How to Prepare for an Interview

The interview is a major part of the recruitment process. The recruiters get to meet you for the first time at the interview. Therefore, you have to be well prepared. Here are tips on how to prepare for an interview.

Know the Medium for the Interview.

The first thing you should know before you begin preparing is how the recruiter will conduct the interview. Would it be a live interview in a hall or would it be virtual? Knowing the medium for the interview would determine what you prepare and how you go about it.

Virtual Interview

If the meeting will be held online, you will need to make sure you prearrange a quiet and private space where you can interact with the interviewer without any distractions. You should also ensure that your space is well lit.

Furthermore, you should check your camera and audio devices on your phone or laptop (whichever you decide to use) to ensure they are working effectively. Remember to keep a tidy background that is devoid of distracting images. You can use a virtual background if you choose to.

Face-to-face Interview

If the meeting is to be held face-to-face in a specified location, you have to make sure you are well-groomed. Have clean nails, a tidy hairdo, and well-coordinated clothes that fit your body shape and are not too tight or too loose on you. Look smart. This rule applies to virtual interviews too.

Arrange your Documents.

This rule cuts across both modes of meeting. Arrange your credentials that are relevant to the interview and keep them handy. For virtual meetings, you might make a slide of your documents or just have the PDF versions readily available for you to share on your screen or send them to the chatbox if they are needed.   

interview

Do your Homework.

Doing your homework involves reading up on and researching topics that your interviewer might ask you about. The appraiser could ask you what the duties of a Social Media Manager are if you are going for that role, for instance. You should also know key things about the company you are applying to.

Also, you should be conversant with your CV. You should know the names of the companies where you have worked and what your core duties were at those companies. In addition, articulate how those experiences equipped you for this role that you are now applying for.

Practice.

You may be wondering what you have to practice, in preparation for an interview. Well, you should practice how to schedule a meeting on Calendly or any other online calendar. You should also practice how to set up or join meetings on Zoom and other meeting apps.

Fumbling with the meeting app on the day of your interview, and giving a response when your microphone is muted is just not the way to go.

You have to get familiar with the various applications, especially the one that your interviewer has informed you would be used for the virtual meeting. Schedule a meeting with a friend and then ask him/her to also invite you for a meeting. Use free online calendars like Google Calendar or the free plan of paid calendar apps like Calendly, to practice.

While in the virtual meeting with your friend, click the icons on your screen to know what they do. Observe what they do, and make a mental note of each one and its uses. Study the similarities between the apps and the differences. These will not only help you prepare for this interview but be ready to take on the ever-growing world of remote working and even hybrid working.

Be Prepared for Anything.

Be prepared for surprises. You can never tell what the interviewer will ask you. So, be ready to answer questions that you might not have anticipated. Sometimes, evaluators could ask you about your living space and what your household setting is like.

While you might find that invasive, you should still find a way to answer politely and not show that you are upset or taken aback.

For example, you could be asked: What kind of building do you live in and how many people live with you? Just give only the necessary details. The inquirer could be asking this to assess how much space you would have to yourself, and whether your living situation could negatively impact your job. This is particularly true if the job is a remote job.

Being prepared for anything could also include giving a ready answer to the question ‘Are you willing to relocate?’ Relocating is something you should consider and reach a decision on, before the meeting. If the company has a hybrid or work-from-office policy, you should consider relocating to the town where it has its office.

Getting ready for an interview involves a lot of work. We hope this article has given you insight into how to prepare for such meetings. Good luck with that interview.

RELATED POST https://mysharppenediting.com/tips-for-job-interview/

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