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Interview Tips

17/02/2020

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Interview Tips

Interview tips

Purpose

The main purpose of an interview for a company is to get an insight into a candidate’s personality, achievements and capabilities. For a candidate it provides you with the opportunity to see whether the position and the company is a good fit for you personally.

There are lots of different interview types dependent on the type of job role.

However, here are some of the most popular ones:

  • The traditional one-to-one interview is used to help the interviewer figure out if you are right for the role by asking you questions surrounding the job role and company.
  • A phone call could be a pre-screening of a face-to-face interview, gauging your telephone manner as well as getting some of the initial questions about your experience out of the way before deciding to meet face-to-face.
  • A competency test is usually used to test key skills needed for the job role you have applied for. This way, employers can rule out candidates who are clearly unsuitable before a face-to-face interview.
  • Panel interviews can seem daunting as they involve a face-to-face meeting with more than one interviewer. However, as long as you have done your research about the company and take your time answering the questions, you will come across confident and collected.
  • Group interviews are usually used for hiring multiple people for the same job and more often than not include group activities in which you will need to try to stand out.

It is neither good nor bad to interview first or last. It depends on your outlook. Go in with positivity and confidence about the interview and it won’t matter whether you’re first, last or somewhere in-between because you would’ve hopefully made a good impression regardless.

To introduce yourself in an interview, start with a handshake and your name and follow with ‘nice to meet you, thank you for inviting me.’ Make and keep frequent eye contact throughout and be sure to smile. You want to look like you are happy to be there even if you are feeling nervous.

Preparation

To relax before an interview, take deep breaths if you are feeling nervous and feel free to ask for a glass of water but practice confidence! If you have researched enough beforehand, you should be confident going in and if you believe in yourself the interviewer is more likely to believe in you too.

There is no set amount of hours you should spend preparing for an interview. However, to prepare for an interview, RESEARCH! Don’t go into the interview not knowing who you’re interviewing for. If you’re making things up about their company they will know. You will need to research the company, have a list of questions about them and the potential job role and try to research the interviewer. Don’t overload yourself with information that you won’t remember, try to remember a few key facts about the company and write down anything you think is relevant to the job you’re applying for.

Make sure your clothes are ironed and ready to go the night before so that you have less to worry about when you wake up and remember, confidence is key.

Revise your CV as well as researching the company so that when the interviewer asks you to explain something you have written, you know what to say and what they are talking about.

If you need to prepare for an interview last minute, Google is your best friend, use it! Research some key points about the company and the job description and make sure you know your own CV inside and out. You don’t want to stumble over something you forgot you had even written. Write down a few questions about the company or job description to show that you have come prepared even though you didn’t have much time.

In terms of what not to do whilst waiting for an interview, if you are early for an interview and you are sat in a waiting room, don’t assume that you out of sight. Nerves can sometimes get the better of you but keep the nail biting, singing and whistling for another time as the interviewer may be able to hear or see you and you don’t want to make a bad first impression before the interview has even begun.

During the Interview

To impress the interviewer, self confidence goes a long way. If you believe in yourself, the interviewer will be more likely to believe in you too. They aren’t going to want to hire you if you don’t believe that you should be hired. Smile and be enthusiastic about the job you are interviewing for.

A good interview is when you take the time to understand the company by linking your skills and experience to how it would benefit the company you are interviewing for and showing how you would fit into their culture.

The interviewer is more than likely going to ask if you want a glass of water to break the ice before or during a more formal conversation. Thinking about accepting water should be the least of your worries at an interview so relax and take some water if you want it.

Make sure you are dressed smartly for an interview and that your clothes are ironed. As long as you don’t look scruffy and have stains on your clothes, a simple shirt and trousers combo is always a good go to outfit. First impressions count for a lot so make sure you look professional.

Questions

If you want to take notes, you should ask at the start of the interview if it would be okay. You shouldn’t have to ask them to repeat themselves because you were too busy writing down how many holidays you’d be allowed if you were to get the job. If the interviewer says yes, make sure you are still listening to what they are saying whilst you are writing.

What questions should you ask in an interview? Well, don’t try to stump the interviewer by asking a question they will find hard to answer. If you don’t have any questions about what the interviewer has mentioned through the interview, take a few fail safe questions with you, like:

  • Can you tell me more about the day-to-day responsibilities of the job?
  • Can you tell me more about the culture of the company?
  • What is your favourite part about working here?
  • What are the next steps in the recruitment process?
  • Are there any progression opportunities? / What progression opportunities are there?
  • What are your expectations for the first 3/6 months in the role?

You can take a list of questions into an interview. It shows you’re prepared and have done your research and will show your willingness to learn more about the company.