Going face-to-face

A successful interview starts before you step foot in the office. Here are tips on how to prepare and present yourself as a strong candidate.

Do your research

Finding out more about the company and position helps you know if the job is a good fit for you. It also helps you discover what the company is looking for in employees, and it will help you create informed questions.

Research sources

  • The company's website
  • Newspaper and magazine articles
  • Someone who works at the company
  • Job descriptions
  • Company information sessions and career fairs
  • For undergraduates: The campus career center, counselors, and professors

Build your resume and power stories

Just as your resume shares your skills and abilities, “power stories” are 60-second examples you can share with an interviewer that demonstrate your strengths. To develop your resume and your power stories, consider your experience that shows:

  • Motivation and passion
  • Initiative
  • Persuasiveness
  • Good judgment
  • Analytical skills
  • Organizational skills
  • Strong communication skills'
  • Leadership
  • Responsibility

Develop four or five of your best power stories. Each story should first explain the situation or task with which you were faced. Then explain the action you took and what the result was. Practice telling these stories, so you will be ready to use them in an interview.

Create your pitch

Your pitch is a summary to share with your interviewer about why you are excited for the interview by:

  • Thanking them for the interview.
  • Telling them why you are excited about the position and the company.
  • Listing three or four things that make you ideal for the position.
  • Telling them that you look forward to being able to share more during the interview.

Prepare questions

Create your list of questions to ask during the interview. These questions might include:

  • What are the duties and responsibilities of the position?
  • What does a typical day look like in this position?
  • What do you like best about the position? Least? What do you like best/least about the company itself?
  • How would you describe the culture at your company?
  • What kind of training might I get for this position?

The Interview

Arrive 15 minutes early. Smile and make eye contact throughout the interview. Your appearance is important, and your wardrobe should align with the company’s culture. During the interview, make sure to listen carefully. When you share your power stories, do it with enthusiasm. Ask your questions after the interviewer has finished asking theirs.

Before you leave:

  • Thank the interviewer
  • Tell them you have enjoyed meeting them and learning more about the company
  • Ask about decision timing
  • Get their business card
  • Shake hands

Review the interview

First, send a thank-you note to the interviewer within 48 hours. By evaluating the interview, you can reflect on how to improve your interviewing skills. It will also help you decide whether you think the position is a good fit for you. Ask yourself:

  • Who interviewed me? What was their role? What reaction did they seem to have to me?
  • What was my overall impression of the interview?
  • What would I do differently? What would I do the same?
  • What things did I do or say that seemed to impress the interviewer?
  • What is my impression of the job? Can I see myself doing it?
  • What is my impression of the company? Can I see myself there? What are the duties of the job?

Interview stories

Crafting your interview stories for optimal results

The below competency areas represent those you can expect to encounter most frequently during the interview process. For each one, use the SMART method to answer the interview question:

  • Result summarized:
  • Situation and metric:
  • Action(s):
  • Results:
  • Tie it back:

Analytical skills
Example: Tell me about a time when you had to work with a large amount of data.

Leadership
Example: Tell me about your most significant leadership experience.

Creativity
Example: Tell me about a time when you utilized a completely new/different approach to a situation.

Communication skills
Example: How would your former co-workers describe your communication style?

Goal orientation
Example: Tell me about two goals you have set for yourself in the last year. Did you achieve them?

Project management skills
Example: Describe a failed project you have been involved with at work and explain why it was not successful.

Team skills
Example: Give an example of your involvement in a team that was less than successful. What could you have done differently to make it more successful?

Conflict management
Example: Tell me about a situation at work in which you experienced conflict and how you resolved it.

Ethics and integrity
Example: Describe a situation in which you faced an ethical challenge in the workplace and how you resolved it.

Strategic thinking skills
Example: What are the three most common reasons why change in management fails in most organizations?

Technical ability and savvy
Example: Tell me about a time when you utilized a new tool or software platform, what where the results and what would you do differently?

Passion
Example: What are you enthusiastic about outside of work? What motivates you?