Got an Interview?

KEY ELEMENTS

So you have been applying to internships or jobs and you got the call or e-mail you have been waiting for saying that you have been granted an interview. How exciting and nerve wracking! What do you wear? How do you prepare? What questions are they going to ask you? How do you stand out from the other candidates that will be interviewing for the same position?

Interviews can be stressful but the more prepared you are, the better you’ll perform. Below is a list of tips to help you prepare for your interview.

Dress Professionally

Always remember when it comes to dressing for an interview, you want to dress to impress. This means wear professional attire - a suit! Even if the company is very casual, it does not mean you should be yet. Remember, the people interviewing you have the job, you don’t. For detailed information on what to wear please refer to the Undergraduate Career Development handout titled Dress for Success.

Before you go for your interview you need to know about the company and their services and products. Two very popular interview questions are “Why do you want to work for this firm?” and, “What do you know about our company?” Start with perusing the organizations’ website but don’t stop there! Read company press releases, identify their primary competitors, understand industry trends, etc. Not only will this help you gain critical knowledge about the company, but it will help you develop excellent questions for the interview. For a better understanding of how you can thoroughly research employers, please refer to the Before the Interview section of this guide.

Know the Position

In addition to finding out all you can about the company, you also need to know about the position for which you are interviewing. You should be prepared to answer “Why do you want to be a ________?” If you are not able to articulate your interest in the position and why you are a great candidate, it will show! Some great resources to find out more about specific positions and industries include vault.com, glassdoor.com and the occupational outlook handbook at www.bls.gov/ooh.

Got an Interview?

KEY ELEMENTS (continued)

Familiarize Yourself with Interview Questions

Prepare Well Thought Out, Intelligent Questions

This might sound like a very basic tip, but know where you are going. For offcampus interviews, create a realistic plan for how you are going to get there. Too many students show up late for interviews because they underestimate the time it will take to arrive at their destination. Whether your meeting is on-campus or off, it is recommended that you arrive approximately 10 minutes early for an interview (unless otherwise stated by the employer).

In most cases you will get a combination of different styles of interview questions including: resume, behavioral, technical and case. We will go into more depth on these questions in the Interviewing Styles and Questions section of this guide.

As with most things in life, practice makes perfect (or at least better). It is strongly recommended that you conduct a mock interview online at your convenience via Big Interview or schedule a mock interview with your Career Advisor today (to schedule an appointment call 781-891-2375 or select one through Hanshake). Don’t wait until you have been granted an interview because that could be too late! Another great way to practice is to create a list of the necessary skills or qualifications to perform the job well (this can often be taken directly from the job posting). Once you have created a complete list, consider three times in which you successfully demonstrated each skill.

Another benefit of doing your company research is that it will help you develop some great questions for the interview. Usually, your interviewer will ask if you have any questions at the end of the interview. Always have questions (even if you asked intelligent questions throughout the interview)! We suggest preparing five questions and asking about three (use your best judgment). Keep in mind that the interview is also your time to learn things about the position and company that you couldn’t get out of your research. You can also ask them to expand on something you found out during your research. One question to stay away from is salary. With the exception of sales positions, asking about salary is a turn off and makes you look only interested in the money and not the job.