PBF Energy is a US independent petroleum refiner (six refineries incl. Torrance, Delaware City, Paulsboro, Chalmette, Toledo, Martinez) whose hiring loops are refinery-site-driven rather than centralized. First-hand candidate accounts are sparse: engineering interns describe a phone screen that is a small technical panel (a couple of lead process engineers plus their supervisor) rather than a solo HR chat, and operator/technician candidates describe a multi-phase assessment-then-callback pipeline. There is no public writeup of a full end-to-end loop with a stated outcome, and no dedicated interview-process page on the corporate careers site.
These 2 writeups cover process engineering, refinery operations, skilled trades roles, US only (CA + Gulf/NE refineries). All of them were posted under a pseudonym (Reddit, GeeksforGeeks or forum handles), so we could not verify the authors’ identities.
Typical rounds
1.51-2 range
Most common round
Panel
Sources span
2024 - 2025
Most frequently reported · Aptitude(1), Distillation(1), Past projects(1), Process safety(1), Refining processes(1)
What PBF Energy is hiring for now
38 open roles in our index · advertised pay floors run $107k-$127k (median $108k, from 23 postings that state pay).
Process Engineering Intern (Torrance Refining / PBF Energy)
Internship
Outcome not shared1 round
1
Technical panel phone screenPanel
The candidate reports that the phone screen for a Torrance Refining process-engineering internship is a panel with two lead process engineers and their supervisor, so it leans technical rather than behavioral. Advice from ChemE peers on the same thread points at knowing distillation column basics (reboiler, reflux, tower components) and a broad overview of core refinery units like FCC, hydroprocessing, alkylation and crude, plus being ready to talk about how you approach problems and work in teams. Torrance's post-2015 FCC-incident safety culture is a suggested angle for candidate questions.
Covered · Distillation, Refining processes, Process safety, Past projects
The candidate reports going through a phase-1 assessment battery as the opening step of PBF's operator/technician pipeline. Recruiters told the group they would be notified either way, but the candidate was still waiting more than a week later, which fits the pattern of a slow batch-mode screener.
Covered · Aptitude
2
Phase 2 assessment (gated)Assessment centre
Only candidates who pass phase 1 are invited to phase 2; the poster had not yet reached this stage, so the phase-2 content is not described. The two-phase gating itself is the concrete structural detail.
PBF Energy is a US independent petroleum refiner (six refineries incl. Torrance, Delaware City, Paulsboro, Chalmette, Toledo, Martinez) whose hiring loops are refinery-site-driven rather than centralized. First-hand candidate accounts are sparse: engineering interns describe a phone screen that is a small technical panel (a couple of lead process engineers plus their supervisor) rather than a solo HR chat, and operator/technician candidates describe a multi-phase assessment-then-callback pipeline. There is no public writeup of a full end-to-end loop with a stated outcome, and no dedicated interview-process page on the corporate careers site.
What topics does PBF Energy test in interviews?
Commonly reported topics include Distillation, Refining processes, Process safety, Past projects, Behavioral.
These guides summarize public, first-hand interview experiences shared by candidates. They describe the shape of each loop and the topics that came up, not a leaked question bank, and every experience links back to its original source. Processes change often. Treat this as directional prep, not a script.