They wanted someone with a PhD from the start but interviewed lower (2xMS, 10 years in industry) anyways. They started by lowering the title when interviewing - ultimately they rejected me for lack of experience. I've never been relieved not to get a job before. Interview process was miserable - 9 am in person seminar followed by 4 hours of smaller interviews. Perfect format - but there were no breaks scheduled and the lunch was a continued interview, it's very awkward to try to eat while being grilled. It seemed like I was a token interviewee "for comparison".

Had an HR screen, interview with hiring manager, then on site interview, where I gave a presentation and back to back 1:1, or 2:1 meetings. They said afterwards they reach out to references and conduct a background check.