Going to your first job interview can be intimidating. The idea is to go in as prepared and confident as possible. To help prepare, write down frequently asked questions and how you will answer them. Interviewers have a flare for catching the interviewee off guard, but with the confidence that you gain by being prepared, you are sure to breeze right through even the toughest of questions.
While looking for a summer job, I applied for nearly 15 jobs. I applied to work everywhere: fast food joints, nursing homes, video game stores, a hardware store, etc. I went to six interviews before I got offered a job (and in the week that followed, I was offered four others). Here is a list of the questions that I was asked the most and how I answered them. This is not a copy and paste project, remember to put your own twist on the answers and really make them your own. The interview is not only your chance to prove that you are qualified for the job, it is also the time to make yourself stand out against the other applicants.
1. Tell me something about yourself?
"I am currently enrolled at [name of school], pursuing a degree in [major] with a minor in [minor, if applicable]." Tell the interviewer what you plan to do with your degree. "I am also part of [list activities and organizations that you are involved with on campus].
2. Greatest Strength
"I'm very [positive attribute]. I think that everyone is [unique/valuable/important/etc.]. No single person can carry an entire team, it takes everyone." Put further stress on the importance of the team.
3. Greatest Weakness
"Sometimes I tend to [list another positive feature, but tell how it can be problematic]. I just have to [insert how you manage the "problem"] to make sure that everything gets done.
4. "Where do you see yourself in five or ten years?"
5: State what you hope to be doing/what you hope to have accomplished in five years.
10: If you have a plan, don't be afraid to share. If not, answer with something like" "I don't like to plan that far into the future. Life is good at throwing curve balls."
5. "Why do you want to work here?"
"It is clear that the team that you have here is dedicated to [whatever the company does] and that is something that I want to be a part of." Put further importance on how wonderful the company is.
6. "Why should we hire you?"
Be honest! Tell them why you are the best. A possible answer could be: "I'm a really hard worker and I am confident that I would be a great fit for the team.
7. "What do you like to do outside of work?"
List hobbies that show off your skills, adding to reasons to hire you. You can mention anything, including: gardening, painting, hiking, canoeing, knitting, and clubs of the educational variety.
8. "What are you doing to become successful? How are you successful?"
"That all depends on how you define success." Explain how you define success, then list the things that you are doing in order to become successful or what makes you currently successful. Finally, reinforce your definition of success.
9. "This job can be stressful. How do you plan to deal with that stress?"
"Things only become stressful if you let them. The best way to beat stress is to simply go with the flow and let things go."
10. "How would you say that you handle being under intense pressure for extended periods of time?"
"I work well under pressure because I do not let the pressure get to me." Explain how you let go of all the stress of the work day when you go out the door. Tell the interviewer that you go to the gym after work, focus on your family, have other things to be thinking about, or something else that is positive.
