Pre-Interview

TIPS:

Do Your Research
This step is critical to your success in an interview. You may have answered all of their questions about “Why you?” perfectly, but if you can’t in turn answer “Why them?” this shows lack of interest.

• Memorize the job description so that you can tailor all of your responses to refer to exactly what they are looking for in a candidate.
• Know the company, the department, all of the details.
• Memorize their mission statement.
• Be familiar with all of the people who work in their office and their backgrounds.
• Research current and past projects, successes of the company, and be comfortable referring to this information during the interview. It is better to be over-prepared and have this information ready than under prepared. For assistance with researching companies check out LinkedIn, Glassdoor.com, Buzzfile, and Guidestar.

 

Practice with InterviewStream or schedule a Mock Interview
InterviewStream is a software available for free to all GSEHD students and alumni on our website. This tool allows you to practice your responses to typical interview questions. Your responses are recorded so you can review them on your own or you can request feedback from our team.
You can also schedule an appointment with a career counselor for a one-on-one mock interview.

 

Google Yourself
Prospective employers will Google you. Make sure you know what they will find.
Make social pages private during your job search. This is about risk management – don’t give employers additional information that might give them a reason to disqualify you. You want to make sure they are focused on the important information – your professional identity.
If you are on Facebook – use the “View As” feature to see your page as people you aren’t friends would. You may be surprised to see what information is public that you believed to be private.

 

Plan Your Transportation
If you are not familiar with the location, make the trip a day in advance, check out the parking options, and know exactly how much time you need. NEVER BE LATE. If this is not possible, do the best you can to plan out your route via Google Maps or a similar tool.

 

Professional Appearance
Wear a business suit in a conservative color, even if it is a job that you would not wear a suit to work daily. You want to make the best possible impression, and dressing professionally demonstrates that you are taking this interview seriously.
Arrive early to the interview: you want to arrive early enough to compose yourself before the interview, but not so early that you may be imposing on their time.