Communication | Business communications » Dennis Steigerwalt - Preparing for your job interview

Preparing for Your Job Interview by Dennis B. Steigerwalt, PhD Overview You’ve worked very hard to get that job interview – sent letters and resumes, registered with jobs websites, networked among professionals in your field – and now you want to make the most of your opportunity. The key component of effective and successful job interviewing is preparation. You can prepare by knowing what to expect in terms of common interview practices and processes, by rehearsing how you would answer a wide array of possible interview questions about your background and qualifications, and by researching the company or agency that will be interviewing you. Knowing that you’ve done all that you could do to prepare to “sell” yourself as the best candidate for the job will naturally lead to a heightened sense of self-confidence, and that self-confidence will also serve you well in your efforts to become an effective interviewee. Key Elements of Preparation Be aware of common interview

practices and processes: The interview has been likened to an intense conversation with a new acquaintance, and the topic of conservation is you! And the old adage, “you won’t get a second chance to make a good first impression”, is especially relevant and important in the recruitment arena – arrive at least ten minutes early, make sure that your personal presentation is top-notch (e.g business suit required, good grooming, fresh breath, clean finger nails), offer a firm handshake, maintain good eye contact, and smile! Follow the recruiters’ leads (wait to be offered a seat, wait for questions), and expect open-ended questions, questions that will require more than one or two sentences to answer. The interaction process is much like the volleying in a ping-pong game -- the interviewer offers a question, then the interviewee provides a complete, yet concise, answer, and so on. Remember, your overriding goal is to sell yourself as the best possible person for the job. If

possible, find out the nature of your upcoming interview – one-on-one, panel or group, peer group, or luncheon – knowing this in advance may affect your preparations and expectations. Talk to your college’s career office staff for additional guidance on these topics. Consider possible interview questions that might be presented: Your college’s career office will have numerous resources (books, brochures, video tapes, and possibly even opportunities for practice interviewing) that will assist you in preparing for possible questions. The primary goal is to consider in advance how you might respond to questions so that you can effectively articulate and discuss your qualifications in as professional a manner as possible, and so that you can possibly avoid “stumbling” or missing out on an opportunity to sell yourself. Since being natural or spontaneous is often also considered to be a positive trait by interviewers, your objective should not be to memorize complete answers to

these possible questions, but to develop a general outline of how you might respond. Don’t forget the basics -- be prepared to answer questions about anything on your resume Also, realizing that resumes tend to be fact oriented, you should also be prepared to answer questions that get at the intangibles of your background – your feelings, motivations and attitudes. You may also find it helpful to think back over your work experiences (summer, part-time, volunteer, internships) so that you also will be able to share anecdotal evidence of qualifications that prospective employers will typically consider to be very important, for example, maturity, motivation, competence and preparation in your field, leadership, team orientation, and achievements. Research the company before your interview: One of the most common comments from employers regarding how students might improve their interview performance is “they should do their homework and know more about our company!” Before your

interview, try to obtain company literature or visit the company’s website. Seek out information regarding their services and/or products, mission and goals, philosophy regarding their service to their clients, and their commitment to the community. If possible, try to dig even deeper and learn about their corporate structure, rank in the industry, sales and profit trends, and who their competitors are. During your interview discussion, you will have opportunities to add your observations about the company – the interviewer will know you “did your homework”, and this will definitely set you apart from your fellow interviewees. Some Final Comments All things being equal among candidates for a particular job, the one characteristic that might set you apart from your competitors is your enthusiasm. Think about how you can express this trait naturally and effectively; also, visit your college’s career center for more guidance and information. An excellent internet source for

additional info on this and other career topics can be found at www.rileyguidecom Now, get out there and knock ‘em dead!