Welcome to the last post on securing a placement year. Today we'll be talking about interviews, how to prepare for them and how to ace them.
I'll be breaking this post down into 2 sections: Prepping for interview & Doing the Interview. I'll then finish off with some last bits of advice for the placement process in the end.
When invited for interview:
1) When you first receive news that you've been invited for interview, first of all well done! At this point I highly recommend letting your university's Placement Team know. They may be able to put you in touch with students who had/are working at that company, and can do a mock interview with you if it's your first interview.
I was offered to do a mock interview, and happily accepted it. I learnt how to properly answer questions the interviewer might ask using the STARR technique: Situation, Task, Action, Result, Reflection. My answers prior to this would always be very brief, thinking if I just mention the situation and what I did it would be enough. However, interviewers care less about the situation itself and more about how you handled situation. How did you contribute to solving the problem? Why did you do that? What was the result and how did ensure success? They want to hear you talk loads because they want to get to know you better.
Research the company well before the interview. When we're applying for so many positions, we don't have the capacity to look too deep into what each company does. However, once you get an interview, research the company like you're a private investigator. Know about the history of the company, their values, what they're currently working on, what they hope to achieve, their sustainability practises. Everything you feel is worth knowing, or you'd like to share you know about them in the interview, write it down. So that way if they ask you "why would you like to work for our company", you can mention why the company as a whole appeals to you, as well as the specific job role itself and how it aligns to your passion and experiences.
Before the interview, it would be good to go over some questions that they're likely to ask you.
“tell me about a time where a project didnt go as plan”, “tell me about a time you took a leadership position”, “why did you choose your degree?”, “what appealed to you about this role?”, “can you name some of the ingredients in xxx product? for R&D”, “tell me about a time you created something new”, “can you give a time where you showed integrity?”, “what appeals to you about our business?”, tell me about a time you used great communication skills
do a tech test before hand
have a nice outfit prrapred
get good night sleep
est your tech beforehand ! lighitnf, sound, battery
during interview
be genunie and yourslef
show your enuthasim for the role
stick paper behind you
have a drink to hand
its okay to pause and think - its show you can give thpightful answers and arent someone who rushes
when they ask if have any questions - yes you do!
Personal advice:
mental health is first! your worth is not defined by whether you get accepted or rejected. they dont know you and are doing a rating based on a couple sheets of paper.
try to keep your application process private until you get an offer and dont bother asking friends what they;re up to in theirs if applying . Be focused on yourself. whether they get a placement before or after you doesnt affect your journey.
have a balanced life - while applications may keep you busty - remeber to eat well, move your body, take screen breaks and have socialising time. and try not skip lectures - unless for an interview! getting a placement isnt the end all or be all .
Comments
Post a Comment