive.

Familiarise yourself with company values, where they operate and potential future prospects/outlooks of the company. Possibly identify where you'd see yourself in the organisation and how you will contribute to the business.

Prepare mental examples of good situations of work you have done in the past and situations were things didn't go well and how you saved them. Refresh yourself on basic concepts in your field of work

I have recommended being confident in interviews and it's ok to take a breath and say you don't know. Even better to pivot to something you do know. I also recommend practicing the types of psychometric testing, just to become more comfortable with the format and types of questions, as well as the pace.

Understand the assets and projects before applying - ultimately, you will be working in a position that services an operating asset or one under development at some stage of the 'production line', so understanding what is produced (oil, gas, condensate) and how it is processed and sold (gas conditioning plant to domestic gas, LNG plant, FPSO with oil and/or condensate offtakes) is vital.