{"id":1798,"date":"2023-06-07T13:26:01","date_gmt":"2023-06-07T12:26:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/?p=1798"},"modified":"2023-06-22T15:50:01","modified_gmt":"2023-06-22T14:50:01","slug":"how-to-ace-a-job-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/2023\/06\/07\/how-to-ace-a-job-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"How to ace a job interview"},"content":{"rendered":"

Students, it\u2019s that time of the year again, when lots of you will be looking for employment. But we know that landing your first graduate job can be challenging.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Here are some top tips that will help you ace a job interview like a pro.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Be proactive<\/strong> \u2014 <\/span>The best advice I can give you is to be proactive and make the most of your student experience. At Teesside, you can join various clubs and societies which can help you to expand your networks and gain new skills.<\/span><\/p>\n

Plus, there are lots of opportunities to grow your experience and skills through part-time jobs, internships and volunteering.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Student
Teesside University student volunteers at the Unicorn Centre in Middlesbrough.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Research the organisation<\/strong> \u2014 Study the company\u2019s website and familiarise yourself with the different sections, such as their mission, vision, and values. Research what they do and who their clients are. It will help you make a good impression.<\/span><\/p>\n

The goal is simple, you want to work for the organisation, so show enthusiasm.<\/span><\/p>\n

Once you\u2019ve done your initial research, look beyond their website to try to find out more about them, their competitors, and the key issues in their industry. Use this information during your interview to impress the panel.<\/span><\/p>\n

You only get once chance to make a first impression. \u00a0Aim to come over as friendly, enthusiastic, positive, and professional.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Person<\/p>\n

Listen carefully<\/strong> \u2013 Listen to the questions carefully and don\u2019t rush. Take a moment to craft your answer.If you lose track during your answer, don\u2019t be afraid to ask them to repeat the question.<\/span><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t stress<\/strong> \u2014 People working at organisations have emotions too; they know interviews are daunting and remember, the panel actually want to see you do well. They will be more understanding than you think.<\/span><\/p>\n

Be ready for questions<\/strong> \u2014 Read the job description and person specification carefully and identify the key skills and experience that is suitable for a particular role. The questions will be based on these, so think about how you would demonstrate the skills and experience to show you meet the criteria.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Person<\/p>\n

Reveal but don\u2019t reveal too much<\/strong> \u2013 \u201cAre you a self-taught baker?\u201d \u201cDid you manage to write a book as a student?\u201d Don\u2019t be shy to talk about your achievements. You will be asked about your \u201cstrengths\u201d and what makes you \u201cthe right fit\u201d for the role.<\/span><\/p>\n

Think about the key points you want to make during the interview. Know your strengths and achievements and be prepared to provide examples and concreate evidence of where you have previously demonstrated those skills. Make sure you keep your answers clear and concise – there is only so much you can tell in a 45\u201360-minute interview.<\/span><\/p>\n

Prepare for task-based questions<\/strong> \u2014 These questions will be in the form of problem solving, teamwork and leadership and where you have demonstrated these qualities previously. Derive examples from your work placements, internships, education, or any volunteering work that you did.Think of questions like, \u201cHow would you handle being asked to perform a task you have never done before?\u201d and then structure your answer using \u2018STARR\u2019: Situation, Task, Action, Result, Reflection.<\/span><\/p>\n

Have your own questions<\/strong>\u2013 Be enthusiastic and engage with the interviewers. Ask them questions like, \u201cWhat do they love about the organisation\u201d and \u201cHow is the work culture?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Blue<\/p>\n

Read your application carefully<\/strong> \u2013 Go back and remind yourself about what you wrote. Be ready to talk about your experience.<\/span><\/p>\n

Make smart travel plans<\/strong> \u2013 Make sure you arrive for your interview in plenty of time. If your interview is in your city, then you could try out the journey beforehand so that you know where you\u2019re going on the day. If for any reason you can\u2019t travel, make sure you email the HR department \u2013 give them a valid reason and request for the interview to be conducted online.<\/span><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t be afraid to fail<\/strong> \u2013 We all fail at some point in our lives.Don\u2019t be harsh on yourself – if you fail, then get up and keep going. If you don\u2019t make it in one interview or land your \u2018dream job\u2019 straight away that\u2019s fine. There\u2019s so much for you in the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

And last, don\u2019t be shy to seek advice<\/strong> \u2013 You can see a Careers Adviser to discuss your interview preparation or arrange a mock interview. Y<\/span>ou can find useful resources on our careers website<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Good luck with your interviews! Let us know how you get on in the comments below…<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Adi\"<\/span><\/p>\n

Author: Aditya\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Aditya is an award-winning writer and LGBTQ+ rights activist from India. He studied his master\u2019s in journalism from the University of East Anglia and moved to Teesside to join the Communications and Development team. He\u2019s written two poetry collections and been published in a number of outlets \u2013 from The Telegraph and PinkNews to the BBC and The Times of India. Connect with him on Instagram at @aprilislush<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Students, it\u2019s that time of the year again, when lots of you will be looking for employment. But we know that landing your first graduate job can be challenging. Here are some top tips that will help you ace a job interview like a pro. Be proactive \u2014 The best advice I can give you … Continue reading “How to ace a job interview”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25149,"featured_media":1800,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false},"categories":[6],"tags":[109,137,138,135,136],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/files\/2023\/06\/Img283775-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1798"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25149"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1798"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1798\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1896,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1798\/revisions\/1896"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1800"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1798"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1798"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.tees.ac.uk\/talkingteesside\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1798"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}