This whole experience felt manipulative and insulting. I was given glowing feedback, told I was the top candidate out of 15, and then assured the job would be mine if someone else declined—only to be left hanging while they waited on that person’s decision. It wasn’t just poor communication; it was a calculated way to keep me emotionally invested as a backup. If they’d just been honest and professional, I could’ve moved on with clarity. Instead, they strung me along with false hope, wasting my time and energy. No candidate deserves to be used like that.