I applied online. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at T-Mobile in Oct 2009
Interview
panel interview with local and regional recruiter. An very elaborate back ground check, in which documentation of proof of employment and school may be required (in my case it was). background check took about 2 weeks for myself with an online company called hireright located at hireright(dot)com. hireright was easy to deal with but the t-mobile recuiters were more anal about the background check and every little detail. just make sure you resume is as accurate as possible.