The first job interview is an important life event in the life of any person. Many would remember with nostalgia the attitude, thoughts, and feelings they had. Others would laugh at their foolish mistakes and naïve questions, a few might be perfectly satisfied and non-critical of themselves, but whatever the attitude, everybody goes through this at some point in their life and everybody learns a great deal from it.
5 Interview Tips
Below is a list of basic recommendations of how to approach an interview:
- Find out as much as possible about the employer and the specific job. Employers EXPECT that candidates are keenly aware of the field they are attempting to enter, of the specific niche occupied by the employer, of the responsibilities and tasks they are likely to face. Nobody expects an expert-level understanding of all these, but not knowing enough is a sign that the candidates haven’t done their homework or can even be qualified as a sign of disrespect or lack of interest.
- Think about the most common interview questions in an attempt to anticipate what you’ll be asked, and answer all these questions in detail. If you reflect well enough, chances are many of these questions will be identical or partially overlapping with the ones addressed by the recruiters. Moreover, this is a very efficient exercise for building up confidence. To go even farther, try to do a practice interview with a friend or family member.
- Ask questions – an interview can be viewed as a negotiation act between two parties. It is not only the recruiter who is supposed to ask interview questions but also the interviewee. This is a good chance to find out more about your potential job, employer’s expectations, growth prospects, the salary, the working environment, etc. By asking questions (especially the right ones) you also show interest in the company and the specific position, which works towards a positive image in the recruiter’s eyes.
- Have manners: don’t be late for the interview, dress appropriately (clean and formal), do not interrupt, listen carefully and attentively, don’t answer the phone and don’t forget to turn it off (if you do and it rings, excuse yourself and turn it off immediately), be patient and polite, thank the recruiters for their time, make sufficient eye contact, etc. One more important suggestion is to not ask about the salary at the very beginning of the interview – you won’t stand up and leave if you don’t like the figure, so be patient and ask about it later.
- Bring supporting documentation that you think might prove useful. Ideally, you should be ready to leave copies of your transcripts, study diplomas, project portfolios and everything else that might prove relevant. This demonstrates that you prepared for and anticipated this part as well. In the end, you might benefit from this yourself – the recruiter might process your application faster.
Yet another important preparatory part for an interview is writing a good CV. The CV plays a role similar to that of a personal statement when applying to college. It is intended to describe the candidate’s education, work experience, skills, and achievements, hence, it plays a huge role in portraying the candidate in front of prospective employers. Since writing a good CV is a prerequisite for being invited to an interview, one can find personal statement writer at Edubirdie and ask him to write a personal CV and cover letter instead. This way, you’ll ensure that the CV matches expected standards in terms of content but also of writing language and style. Importantly, to get a CV maximally tailored to your biography and personality, you should provide the writer with sufficient information about yourself.
You Got This!
Hopefully, these 5 basic suggestions offered a valid impression of what it means to prepare and pass an interview. You might also explore this list of 15 tips to get a better idea of how to behave on the interview day and prior to it. Note that lots of first job interview tips deal with how to overcome anxiety, shyness, communication barriers, the imposter syndrome, they list tricks to better control your body, etc. If you are known to suffer from these, there is plenty of good advice and techniques to follow. One thing that will help with all of these is practice!