Get interview ready

You’re ambitious.  You’re ABE-qualified.  The next step: a new job!

But in a competitive job market, standing out from the crowd and turning that all-important job interview into a job offer is a challenge, so here are some tips to help.

Before the interview

When it comes to being interviewed, remember the Benjamin Franklin quote:  “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”   He probably wasn’t thinking about job interviews at the time, but no saying could be more apt.

Pre-interview preparations should include:

• Re-read the job description and research the company.
• Thinking about the questions you are likely to be asked.  
• Preparing answers to common questions in a way that highlights your skills and personality, and then applying these to the role and the business. 
• Getting a friend to give you a mock interview, or practicing your answers in front of a mirror.
• Plan some good informed questions to ask about the organisation that show your commitment to the role.
• You may also be asked to prepare a presentation, if so allow plenty of time to give this sufficient thought and make it as polished as possible (see our guide to perfect presentations here).

Tip: make sure your answers aren’t just about you, but about how your skills are relevant to the job.  

More advice about good answers to typical interview questions can be found on YouTube and various recruitment websites. Have a look at these but use your own thoughts and ideas as well.

On the day

Some essentials for the day:

• Turn up on time. Apart from giving the impression you don't care, if you’re late to an interview,  you feel flustered and it gets the whole thing off to a bad start.  Allow an extra half or so and, if you’re there early, it gives you some extra time to think about what you want to say.
• Dress appropriately.
• Make sure you have the name of the person you need to ask for when you get there. This sounds obvious, but it’s a surprisingly easy mistake to make.

The interviewer

This is the unknown element.  Here’s a lowdown of the interview styles you might encounter: 
 

Friendly
Luckily, most people want to put you at your ease, and recognise this is the best way to get to know a candidate. Most interviewers you meet should, hopefully, be friendly. 

Tip: there is a danger you can get side-tracked by pleasant chat and lose focus.  If you find you are talking about things unrelated to work, steer the conversation back to the role and your suitability for it.

Unenthusiastic
Unlike Friendly, this type has no interest in creating a connection with you. They just want get through the interview and fill the vacancy. Expect less casual talk and more focus on business.

Tip: don’t waste time with type of interviewer. Be pleasant but focus on conveying your work ethic and your professionalism.  Build their respect by making your answers as clear and concise as possible. But be careful not to let their attitude stop you from showing enthusiasm for the role, or rush you into finishing without providing a full account of your skills.
 

Intimidating
Sometimes, an employer will want to see how you react under pressure, which gives rise to this type of interviewer. They may try to put you off by grilling you for details.    

Tip: be honest about what you don’t know and if appropriate explain how you can acquire the information. Be very clear and detailed with the answers that you do know.  Above all, keep calm and don’t let them scare you into giving rushed, unthought-through answers.
 

Inexperienced 
This may be your interviewer's first interview, or they may be new to the role themselves. This type of interviewer can sometimes ask naive questions or demonstrate a lack of understanding of the role. 

Tip: the trick is to make sure you cover all relevant areas, even if they are not asked about.  Answer all questions as thoroughly as you can even if you feel they are not directly relevant to the role.
 

Finally
 

Try not to view a job interview as an ordeal. Instead, try to see it as a challenge, and a chance to shine and show what you know.  Keep calm: if you are prepared and professional, the only other thing to remember is to be yourself.  Good luck.