Interview Questions

When attending an interview there are a few general questions that will be asked of you.

Below are some questions to be prepared to answer and tips on how to impress the employer.

Tell me a bit about yourself?

When answering this tell talk about your professional history including both the good and bad points. Tell them a little about your personal life but only things that are relevant to the industry you are trying to get into. Explain a bit about your personal attributes such as whether you are a hard worker, and your strengths and weaknesses. Focus on your strengths but everyone has there weaknesses and its good to acknowledge them and tell them how you try to avoid them or work on them.

This is an open question and is a chance for you to show your personality.

What would you do if?

This is a hypothetical question and is used to asses your ability to think on your feet. This is a question where you will show your experience and your professional ability. You may also be asked to give an example of when you have shown good customer service etc.

Are you willing to work over time?

This is a closed question. These types of questions are usually asked with a yes or no answer. Although these closed questions do not overtly require a lot of input from you, you can expand on this by asking for clarification and elaborate on past experiences. This may require you to demonstrate your technical knowledge.

Do you have good skills in this area?

With questions like this do not give a simple yes or no answer. This is a leading question, where you are expected to elaborate and give examples of previous experiences.

The ‘STAR’ Approach for Answering a Question is a simple process

S: Situation – describe the situation
T: Task or problem – what dilemma or problem did you face?
A: Action – what action did you take?
R: Result – what was the result of your action?