Sample Interview Questions with Suggested Ways of Answering Q. Tell me about yourself. A. This is the dreaded, classic, open-ended intervie w question and likely to be among the first. Its your chance to introduce your qualifications, good wo rk habits, etc. Keep it mostly work and career related. Q. Why do you want to leave your current job? (Why did you leave your last job?) A. Be careful with this. Avoid trashing other employe rs and making statements like, I need more money. Instead, make generic statements such as, Its a career move. Q. What are your strengths? A. Point out your positive attributes related to the job. Q. What are your weaknesses? A. Everybody has weaknesses, but dont spend too much time on this one and keep it work related. Along with a minor weakness or two, try to point out a couple of weaknesse s that the interviewer might see as strengths, such as sometimes bei ng a little too meticulous ab out the quality of your work. (Avoid saying I work too hard. Its a pr edictable, common answer.) For every weakness, offer a strength that compensates for it. Q. Which adjectives would you use to describe yourself? A. Answer with positive, work-oriented adjectives, such as conscientious, hard-working, honest and courteous, plus a brief description or example of why each fits you well. Q. What do you know about our company? A. To answer this one, research the company before you interview. Q. Why do you want to work for us? A. Same as above. Research the company before you interview. Avoid the predictable, such as, Because its a great company. Say why you think its a great company. Q. Why should I hire you? A. Point out your positive attribut es related to the job, and the good job youve done in the past. Include any compliments youve received from management. Q. What past accomplishments gave you satisfaction? A. Briefly describe one to three work projects th at made you proud or earned you pats on the back, promotions, raises, etc. Focus more on achievement than reward. Q. What makes you want to work hard? A. Naturally, material rewards such as perks, salary and benefits come into play. But again, focus more on achievement and the satisfaction you derive from it. Q. What type of work environment do you like best? A. Tailor your answer to the job. Fo r example, if in doing your job youre required to lock the lab doors and work alone, then indica te that you enjoy being a team player when needed, but also enjoy working independently. If youre required to attend regula r project planning and status meetings, then indicate that youre a strong team player and like being part of a team. Q. Why do you want this job? A. To help you answer this and rela ted questions, study the job ad in advance. But a job ad alone may not be enough, so its okay to ask questions about the job while youre answering. Say what attracts you to the job. Avoid the obvious and meaningless, such as, I need a job. Q. How do you handle pressure and stress? A. This is sort of a double whammy, because youre lik ely already stressed from the interview and the interviewer can see if youre hand ling it well or not. Everybody feel s stress, but the degree varies. Saying that you whine to your shri nk, kick your dog or slam down a fifth of Jack Daniels are not good answers. Exercising, relaxing with a good book, socializing with fr iends or turning stress into productive energy are more along the lines of the correct answers. Q. Explain how you overcame a major obstacle. A. The interviewer is likely looking for a particul ar example of your probl em-solving skills and the pride you show for solving it. Q. Where do you see yourself five (ten or fifteen) years from now? A. Explain your career-advancement goals that are in line with the job for which you are interviewing. Your interviewer is likely more inte rested in how he, she or the company will benefit from you achieving your goals than what youll get from it, but it goes hand in hand to a large degree. Its not a good idea to tell your potential new boss that youll be going afte r his or her job, but its okay to mention that youd like to earn a senior or management position. Q. What qualifies you for this job? A. Tout your skills, experience, educat ion and other qualifications, especially those that match the job description well. Avoid just regur gitating your resume. Explain why. Q. Why did you choose your college major? A. The interviewer is likely fishing to see if you are interested in your field of work or just doing a job to get paid. Explain why you like it. Besides your personal interest s, include some rock-solid business reasons that show you ha ve vision and business sense. Go here for sample interview questions from the Web. Important! This list of interview questions is only for personal use. Reproducing it without explicit, written permission in any media, commerc ial or not, is a violation of international copyright laws. However, you may link to it from your Web site with proper credit: jobsearchtech.about/library/weekly/aa031201-3.htm Copyright © 2001, J. Steven Niznik. All Rights Reserved.
Posted on: Thu, 07 Nov 2013 12:25:20 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015