Job Interviewing
Anh Nguyen
For the
last two months in my previous articles, I have shown you some tips on how to
prepare your resume benefit from your social networking sites to market your
personal brand. However, the next step is important for you to know as well.
Imagine your resume landed you an interview, and now it is time for you to seal
the deal, what do you do?
Interviewing for a job never seems to get any easier—even when you have gone to more interviews than you can count. I am always worried and nervous no matter how many I have done and no matter how well I prepare. I am pretty sure that not only me, but also many other people have the same problem and they have no idea what to do. As a result, today I will be covering some tips I think would be useful for us.
Below you will find the seven best tips to help before, during and after your interview.
1. Researching
Nowadays, you can find information on anything you want by just a few clicks on the computer. Do the research on the company that you have an interview with. Go to the company website, read the quarterly and yearly reports; review the mission statement, products and services of the company (just in case the interviewer asks you about the plan for the company). Know your interviewer’s name and position so you can use it during the job interview. If you do not know the name of the interviewer, ask prior to the interview.
2. Take Care of Your Social Networking Sites
LinkedIn is a good site where you can get a glance at some company information. Moreover, you will be able to see your connections, new hiring, promotions and statistics related to your company. In addition, you can take a look at your interviewer’s profile to get insight into his/her job and background. For your personal networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, etc., make sure that they are “clean”.
3. Practicing
In order to be good at something, we need practice, and the same goes for job interviewing. The TU Career Center provides a list of practice interview questions here.
Also, be prepared for questions you may want to ask the employer.
4. Professional Attire
Your attire is important in your career search and it affirms to employers that you take your career seriously. You do not want to make bad first impressions with employers because later you might have to work with them. The first judgment the interviewer makes is going to be based on how you look and what you are wearing that day. While students can dress casually in the classroom, going for an interview they need to dress professionally. Don’t ever wear jeans, tee shirts, sneakers, sandals or other casual clothes to the interview.
Example of what is appropriate to wear to an interview:
Females: classic business suits (pant suits or skirt suits), blouses in complementary colors (no low necklines), light makeup, neutral nail polish, no perfume.
Males: neutral colored tailed suits, long sleeved white shirt, conservative ties with subtle patterns that complement the suit.
5. Timing
Never be late for an interview. Usually when I have class and I come in 10 minutes late, my professor is already not pleased with that so I understand how an interviewer would think if his/her interviewee comes late. If you have never been to the workplace, make sure to use Google Maps or GPS to figure out how to get there one or two days before the interview day. It will help you to get familiar with the location so on that day you do not need to feel more nervous and have difficulty finding it, or even worst, get lost. Furthermore, on the day of an interview, I try going to the place one hour before the interview time. In my opinion, during that extra hour, I can just sit, breathe and stay calm in order to make sure the interview is successful.
6. Show What You Know
This is kind of challenging to me. The only solution for this is show them what you actually know, and not make stuff up. Be true to yourself and be confident.
7. Thank You Note
You should send a thank you note as soon as possible after an interview. If you are interviewing with multiple interviewers, send each one a thank you note. It not only shows your interest in the position but it also shows that you have gratitude. It may also open doors to other opportunities if you do not get the job. Sometimes, recruiters may send back job opportunities email to you later if they need someone.
There you go, now you have all the tips in order to nail your interview. I hope you have successful future interviews.
Interviewing for a job never seems to get any easier—even when you have gone to more interviews than you can count. I am always worried and nervous no matter how many I have done and no matter how well I prepare. I am pretty sure that not only me, but also many other people have the same problem and they have no idea what to do. As a result, today I will be covering some tips I think would be useful for us.
Below you will find the seven best tips to help before, during and after your interview.
1. Researching
Nowadays, you can find information on anything you want by just a few clicks on the computer. Do the research on the company that you have an interview with. Go to the company website, read the quarterly and yearly reports; review the mission statement, products and services of the company (just in case the interviewer asks you about the plan for the company). Know your interviewer’s name and position so you can use it during the job interview. If you do not know the name of the interviewer, ask prior to the interview.
2. Take Care of Your Social Networking Sites
LinkedIn is a good site where you can get a glance at some company information. Moreover, you will be able to see your connections, new hiring, promotions and statistics related to your company. In addition, you can take a look at your interviewer’s profile to get insight into his/her job and background. For your personal networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, etc., make sure that they are “clean”.
3. Practicing
In order to be good at something, we need practice, and the same goes for job interviewing. The TU Career Center provides a list of practice interview questions here.
Also, be prepared for questions you may want to ask the employer.
4. Professional Attire
Your attire is important in your career search and it affirms to employers that you take your career seriously. You do not want to make bad first impressions with employers because later you might have to work with them. The first judgment the interviewer makes is going to be based on how you look and what you are wearing that day. While students can dress casually in the classroom, going for an interview they need to dress professionally. Don’t ever wear jeans, tee shirts, sneakers, sandals or other casual clothes to the interview.
Example of what is appropriate to wear to an interview:
Females: classic business suits (pant suits or skirt suits), blouses in complementary colors (no low necklines), light makeup, neutral nail polish, no perfume.
Males: neutral colored tailed suits, long sleeved white shirt, conservative ties with subtle patterns that complement the suit.
5. Timing
Never be late for an interview. Usually when I have class and I come in 10 minutes late, my professor is already not pleased with that so I understand how an interviewer would think if his/her interviewee comes late. If you have never been to the workplace, make sure to use Google Maps or GPS to figure out how to get there one or two days before the interview day. It will help you to get familiar with the location so on that day you do not need to feel more nervous and have difficulty finding it, or even worst, get lost. Furthermore, on the day of an interview, I try going to the place one hour before the interview time. In my opinion, during that extra hour, I can just sit, breathe and stay calm in order to make sure the interview is successful.
6. Show What You Know
This is kind of challenging to me. The only solution for this is show them what you actually know, and not make stuff up. Be true to yourself and be confident.
7. Thank You Note
You should send a thank you note as soon as possible after an interview. If you are interviewing with multiple interviewers, send each one a thank you note. It not only shows your interest in the position but it also shows that you have gratitude. It may also open doors to other opportunities if you do not get the job. Sometimes, recruiters may send back job opportunities email to you later if they need someone.
There you go, now you have all the tips in order to nail your interview. I hope you have successful future interviews.