Applying for you first job, writing a successful CV, getting shortlisted give you a better of securing that vital interview. If you’re not securing any interviews you may need a CV review or hire a specialist CV writing service. The issue, as you well know as a graduate could be lack of work experience.
As a new graduate with minimal career history and little or no previous work experience your CV needs to shine in order to get shortlisted for interview.
The graduate job market is competitive and recruiters want to win the best young talent. So make your graduate CV count and boost your chances by writing the best graduate CV possible.
After the CV writing, job search and application follows the nervous interview. The interview is a most nervous part of the process because you want to come across well and great a good impression.
Here are some interview tips and common interview mistakes to avoid which can improve your employability communication skills during the interview:
- Research the company before you attend the interview. You’ll look silly if you don’t find out about the company you want to work for. After university you should be good at going your homework so get some background on the organisation.
- Read through the job description, how can you apply your skills and experience to the role? You need to sell yourself and play to your strengths.
- Create the right impression and professional image by dressing smart and wearing shiny polished shoes.
- Remember your body language – Offer a firm confident handshake, maintain eye contact and sit in a relaxed position.
- Listen to the questions they ask carefully and provide a detailed answer with an example. Employers will be looking for your ability to communication, solving problems and demonstrate your abilities.
- Prepare a list of questions about the role to ask the interviewer. Remember you’re interviewing the company too. Write them down so you don’t forget and practice answering the questions. Show your enthusiasm for the role and passion for the industry you are entering. Coming across with a lack of enthusiasm or research about the job will put doubt in recruiters minds.
The below examples should give you an idea of how interview questions are approached and help you think about past experiences. They are designed to help you think about the experience you can draw on in an interview situation and support you in your interview preparation.
The STAR technique is good way to answer competency based questions. Many interviewers will have been trained in using the STAR structure or know of its approach. It will enable you to provide a meaningful and complete answers to questions.
The acronym STAR stands for:
- Situation
- Task
- Action
- Result
Describe the situation that you were confronted with or the task that needed to be done.
Next explain what action you took and why.
What was the end result?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojMt2ktJEyQ
Try the STAR technique on the following example interview questions:
- Describe a time when you delivered excellent service to your customers?
- Describe an initiative, goal or project that you have driven. What did you do to make it effective?
- When have you identified an opportunity to save time or costs?
- Tell me about a time you had to make an on the spot decision.
- Tell me about your role in a successful team that you’ve been a part of.
- Can you give me an example of when you have turned a difficult relationship around?
- Talk me through a change you have initiated previously.
- Describe an example of when you had to rely on your own drive to motivate others
- Describe a situation when you directed a team of people?
- Describe a time when you have made a change and it didn’t work out?
Hope these help you. I find the interview part the most difficult part of the job hunting process.
When at an job interview and the interviewer asks you “Why do you want this job?” don’t reply “because money you idiot”. This and other useful interview tips are below:
