The days of a simple interview are gone!!
That's for sure.
There are no longer the high calibre Management Pilots that could once just look at a guy, his log book and chat for 20 minutes to know if he had the "right stuff" for the airline. Now you have pyschometric testing, co-ordination skill testing, crminal/schooling back ground checks, medicals designed originally for space cadets, minimum of two interviews varying from 30 minutes to 1hr 30 minutes, pay your own airfares and accommodation costs and, if you get through all that, pay for your own rating.
All this after just forking out $100,000 plus for a CPL, MECIR or Instructor rating.
Why do guys go through it?
