Advice for a job interview

Before the interview

• Get to know everything you can about the company
• Study your capacities, experience and education
• Take your résumé with you. You have to know it perfectly because the interview will be based on it.
• Make yourself a relation of your weak points and prepare arguments to defend them
• If you are given an appointment in a written form, it is correct to call and confirm your assistance.
• Do not show up wearing dark glasses
• Verify your appearance (avoid showy clothes; be well dressed, clean and shaved)
• Go alone
• Come early (5 minutes early)
• Prepare your interview, the person responsible for the selection will do it as well

During the interview

• Make a good impression. First impressions are very important. Greet the interviewer with a conventional formula: Good evening Mr. Ruiz
• Sit right, not at the edge of the chair (insecurity), do not lounge (disrespect)
• Do not be first in extending the hand
• Shake hands with the interviewer and smile, looking him in the eyes.
• Do not sit down until you are told to do so
• Be intent and prepossessing
• Avoid becoming nervous and try to omit the gestures that indicate to your nervousness like biting fingernails, beating a pen against the table, moving constantly in the seat...
• Do not smoke
• Do not interrupt
• Look the interviewer in the eyes but without intimidating
• Let the interviewer to take the initiative
• Do not speak too much or too little
• Watch your language
• Do not be to aggressive or too sensible
• Do not come too close to the interviewer
• Do not put the elbows on the table of the interviewer
• Do not cross your arms, it can seem that you are defensive
• If you are offered a drink you can accept it but only if it is non-alcoholic
• Think before answering
• Answer clearly and briefly
• Always tell the truth
• If you are asked about yourself, emphasize your formation, experience and results of your works
• Do not use sophisticated words
• Do not dodge the questions or answer with doubts, nor with monosyllables
• Do not take too much time to answer, it might look like a symptom of distraction
• Do not use incisive expressions like "always, ever", nor use clichés "this", "well"...
• Demonstrate enthusiasm for the work, but do not beg for it
• Do not say bad things about the companies where you have been employed
• Do not refuse to answer questions
• Think positively
• Do not beg for the position
• Do not say that you need the job very much
• Do not criticize your past superiors
• Example: Do not say, "I have just finished my studies and do not have professional experience" the correct answer would be "I am free to work and ready to put into practice all the knowledge that I have acquired in my studies
• Ask questions about the possibilities of promotion, the company or the job
• Express your gratitude

After the interview

Analyze the results, note down strong and weak points ... it can be useful for the second interview or for the following interviews in other companies.

Possible questions that you can be asked in an interview

Personality

• Tell me about yourself
• Tell me an anecdote of your life in when you successfully solved a problematic situation
• What gains the company if they hire you instead of another candidate? What distinguishing element do you contribute?
• If you were realizing this selection and I was the candidate: what qualities would you like me to have?
• Do you like working with the people or you prefer to work alone?
• Are you considered to be a leader or a follower? Why?
• Which was the most important decision that you adopted in the past?
• Define yourself with five qualifying adjectives. Justify them.
• What have you learned from your errors?
• Do you usually finish what you begin?
• Think of...... a teacher, a friend, your fiancé / fiancée. If I asked one of them about your personality: what do you believe he/she would answer?
• If all the works had the same remuneration and the same social consideration: what would you really like doing?
• Describe your scale of values
• What type of people do you find irritating?
• What is your usual reaction to the hierarchy?
• How do you integrate in a team of work?
• In your opinion, what impression of you will I have after this interview?

Education

• Why did you study architecture, law, economics.........?
• How did you decide to study.............? What other careers were you attracted by?
• Who had greater influence on you at the time of choosing your career?
• What subjects did you like more / less and in which did you get higher/ lower notes?
• What is the level of significance of your personal effort of your intelligence in the qualifications that you obtained?
• What changes would you have introduced in the curriculum of your faculty or School, if you could?
• What was the most gratifying experience during your student life?
• Do you think of continuing or extending your studies somehow?
• If you were beginning your studies again: what thing would you do in a different way?
• In your complementary formation: what seminars or short courses have you attended? What motivated you to attend them?
• Did you have any representative position during your student life? (Delegate of course...)

Previous jobs

• Tell me about your activities related to your studies
• Did you realize any work of "student" (classes, summers works, internships...)?
• What did you learn during your previous works? What were your functions? How did you earn?
• Did you have to supervise the work of someone?
• Which of your previous works did you like more / less? Why?
• What is your most creative project or solution?
• What were your relationships like with your partners, your superiors ,your subordinates?
• What was the most unpleasant situation that you have experienced? How did you take it?
• Describe the best superior that you have had.And the worst one?
• Describe a typical day in your previous work
• How did you get this work, this internship...?

Employment

• What do you know about our company?
• What attracts you about it?
• What work environment do you prefer to have?
• Do you prefer a foreseeable work or a changeable work?
• What relations do you think must be between a superior and his immediate collaborator?
• Would you be ready to move to live in another city, another country, or to travel often?
• What are your geographical preferences?
• Which do you think can be the biggest difficulty for you to move on from the student's life to the life of work?
• What department (marketing, financier, production, TV/radio commercial...) attracts you more?
• What are your strong points and your weaknesses regarding this position?
• What do you think of doing in five, ten years?
• What are your long-term objectives? How do you think will you be able to achieve your goals?
• How did you find out about the existence of this position?
• Why do you think you are going to be successful in this work?
• With what type of superior would you like to work?
• And with what type of superior do you think you would have a lot of disagreements?
• Would you be ready to realize a training course in the company, before being employed?
• How much do you want to gain now (and in five years)
• Do you prefer to be employed at a big, medium, small, public, private company...? Why?
• Do you like the predictability of a work, when you know the hour of beginning, as well as the hour of ending, or do you prefer a work where you do not know exactly what you will do tomorrow?
• When could you start working?
• Who in the previous companies where you have been employed can give us reference?
• Do you take part in other selection processes?