I certainly don’t need to tell you that interviews can be stressful. You’re sitting down in front of your potential boss or supervisor and spending the next half hour or so being grilled on your work experience, how you reacted in certain situations, and how you would react in different hypothetical scenarios, all while also having to give a sales pitch on why you should be selected over all the other candidates. On top of this is the knowledge that the person(s) interviewing you will be analyzing your responses and discussing it over with their team later. I mean, what’s more fun than that?
Despite how nerve-wracking interviews have the potential to be, there are plenty of ways to prepare and strategies to incorporate into your interviews to help make them overall good experiences where you feel confident in yourself and your skills. As someone who has recently spent a fair amount of time as the interviewee (I am a senior about to graduate college–- need I say more?) and also someone who has just recently helped conduct several interviews (my team and I are selecting the new executive board for the registered student organization I am the president of), I have a few suggestions that I hope you will find helpful. Here are five tips and tricks – applicable across the board – to help you nail your next interview.
1. Ask questions
Go into your interview with at least 2-3 questions already written down. Some of these questions can be generic so they can apply to all of your interviews. An example of this could be: “What does a typical day of a [insert job position] look like?” It’s also a smart idea to have at least one question that is specific to the organization you are interviewing with. This will show your interviewers that you have done your homework and that you are really interested in this position and not showing up to the interview just because it was available. In addition, this will hopefully help you to get a better understanding of what you will be getting yourself into should you be offered the position.
Also, brainstorm questions to ask while the interview is going on. Interviewers will typically ask if you have any questions before ending the interview, and having questions to ask that build off of the information they just gave you shows that you are paying attention and also reinforces your interest in the position.
2. Express interest in the organization and mission of the program
It’s not uncommon to be asked why you are applying to the specific program, job, or department that you are interviewing for. From my personal experience, I have learned that while it’s great to speak about skills directly related to the position (ex: if you are applying to be a research assistant, speaking on your experience with data collection tasks), it is also important to speak more broadly as to your interest in the goals, missions, and values of the program. To use the research assistant example again, you’re likely going to be working on a specific study that will have its own specific goals – talk about those! It’s great to check a lot of boxes, but even better if you can also show passion and identify a clear reason why you want to be working for that organization in particular.
3. Don’t forget your transferable skills
All too often, we can get caught up in the fact that we don’t have all of the exact experience that a job is looking for. If you find yourself in this position, know that most jobs are understanding to the fact that most people – especially college-aged individuals just coming out of school – won’t be able to check every single box right off the bat. However, it’s important that you don’t stop there. Continue to market yourself and pull on the experiences that you do have. This is where transferable skills come in, a term that refers to skills that may not be job-specific, but can be applicable in multiple careers and positions – think teamwork, communication, etc.
Highlighting your transferable skills can also help to demonstrate that you are willing to learn and that you’re a teachable individual. As I mentioned before, it is likely expected that you won’t know how to do every single thing that you will be responsible for in this new job, and therefore training will be a key part of your first few days/weeks there if you are accepted/hired. Transferable skills like communication, teamwork, and time management can be great ones to highlight for this purpose in particular as successful training will likely be mostly, if not fully, contingent on your ability to work with whoever trains you and showing everyone that you will show up on time every day and can handle time sensitive tasks.
Even if all of your experiences do line up perfectly with the job you are applying to, it is still beneficial to highlight your transferable skills. The more skills you can demonstrate you have, the better!
4. Express gratitude
Your interviewer(s) are likely busy people who are taking time out of their schedule to sit down and speak with you. They certainly did not have to give you an interview, so it is important to express gratitude that they are making time so you can have this opportunity. One of the simplest and easiest ways to do this is to thank them both at the beginning and end of the interview. From my own personal experience conducting interviews, I know I always really appreciated it when candidates would thank me for taking the time to sit down with them and consider them for the position. Everybody wants to feel appreciated, and even just a short statement like that can make a big difference to an interviewer.
Make sure you thank your interviewer(s) again when you hear back on whether you got the job or not. While it may seem obvious for an acceptance, it is just as important if you receive a rejection message. You never know if you’ll cross paths with these people again (or if these interviewers may know other people who you are interviewing with) and you don’t want to leave things on a bad note.
5. Remember not to take things personally
You are putting yourself out there by applying for jobs, and that means you’re going to face some rejection. Rejection can be hard, but it’s going to happen and is part of the interview process! Organizations who are hiring simply cannot select all of their applicants, even if they are qualified. Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t get the first position that you apply to – there are many reasons why an organization may not choose to hire you at that moment that have nothing to do with you/are not a reflection of your skills. Receiving a rejection notice does not mean that you do not have valuable skills or aren’t a very competitive candidate. Keep applying, keep doing interviews, and you will eventually find the right position for you.
Interviews can be very nerve-wracking and stressful. One way to make it easier is to take a few minutes to prepare and know what you bring to the table. Have confidence in yourself! Your interviewer(s) wouldn’t have asked you to interview if they didn’t think you were qualified based on your resume or other information. I completed all my interviews this past semester via Zoom, so I took the time to make some notes I could reference before each interview of the key skills and experiences I wanted to talk about as well as questions I wanted to ask. I also know from my own experience conducting interviews this semester that it was quite time-consuming conducting all of them, and it went a long way when people expressed their gratitude for me taking time out of my day to meet with them. It was also great when individuals’ passion would clearly shine through and I was confident that they would be willing to learn and willing to put time and effort into the team. For more information on ways to nail your next interview, visit Indeed’s website here. Bottom line, remember to not give up – the right job for you is out there!