Interviewing Tips and Advice

I will be discussing interviewing tips I’ve learned from my own experiences as well as some mistakes I’ve made along the way.

For some background, I have been working in human resources for the past seven years and also majored in human resources in college. I did not know right away that I wanted to work in human resources. I originally started out as a finance major and didn’t really enjoy the courses I was taking and I truly could not picture myself working in finance.

As I was taking finance classes, I was also taking HR classes and really started to gravitate towards the HR field (which I know is shocking considering how quiet and introverted I am, when HR is a very people oriented field.)

The summer going into my junior year of college, I decided to meet with a career advisor through my school’s career services center. My career advisor looked through my resume and gave me tips on how to improve and revise my resume considering I had little to no prior work experience.

Resume Tips

Some tips my career advisor gave me included adding in relevant coursework and projects.

Another tip is to include soft skills such as:

• Communication
• Teamwork
• Problem Solving
• Time Management
• Problem-solving

These are skills employers look for to see if the candidate is qualified to meet the requirements of the job. For example, if there are two candidates being considered for a position with similar experiences, the employer is most likely to hire the one that is more willing to learn and collaborative.

I also recommend adding a section on your interests and hobbies as a way to help “fill up” the space, but by adding this in, it’s actually a great conversation starter and lets the employer get to know you more outside of your career interest.

Preparing for the Interview

When it comes time to interviewing with various companies some tips I can pass along are:

1. Research, Research, Research – I cannot stress how important this is. It’s important for you to do your homework on the company that is interviewing you. I recommend looking at the company’s website to see what work they do. Take a look to see if they have a mission statement or if they have their core values listed on their website. Check to see who their clients are, if they have any information on their company culture and lastly, definitely research the person that is interviewing you.
2. Have questions ready to ask – Write down some questions you want to ask whether it’s about the job, or the company. You want to show the interviewer that you are engaged and interested in the job and the company, but do not ask about salary and benefits unless the interviewer brings it up. It’s also important to review any questions the interviewer might ask you such as “What are your strengths & weaknesses?” Questions like these help employers see how well you think on your feet.

The Day of the Interview

1. Come Prepared – Make sure you arrive to the interview 10-15 minutes early and bring extra copies of your resume. Chances are the person interviewing you already has a copy on file, but you never know if they might want you to meet with more people while you are there. If there are any work samples or portfolio’s that might be helpful, bring it! It will help the employer get a sense of your work.
2. Dress Professionally – This might be a given, but it’s important to dress professionally even if the interview is on Zoom. With the pandemic, most companies transitioned into virtual interviews and we all know the infamous work from home uniform. However, if your interview is on Zoom, I recommend wearing a blazer with a blouse or shirt, and for the bottom…just go with your pajama pants!

During the Interview

1. Types of Interview Questions – Employers will ask various types of questions such as behavioral and or situational. It’s how you respond to these questions will help the employer understand how well you think on your feet, even if the question might be a difficult one to answer. Employers should never ask you personal questions.
2. It okay to be nervous – This is something that has taken me a while to accept. It is absolutely 100% okay to be nervous, interviews can be intimidating! Just be yourself and let your personality shine through. Remember, interviews are all about the candidate! Think of the interview as your time to shine, it’s an opportunity for you to showcase not just your professional background, but who you are as a person. When companies are looking to hire, they are also looking for a personality match in addition to your qualifications.

After the Interview

1. Follow-up with a thank you note – I always recommend sending the interviewer a thank you note the next day after the interview. A thank you note can help highlight certain topics you discussed during the interview as well as reiterating your interest in the job.
2. Follow-up – A pet peeve of mine is when recruiters and hiring managers will say “we’ll get back to you” and then you never hear from them. If a week has gone by and you haven’t heard anything, I would definitely follow-up with the interviewer for an update.
3. Rejection – If you are in the process of interviewing whether you are a recent grad, still in college or have been in the workforce for several years – always remember that every “no” will lead you to the perfect opportunity.

Interviewing Advice

When I started interviewing with companies out of college, it took me 5 months after I graduated to land a full-time job. I was constantly stalking Indeed and other job boards and was applying to positions I didn’t think I was qualified for. After getting rejected multiple times, I finally found an opportunity that truly was the perfect job. Just remember every “no” will lead you to what is meant for you. I have learned that each of those rejections were opportunities for me to improve my interviewing skills and without those rejections, I wouldn’t be where I am at today.