Topic: Job interview - Tips

[ChaChaMooMoo]

I had 2 video interviews last year and both of them bombed spectacularly. It just doesn't give me the same confidence as a normal face-to-face interview. The second I experienced a lag, all I was thinking about was the lag between audio/video. I had no idea whether the HR finished his questions or not (No sound plus idle video) and I ended up interrupting him more than 5-6 times. It was so difficult to be myself after that because all I was thinking was not to interrupt him. And my thesis is technical. I really had it served when I had to explain my thesis by images and formulas every 10 seconds.

I have an interview on Monday. It was a video interview at first. I politely requested them to change it to a face to face interview given my previous experiences. And they had to postpone the interview by 2 weeks to find a suitable time. But they obliged.

[AB LFC]

I decided not to do the video interview but got an email this morning saying the deadline had been extended to tonight to complete it. Still won't though, feel so uncomfortable doing something like that

[gazzalfc]

Got an interview next Thursday at 5pm. A horrible time to have an interview. But its a great chance and I need to start taking these chances because I hate going into my 4th year as a temp scientist.

So I got the job . Made up.

4.5 years. 10 contract extensions. 3 different departments as a contractor scientist and they finally decide to take me on permanently.

[Jookie]

So I got the job . Made up.

4.5 years. 10 contract extensions. 3 different departments as a contractor scientist and they finally decide to take me on permanently.

Nice one lid! Never easy being a contractor.

What area of science do you specialise in? I know from personal experience that the pharma/life science arena is a difficult place at the moment. Not a huge amount of jobs and loads of companies looking at contract work or low wages on a permanent contract.

The closures and job losses at Pfizer, Novartis, Shire, AstraZeneca plus others over the last few years have had a massive effect on Pharma jobs in the UK.

[gazzalfc]

Nice one lid! Never easy being a contractor.

What area of science do you specialise in? I know from personal experience that the pharma/life science arena is a difficult place at the moment. Not a huge amount of jobs and loads of companies looking at contract work or low wages on a permanent contract.

The closures and job losses at Pfizer, Novartis, Shire, AstraZeneca plus others over the last few years have had a massive effect on Pharma jobs in the UK.

Cheers

My background is in analytical chemistry and a lot of my friends who finished at the same time as me have been stuck doing PhD and post doc work because the job market is so crap.

I personally hated the idea of staying in academia (love being in the lab but the idea of writing up a thesis and struggling to get funding just put me off). Plus I am very lucky that im from the North West and had the best chance at a lab job compared to other places in the country. I know a lot of jobs are going but the idea of having Runcorn, widnes, Ellesmere port, Chester, port sunlight, and Warrington within a commutable distance gave me an advantage over my uni mates.

So got an initial 3 month contract thinking it would tide me over.  Well that turned into 4.5 years far to quickly than i would have liked. Just glad to get sorted

It is getting better being a contractor now. The laws have changed so you are now legally entitled to the same rights as perm staff so the past 2 years have been better. But im glad that i have some stability and can now start putting some cash aside for a deposit on a house

Plus the company i work for (that one on the Wirral with a big U as its logo) is probably one of the most stable right now so im made up

[Djibriliant]

Interview with Audi on Tuesday,, not sure what to make of it to be honest!

[Jookie]

Cheers

My background is in analytical chemistry and a lot of my friends who finished at the same time as me have been stuck doing PhD and post doc work because the job market is so crap.

I personally hated the idea of staying in academia (love being in the lab but the idea of writing up a thesis and struggling to get funding just put me off). Plus I am very lucky that im from the North West and had the best chance at a lab job compared to other places in the country. I know a lot of jobs are going but the idea of having Runcorn, widnes, Ellesmere port, Chester, port sunlight, and Warrington within a commutable distance gave me an advantage over my uni mates.

So got an initial 3 month contract thinking it would tide me over.  Well that turned into 4.5 years far to quickly than i would have liked. Just glad to get sorted

It is getting better being a contractor now. The laws have changed so you are now legally entitled to the same rights as perm staff so the past 2 years have been better. But im glad that i have some stability and can now start putting some cash aside for a deposit on a house

Plus the company i work for (that one on the Wirral with a big U as its logo) is probably one of the most stable right now so im made up

Sounds good mate. The company you are working for is defo a good one in the current climate. I've spoken to them on a consultancy basis on one or 2 occasions though my scientific background is mainly in the pharma/life sciences sector.

I don't want to derail the thread but are you working a lot with mass specs etc..Though I didn't do a degree in Analytical Chemistry I've done a lot of LC-MS/MS work in my career.

Maybe I'll set up a LC-MS/MS thread in the Science/Technology board ;-)

[gazzalfc]

Nice one, mate! Congrats!

Cheers. And congrats on your news as well.

Sounds good mate. The company you are working for is defo a good one in the current climate. I've spoken to them on a consultancy basis on one or 2 occasions though my scientific background is mainly in the pharma/life sciences sector.

Unfortunately the company decided to outsource all its analytical science resources a few years ago. They used to have an on-site analytical team that were available every day. Now all that work is done off-site. A bit sad but can understand the reasoning as its very expensive. 

[Mamzz21]

Just had an interview for a lab assistant role with Qiagen, messed it up big time as I'm not too good with these competency based questions. Thankfully got another interview for a Quality Control role next week, Any tips would be appreciated.

[gazzalfc]

Competency questions are a nightmare (especially for the brits) because the best way of answering them always makes you come off as a selfish bastard.

It always has to be about you. What have YOU done, How did YOU solve the problem, Name a time where YOU accomplished something etc.

When it comes to talking about thinks I have done within a team I can talk for hours and I enjoy that because I can think of plenty of examples of working in a team and coming to a solution. There is less and less importance placed on teamwork which is a shame.

I would say try to come up with a personal accomplishment (however small you think it is) and big it up. Make it sound more important than you think it is. Try as much as you can to bring any line of questioning back round to you and what you have done. If you ever talk about working in a team talk about how you had an influence within that team (organised meeting or took on some form of leadership within that team).

If you are really struggling to come up with something you think is significant then embellish it a little. Don't lie but make it out that it was way more important than you may think it is.

But most important of all.... relax. Interviewers dont mind if you take 20-30 seconds to think of your answer to competency based questions. Take a drink of water in with you and take a drink to give yourself that extra time to get your answer in your head.

[Phineus]

Just had an interview for a lab assistant role with Qiagen, messed it up big time as I'm not too good with these competency based questions. Thankfully got another interview for a Quality Control role next week, Any tips would be appreciated.

I'm a headhunter for senior level IT positions and the best way to approach competency based questions for me is still the STAR approach.

Obviously the more I work with a client the more I understand about their interviewing process and the better I can tailor my preparation meetings with my candidate but so many people who conduct interviews are looking for a good interviewer and not a good employee.

I've placed people for some pretty big fee's who weren't particularly good at their job but could hold a very convincing interview whereas some of the more talented candidates I have worked with often struggle to get jobs because they aren't great with interviews.

As a consultant its just as much work advising a client how to properly conduct an interview as it is to consult a candidate through the process without stacking the deck (which in my early days I did however I quickly realised a more consultative approach yields far greater results further down the line).

Anyway here is a link that breaks down the STAR approach:

http://www.interview-skills.co.uk/competency-based-interviews-star.aspx

It's pretty basic but you can't really go wrong with it. 

[Draex]

Competency questions are a nightmare (especially for the brits) because the best way of answering them always makes you come off as a selfish bastard.

It always has to be about you. What have YOU done, How did YOU solve the problem, Name a time where YOU accomplished something etc.

When it comes to talking about thinks I have done within a team I can talk for hours and I enjoy that because I can think of plenty of examples of working in a team and coming to a solution. There is less and less importance placed on teamwork which is a shame.

I would say try to come up with a personal accomplishment (however small you think it is) and big it up. Make it sound more important than you think it is. Try as much as you can to bring any line of questioning back round to you and what you have done. If you ever talk about working in a team talk about how you had an influence within that team (organised meeting or took on some form of leadership within that team).

If you are really struggling to come up with something you think is significant then embellish it a little. Don't lie but make it out that it was way more important than you may think it is.

But most important of all.... relax. Interviewers dont mind if you take 20-30 to think of your answer to competency based questions. Take a drink of water in with you and take a drink to give yourself that extra time to get your answer in your head.

Be carefull as you can drink too much and then need to pee not good for the concentration..

I'd say in regards to competency questions you need to prepare for the interview - have several deep and varied scenarios you can call upon.. There are only so many types of questions they can and will answer, so having 5-10 solid examples from your past history both personal and proffesional should give you enough to use. Stick to a solid methodology/structure for each answer it stops you waffling and looks really good - something like what is your example, how you tackled it, what it achieved, how did you feel/did you learn anything from it?

It's very important to know what you are applying for, there is no harm in googling your job title and example questions - it wont give you perfect examples, nor should you use their answers but it should give you a general idea of the direction of the interview and a bit of context.. For example if you're going to be an analyst you would need to be accurate and show how you extract data, how you influence others with only a graph, how you collate information and enable any audience to utilise it for their own uses etc. And on the other hand if you're going for a customer focused role such as customer service; your answers need to be about what you did for the customer, how you went the extra mile to give off outstanding service, how they are centric to your day to day outlook bullshit like that (I'm not customer focused haha - so not up on all the nicey nicey type smoozing)

If you feel you don't have enough examples then really you need to start creating opportunities for them - things like helping in a community center, doing an online course, joining a sports team etc. All give excellent options to give you the depth you need for your interview.. Nothing is easy and you need something that makes you stand out from the other 100 people who apply with exactly the same experience and qualifications as yourself!

[please, I have my reasons for it but...]

Combined 8 hours worth of interviews with the company. Director told me I "aced" the technical interview. Been about 10 days since I had the final interview, they said they'll definitely call within a week. Didn't. Called them, no answer. E-mailed, as if it never happened. The vacancy is no longer on their website. They gave me the benefits package, took me to a tour of the place and met everyone from the senior engineers up to the director.

Clinging on that they might give me a call next week, but even if they have chosen someone else, if this amount of time interviewing me, they should at least tell me if I wasn't chosen.

Well, I guess it is time to start again

[BRdispatch05]

Sorry to hear that Y2J

I don't understand why they wouldn't have the courtesy to at least notify you, especially considering the time and effort you, and they, put into the interviewing process. Every company's different, but if they're anything like the company I just started at, it took a full month before I was notified I had received the position.

Needless to say in the meantime I applied elsewhere.

[please, I have my reasons for it but...]

Here's the part where I don't get it.

If they chose you, why wait as well. What if you accepted another offer while they're sorting their shit out. Why don't they just tell that they have chosen you while they prepare for an offer, or maybe ask if you can work part time till they sort out all the legal crap.

It's like you want this girl who showed interest in you, but you don't return her calls and you see her talk with several other guys and you do not make the offer to take her out, then after a month after taking with several other guys, you decide to take your risk and call her out. By then, she may be with someone else already.

[Azi]

Sometimes its them doing background checks, I know when I got my job it was similar hadnt heard anything and it was zen on here who told me I had got the job rather than the company itself,

[Flash6289]

I have my first telephone interview next week. Applied for the role (it's in research and development, I'm a materials chemist) about two months ago so thought my application must have gone into the 'no' pile. It's my first interview of any kind as I've never had a proper job (did my degree before being asked to do a PhD at the same institution and I'm now writing-up in my final year) so I'm really eager to go as far as possible in the process and learn as much from it as I can. I'm 'expecting the worst but still hoping for the best' because of my lack of experience in the process (and accepting the fact that very few people get the first job they are interviewed for!). I'll be doing a lot of reading of this thread as well as advice sites. I will also be trying the tip of suiting up for the telephone interview. If anyone has any specific advice for me then it would be much appreciated. 

[viteslesrouges]

I have my first telephone interview next week. Applied for the role (it's in research and development, I'm a materials chemist) about two months ago so thought my application must have gone into the 'no' pile. It's my first interview of any kind as I've never had a proper job (did my degree before being asked to do a PhD at the same institution and I'm now writing-up in my final year) so I'm really eager to go as far as possible in the process and learn as much from it as I can. I'm 'expecting the worst but still hoping for the best' because of my lack of experience in the process (and accepting the fact that very few people get the first job they are interviewed for!). I'll be doing a lot of reading of this thread as well as advice sites. I will also be trying the tip of suiting up for the telephone interview. If anyone has any specific advice for me then it would be much appreciated. 

I had my first and only telephone interview a couple of years ago.
I actually put on a business suit and tie to get me in the mode. I also had written down my questions and had plenty of paper for making notes as the conversation progressed. The first few minutes were quite daunting but after that we were chatting normally.
Afterwards I felt pretty exhausted, probably through expending nervous energy, and was slightly disappointed when I reviewed the call. What do I know, got the 2nd interview and job!
I'm sure you'll get plenty more help from here and eh, good luck next week!

[AB LFC]

Failed so many phone interviews, every single time I asked why they said my answers needed more detail. I thought blabbing on for 5mins would be enough but they need loads of information out of you and ofcourse to talk calmly and in a clear way.

[collytum]

In job interviews, I find it helpful to go in thinking that the pressure is not just on you to impress but that its also up to the company to show you why you would be best suited there!i guess it works best if you are already in a job when doing the interview. It certainly takes the pressure off and helps you be more relaxed!

[jameshay]

Sit on your hands.

Your hand gestures give away a lot when you are inevitably gonna be bull shitting.

[Chakan]

Sit on your hands.

Your hand gestures give away a lot when you are inevitably gonna be bull shitting.

If I was an interviewer and the person was sitting on their hands I would think they were mental.

[Thush]

Sit on your hands.

Your hand gestures give away a lot when you are inevitably gonna be bull shitting.

Or you could just, you know, not bullshit?

[Flash6289]

Failed so many phone interviews, every single time I asked why they said my answers needed more detail. I thought blabbing on for 5mins would be enough but they need loads of information out of you and ofcourse to talk calmly and in a clear way.

What kind of questions were asked? And what area of work were the interviews for? I think I can be clear and calm whilst still trying to sound enthusiastic at the same time. My main worry is that I haven't necessarily had the experiences to call upon as evidence to my claims. For example my PhD has been relatively straightforward without any problems and I haven't really had to rely on other people either..

[Flash6289]

I had my first and only telephone interview a couple of years ago.
I actually put on a business suit and tie to get me in the mode. I also had written down my questions and had plenty of paper for making notes as the conversation progressed. The first few minutes were quite daunting but after that we were chatting normally.
Afterwards I felt pretty exhausted, probably through expending nervous energy, and was slightly disappointed when I reviewed the call. What do I know, got the 2nd interview and job!
I'm sure you'll get plenty more help from here and eh, good luck next week!

Cheers! So did you write down each question as they were asking it and leave a pause before answering then? I'm not sure that I could multi-task by writing the questions down myself but I would like to be able to review my answers afterwards. I doubt that I'd be able to remember the questions afterwards though as it will probably all just be a blur..

[viteslesrouges]

Cheers! So did you write down each question as they were asking it and leave a pause before answering then? I'm not sure that I could multi-task by writing the questions down myself but I would like to be able to review my answers afterwards. I doubt that I'd be able to remember the questions afterwards though as it will probably all just be a blur..

I'm not the quick at writing either!
I made sure that I'd written down the questions I wanted to ask them, that's sure to come up at some point and if they're on paper in front of you it avoids a pregnant silence.
I scribble notes though to give me an idea for a review.
Maybe you should practice with a friend or family member.?

[Flash6289]

Decided not to do a pretend one as I thought it would be like practicing penalties before trying to do it in a cup final! 

Completed the telephone interview and I actually think it went okay. It could have gone better obviously but I sort of grew into it. I started off saying "we" too much (as in myself and my supervisors) and the interviewer said I was saying "we" a lot and wanted to know specifically what I did which actually made me go into more detail in an attempt to make up for my error. I was asked at the end whether I want to continue to go for the role I originally applied for or instead for a graduate scheme position which made me think that they at least wanted me in some capacity. I said I am interested in the scheme *if* they decide that I'd be better suited to it (whilst trying to make it clear that I'd prefer the job I went for).

Face-to-face interview next (don't know when yet) and I got the impression that depending on how well that goes will decide whether they want to take me on at all, and if so, in what capacity. Feeling a lot more confident than before the call at least.

[NANDO09]

I'm looking for some advice as to how to approach employers and recruiters about my previous experience.

Basically within my previous position, I worked as an apprentice, which I believe is making me appear to be a less desirable candidate. On my CV I simply state my previous job title, “Marketing Assistant” and since the completion of my apprenticeship I've had 4 interviews with 1 job offer and 3 unsuccessful interviews. From the feedback I've received in each unsuccessful interview, I've been told that I interview well. So this isn't an issue and therefore everything appear to point towards me working as an apprentice.

To give an example last Monday after applying for a job, within 20 minutes, I received a call from the recruiter and later that day an interview request for Thursday. Come Thursday, I interview well, give a technical plan for improvement when asked about future plans, (which I gather must people don’t talk about in interviews) and am told that it is possibly 'too big a step up', despite clearly being told in the interview that technically I surpass the requirements. The interviewer also inquired as to what my salary requirements and notice period were.

My questions are should I not disclose the fact that I was employed as an apprentice?

Also, as I'm sure people are aware, under then modern apprenticeship scheme, wages are low and this is among the questions I am typically asked about by recruiters and in situations, knocked back for positions. Is there a way to evade or answer this question  without compromising my position?

Again, I mention this as I was asked of my salary requirements by the recruiter and then told the company would take into account my previous salary, however this isn't a true reflection upon my ability and quality as a candidate.

Thanks in advance.

[Red_Irishman]

Got an interview coming up for a college course as im going back as a mature student. Ill be bricking it as I dont have much Interview experience, just hope I dont cock it up.

Really need this to go well for me.

[WooltonDave]

Got an interview coming up for a college course as im going back as a mature student. Ill be bricking it as I dont have much Interview experience, just hope I dont cock it up.

Really need this to go well for me.

They have quotas to get in for mature students. I'm sure you can walk in naked aside from a couple of stratically placed balloons, having underpants on your head and pencils up your nose saying "wibble" numerous times (ala Blackadder), and still get accepted.

[Red_Irishman]

They have quotas to get in for mature students. I'm sure you can walk in naked aside from a couple of stratically placed balloons, having underpants on your head and pencils up your nose saying "wibble" numerous times (ala Blackadder), and still get accepted.

Indeed they do but it certainly isn't as easy as you would think. They don't just accept anyone and the number of applicants for mature students has greatly increased over the last few years due to the state of the economy, so it's simply not as easy as showing up.

The interview everything.

[Red_Irishman]

Got this interview in the morning for a Mature Student course.

Fucking bricking it to say the least, nervous and anxious.

Any tips on how to calm down?? 

[laximaginationzzz]

Got this interview in the morning for a Mature Student course.

Fucking bricking it to say the least, nervous and anxious.

Any tips on how to calm down?? 

CALM DOWN LA !!!

In all seriousness just try to relax and make sure you have prepared as best as possible...

In regards to your anxiety - take some long deep breathes and focus your mind solely on this action

Get yourself to bed at a reasonable time and get yourself down to the interview 10 mins before it starts

To put a positive spin on things at least you don't have to wait all day for your interview!

Good luck and be yourself

Regards

Rawk Dad

Haha 

[Red_Irishman]

CALM DOWN LA !!!

In all seriousness just try to relax and make sure you have prepared as best as possible...

In regards to your anxiety - take some long deep breathes and focus your mind solely on this action

Get yourself to bed at a reasonable time and get yourself down to the interview 10 mins before it starts

To put a positive spin on things at least you don't have to wait all day for your interview!

Good luck and be yourself

Regards

Rawk Dad

Haha 

Yeah waiting all day would absolutely kill me, thankfully its really early!

Ive been told to have a shot of whiskey beforehand, not sure if its advisable though!

Thanks mate

[McrRed]

Do not have the whiskey.

Read back through the thread, there are some good ideas in here.

Good luck!

[Broad Spectrum]

Don't take anything before! 

[Red_Irishman]

Don't take anything before! 

  Haha didnt take anything mate!

Done it today and I thought I done really really well but you never know I suppose. I was happy myself walking out of it so!

I was really really anxious beforehand, never experienced anything like it. Got through it though!

[laximaginationzzz]

Haha didnt take anything mate!

Done it today and I thought I done really really well but you never know I suppose. I was happy myself walking out of it so!

I was really really anxious beforehand, never experienced anything like it. Got through it though!

Well in lad

[MBL?]

Got an interview at an insurance company on the horizon. At 29 this will be my first proper interview and it's for office work which I have no experience in. My friend who got me the interview seems very confident of the outcome but I'm absolutely bricking it.

Will take some of the advice from this thread and see how it goes.

[Red Genius]

Got an interview at an insurance company on the horizon. At 29 this will be my first proper interview and it's for office work which I have no experience in. My friend who got me the interview seems very confident of the outcome but I'm absolutely bricking it.

Will take some of the advice from this thread and see how it goes.

Good luck fella, a lot of folk i know shit their brick when going for interviews, but i've always felt it's far easier if you consider it 'just a conversation' - i've no doubt i've looked an arrogant son of a bitch as i've leant back in my chair, legs crossed... but at the end of the day, without the pint, its just a chat about you's and them - as you would down the pub over a pint.

All the best mate.