Interview Pro-Tips
Interviewing with potential employers can be nerve-wracking, but we believe that with proper preparation you can rock it. So what’s the best way to prepare for your interviews this recruiting season? We asked an experienced industry mentor to share some tips.
Alice Williams (Xero)
Alice delivered two rounds of insightful Interview Skills bootcamps to students in the Summer of Tech platform this year. She is passionate about helping junior talent to excel in the workplace, especially within the tech industry. She has lots of gold to share with students when it comes to job interviews.
Why are you applying?
Think hard about what genuinely motivates you and the reasons behind applying for a role. You will almost definitely be asked about this!
Will the role be something that you think you will genuinely want to do and, if it’s an internship, will it at the very least be a step towards where you think you’d like to go?
If you struggle to find your motivation for a particular role or company - think twice about applying.
Try and resist the urge to go for a role that others think is “best” for you. It’s your career, so it should ultimately be your choice.
To figure out if it’s the right company and role for you, do some research
The company - What are their values? How do they work? What’s the brand reputation or sentiment like? Do you vibe with all of that at a genuine level?
The role - Often, interview questions will be related to the job advert. Make sure you’ve thoroughly read through the job responsibilities.
The interviewer(s) - If you are lucky enough to find out who your interviewers are before you meet them, do your research! Most of them will be on LinkedIn. What are their interests? Where have they worked?
The interview type - don’t be afraid to ask the recruiter what the interview type will be. It’s literally their job to tell you, and they will be happy to help you.
Make connections
Meet & Greet and Summer of Tech events
I cannot state enough how great these opportunities are to meet people in the industry. It can be hard, but try and put yourself out there; talk to people who are in roles or spaces that you think you might want to get into. Be real with them - ask them what their job is like, what they did to get there, and ask them for advice. You never know where it could lead you to!
If you haven’t already, set up your profile and start connecting with people in the industry. LinkedIn is an awesome place to connect with industry professionals and also to hear about upcoming events and courses, which are often free or discounted to students like you! How good!
Brain dump!
Most companies will be interviewing you to see if you are a good fit or addition to the team and company culture. Write down examples of great things you’ve done, mistakes you’ve made (and learned from!), tricky scenarios - the lot! Have stories prepared so that you don’t have to think on the spot in interviews. Structuring your stories in the STAR format is a really sensible thing to do. Every story worth telling (in an interview setting, at least) should involve you talking about the:
Situation
Task
Action
Result
We hope the above tips are useful ahead of your job interviews!
Check out our student resources for more useful blogs like this. You can also check out our events page for more student resources.