Interview Tips & Questions
Interview Tips & Questions
The key to a successful interview is to be prepared. Schedule a practice interview with UCM’s Office of Career Services by calling 660.543.4985.
Interview Tips
- Know yourself, what you want, and your plan for getting there.
- Research the organization prior to the appointment.
- Research what the employer needs and match your strengths to those needs.
- Dress professionally.
- Bring resumes, references, and writing samples.
- Arrive on time 10 minutes early.
- Make allies of everyone . Who? Receptionist? Interviewer?.
- Concentrate on the first impression: use direct eye contact and a firm handshake.
- Establish rapport. Be optimistic, sincere, enthusiastic, and open.
- Express your willingness to learn and enthusiasm for your profession.
- Discuss what YOU can offer them - not what THEY can do for you.
- Be yourself.
What Recruiters Look For CareerSpots.com ��
Behavioral Based Interview Questions
"The purpose of behavioral based interviews is to discover how the interviewee has behaved in previous employment-related situations."
The STAR method is a structured manner of responding to a behavioral-based interview question by discussing the specific situation, task, action, and result of what you are describing to validate an answer.
Situation: |
Pick the situation that best fits the focus of the question. Describe a specific event, or situation from a previous job, volunteer experience, or any relevant event. Do not generalize; explain your past experience in enough detail so that the interviewer will understand what you are describing. |
Task: |
Explain the task you were trying to complete. |
Action: |
What action did you take to complete the task? What specific steps did you take? What was your particular contribution? Keep the focus on you. |
Result: |
What was the end result of your actions? What happened? How did the event end? What did you accomplish? Don’t be shy about taking credit for your behavior. |
- Give me an example of a time when you had to be relatively quick in coming to a critical decision.
- Provide me with a specific occasion in which you conformed to a policy with which you did not agree.
- Tell me about a goal that you set for yourself and the steps you took to reach it.
- Describe the most significant report/presentation that you had to complete.
- Tell me about a time in which you had to build motivation in your co-workers or those you supervised.
- Explain a situation where you had to go “above and beyond the call of duty” to complete a task.
- Give me an example of a time where you disagreed with a policy/decision of your employer/supervisor.
- Describe a time where your work/performance was criticized by a supervisor.
- Tell me about a time when you had to deal with a difficult customer or co-worker.
- Tell me about the most difficult assignment or responsibility you’ve been asked to take on.
Possible Interview Questions:
- Tell me about yourself.
- What are your greatest strengths?
- What are your weaknesses/areas you can improve upon?
- What have you done in the past three months to improve in these areas?
- Why are you interested in our organization?
- What college courses did you enjoy the most? The least? Why?
- What activities did you participate in during your college years?
- Who influenced you to pursue a career in _____ (insert your chosen profession)?
- What was the single greatest highlight of your college career?
- How would a group of your closest friends describe you? Faculty?
- What are some of the objectives you hope to achieve in your first year?
- What do you consider to be some of the most worthwhile innovations presently taking place in _____?
(insert your of field of study/occupational interest in the blank) - What do you consider to be the ideal work environment?
Questions You Can Ask an Employer
- What are the primary goals for this position?
- Where/How does this position fit in with the mission of the organization?
- How long have you (the interviewer) been with the organization?
- What types of internal/external training opportunities are available?
- Has your organization hired Central Missouri graduates previously?
- Describe a typical day in this position.
- What have you most/least liked about working for (name of employer)?
- What are the advancement opportunities with (name of employer)?
- Is this a newly created position or is someone being replaced?
- What are the company goals for the upcoming year?
- What are some of the typical problems I may encounter in this role?
- How does the rest of the interview process work from here? What is the time frame?
