InteraCTES

Have a Job Interview Coming Up? We Can Help !

October 02, 2023

Job interviews can be unpredictable and scary. You spend the night before tossing and turning, running through all the possible questions you might be asked and trying to craft the perfect responses. After meeting countless candidates and students, our team at CTES are all too familiar with these concerns. As such, we have compiled a list of some of the most frequently asked interview questions and how you can best respond to them.

Tell me more about yourself.

When faced with this question, you can make a mental reference to your resume and talk about your past relevant experiences. While doing so, draw links to the reasons for why you chose those career or educational paths in the first place. You can also mention the specific skills and knowledge you picked up from each experience, as well as how they are relevant to the organization and current role you are applying for. Employers value candidates that showcase genuine passion, so speak from a place of sincerity and don’t be afraid to expand on interests and values of yours that are relevant.

Why should we hire you?

This question can come across as intimidating because of how straightforward it is. The reality is that organizations are looking for individuals who can value-add to their company. Treat this question as an opportunity to set yourself apart from other candidates. You can highlight any unique traits you have that can contribute positively to the organisation. After which don’t simply stop at sharing your relevant skills but go further by identifying a need that the company has and suggest ideas to counter this problem. This is a chance to showcase your creativity and problem-solving skills.

Tell me about a time where…

Questions that require you to elaborate on past experiences where you demonstrated certain behavioral traits are called behavioral questions. Whenever you encounter this question, you can follow this ‘Five W’ rule. Your response should include when the event happened, where it happened, who was involved, what you did and why you reacted in that way. Using this guide can help you to craft more comprehensive responses when you feel stuck.

Situational Questions

Situational questions involve the interviewer providing you with a specific scenario and then asking how you would respond if you were in that position. An example would be, “What would you do if an angry or dissatisfied team member confronted you? How would you resolve this concern?”. When it comes to such questions, consider including the following components in your answer:

Taking a step back to assess the situation
Considering alternate ways to solve the problem
Focusing on the solution and adopting a can-do spirit
Sharing a similar past experience
Elaborating on any other positive things that came out of that experience

To all those who have upcoming job interviews, we hope that these tips have been helpful in alleviating some of your pre-interview jitters. We wish you all the best and remember to be yourself! If you have yet to reach the stage of securing an interview, but want some tips on resume-writing, you can also check out our article on writing an effective resume (insert link). Of course, if you would like to experience more in-depth and personalized training on how to navigate interviews successfully and much more, you can always visit our website or contact us at [email protected] to learn more.

Topic(s): Interview

Commercial World