Phd Jobs - How to prepare well for interviews

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These tips have been extracted from guidelines on the website of PhD Jobs, a leading provider of postgraduates to organisations at the forefront of innovation, especially those in education, IT and the financial sector. Although they are targeted at PhD’s they apply to interviews for virtually any role.

The key thing to remember is that your chances of success will increase in proportion to the amount of effort you put in before, during and after the interview. If you’re not willing to put in the effort, why should they be willing to give you the job?

In a way, it’s all about ticking boxes. Every box you can tick on the list below will increase your desirability to the interview panel.

Before you apply for any vacancies, ensure that your CV is as perfect as possible (and make sure you remember exactly what’s in it). That’s a topic in itself, covered in a separate article: ‘How to supercharge your CV’ which is on the phdjobs.com website. You should also perfect your technique for writing application letters.

Look on each interview as an individual work project. Plan every aspect carefully. And learn from your mistakes, so that next time, you don’t make them again.

Prepare by finding out all about the job you’re applying for and the organisation you’re applying to. Check their website, and those of competitors. Understand their objectives, their position in the marketplace, and what differentiates them from their competitors. If possible, memorise some slightly obscure facts about the organisation that you can drop into the conversation at an appropriate moment. That will show you have done your homework. Try to find out the names of your interviewers (ask the HR department), then ‘Google’ them. At phdjobs.com we have found that the knowledge our candidates gain from research gives them greater confidence and often helps them to identify useful topics of conversation.

Spend a little time thinking about what attributes the interview panel might be looking for in you. Make sure that you have the core qualities they will expect, and if necessary, can give evidence that you really do have them. Relate your question answers to what you have learned from research about the organisation and your interviewers.

If you’re giving a presentation as part of your interview, time it, practice it, and perfect it. If it’s appropriate, print up copies to leave behind. Even if you’re not giving a presentation, prepare some bullet-point notes that you can refer to during the interview, to ensure that you say everything you want to.

Don’t even risk leaving it switched on while you’re waiting in reception – you may easily get distracted and forget it’s on.

Present yourself at reception ten minutes before your interview time. Certainly no more than fifteen minutes early. But above all, be sure to allow more than enough time to reach your destination. There’s nothing worse than underestimating your journey time and arriving late, flustered and embarrassed. If you get there too early, verify that you’re at the right location, then take a stroll round the block before you check in.

Make sure you’re comfortable, and check that you don’t have dandruff on your jacket, crumbs round your mouth, or bad breath (carry a travel toothbrush or breath fresheners if necessary).

Remember that you will be talking to ordinary, normal human beings, just like yourself. They even go to the lavatory, just like you do – hold that thought as you wait for your interview and you’ll feel much more relaxed and less intimidated.

These interview preparation tips come from http://www.phdjobs.com/ the website of PhD Jobs, a leading provider of postgraduates to organisations at the forefront of innovation. Further tips, about what to do during and after an interview, are available on the phdjobs.com website.