I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Costello Medical (Cambridge, England) in Nov 2022
Interview
As described in many other reviews, the process consists of three stages: - CV and cover letter - Written task and proofreading exercise - Presentation & competency interviews After about a week after my CV and cover letter submission, I heard back from the company saying that my application was moved forward together with the task and link to the proofreading exercise. The task involved a critical appraisal of a clinical trial paper, which did take me quite a while. The proofreading exercise was online and had a 50 min limit on it, so was quite stressful with the time pressure, but generally doable. Again heard back from Costello fairly quickly about the interview invitation, where I had a choice of either an in-person or online interview. The presentation was about the appraisal of the NICE guideline related to the previous task. The interviews were very thorough but all interviewers were very nice and friendly and answered all my questions. I even got a tour around the office afterwards which was very nice as well. I received my rejection email very quickly after the interview which also contained some useful personalised feedback (which actually helped me to get a job elsewhere!). Overall, the whole process was very streamlined and well-organised, and the recruitment team were very responsive and helpful. It was quite time-consuming, but the task and the presentation were actually quite fun to research and give you a good understanding of the kind of work that you will be doing at the company. I read other reviews which highlighted several problems with the application process, which I personally did not find to be the case, so I would highly recommend applying if this is something you want to do!
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
The questions are quite standard competency and company-fit questions Why Costello? What makes you more suitable than other candidates? What makes a good leader? How do you prioritise tasks?
I passed CV screening and went about the first round (proofreading + writing assessment). They gave me a week for that; the writing assessment involved answering some questions based on a research article, and the proofreading assessment involved making 50+ edits to an article and writing a 300 word summary of an article in 1 hour.
The recruiter + some others review it, and I was then invited to the final stage interview in Boston. It was further away, so I did it virtually -- 15 min presentation w/ questions to an analyst + senior analyst, you present on a report with a similar topic to the writing assessment, and 45 min behavioral interview with a more senior leader. Interview ran long (they ask a lot of presentation followups) and I ended 25 minutes past the timeframe haha, but all good I hope. Interviewers were all sweet and gave gentle feedback/broadened some of your responses in the moment, if needed. It was a bit tough, but make sure to prepare well, and you got this! Still waiting to hear back and will update the result later.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell me about yourself/why this role? Why Costello specifically?
What would you do if a client told you that you made a mistake in your work?
What kind of culture are you looking for in your workplace?
A time you managed multiple deadlines?
Your background in science and/or writing?
Make sure to ask your interviewers some good questions!
I applied through an employee referral. I interviewed at Costello Medical (London, England) in Feb 2026
Interview
1st stage: submitting CV
if you pass the CV screen: Timed proofreading test and an assessment on a paper on drug discovery
The timed proofreading test was very challenging and required attention to detail and staying cool underpressure.
I applied through an employee referral. I interviewed at Costello Medical in Nov 2025
Interview
Starts with CV and Cover letter. Then a scientific writing and timed proofreading assessment. Finally, a presentation and Behavioural + Technical interview, followed by an interview with the Head of Department.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Why Costello? Why are you a good candidate? How would you handle conflicting feedback? How do you deal with mistakes? Do you have experience with scientific communication?