After: - 2 phone screens - A portfolio review - 2 in-person interviews - An extensive skills test (that wasn't even offered to be paid) - Several weeks of waiting Was told they're going through a hiring freeze and it'd be another 2 months before they could have answer. They reassured me multiple times that I was the top candidate for a hard to fill position and wanted to bring to me on board, stopping just legally short of saying they'd hire me once it all worked out. After 2 months of waiting, they then returned with a choice, either: a 3-month contract gig or be willing to relocate to halfway across the state for a full time position despite them knowing from the get go, that I was only looking for full time employment where I was at. I declined both. I relayed my story to a close friend who told me a similar story interviewing there, where after 2 phone screens, and 2 week long tests that they're only "exploring people they might possibly want to work with in the future and not actively hiring." It seems like a lack of internal and external communication make for recruiting process that's frustrating at best and borderline predatory at worst.