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Applying for jobs - Hints & Tips only please

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  • techmax76
    techmax76 Posts: 120 Forumite
    Hello,

    All of the hints and tips posted in this thread are very helpful and interesting. I will just add simple tips my personal experience.
    • Be optimistic
    • Be courteous
    • Believe in yourself
    * Failure is not the end of everything its only the beginning to be at your best.
  • I'm a recruitment consultant too and have lots of experience in being both the candidate and the person interviewing! There's been some great advice so far....the only things I could add are:

    1. Make sure you have your "final questions" written down - so at the end of the interview when asked "Do you have any questions?" you can (a) show that you've prepared by writing them down, (b) have them there to stop you forgetting and (c) it means you can glance at them and tell the interviewer that all your questions have already been answered (if that happens!)

    2. As my final question I always ask the interviewer "Do you have any concerns about me at all?" This sometimes catches the interviewer off guard but generally if they are a good interviewer they may then mention some good points about you before elaborating on anything you may be a little weaker on. This can be nerve wracking if you don't like what they say - but it does give you a chance to explain how you could overcome this weakness (e.g. learning more about the role in your spare time, further study etc) and if you can do this in a calm and relaxed way it will impress the interviewer.:D
    Proud to be dealing with my debts!! :j
  • pippitypip_2
    pippitypip_2 Posts: 1,018 Forumite
    Below is some advice I've given before in previous posts - sorry it's a bit if a mish-mosh but hopefully it's a bit useful - it just may not flow well!

    I'm sure I'm repeating what lots of others have said as well - most of it's a common sense approach.

    >>>>>



    • They will be looking to see if you're a good fit for the team and company - that's something you can't really revise, prepare for. You just need to make sure you're being yourself, obviously yourself on best behaviour, but still!!
    • Don't forget all interviews are two-way - so make sure you like them too!
    • As important as an interview is to you, ultimately it's a chat to see if you're a good fit for the job as well as for the organisation.
    • There are things people always look for no matter what the job - positive attitude being the main thing. So that's one of the most important things to make sure comes across, and if you don't know, don't blag! Honesty is much more refreshing and again comes across positively in my book.
    for example, question "what would you do if Mr A called and asked you for an XYZ form" - if you don't know your answer would be something like "I'm terribly sorry Mr A, would you mind bearing with me for a moment while I just check that with a colleague"

    Sorry that's really basic but hopefully you get the gist?



    • Ultimately it's expected you may be nervous so don't worry too much about that and try to be yourself, as comfortable and normal as possible! Remember the interviewers you'll meet are also people too !
    • Oh another good tip would be to have a few questions ready for them, e.g.:
    Would they share with you the reason for the vacancy? expansion that kind thing?
    Also good to pick up where the company is heading, i.e. their outlook. e.g. you noticed from your research that there is a lot of travel to New York and Dubai - do they have any future plans to open offices outside the UK?



    It just keeps conversation flow and shows your interest in the company. These types of questions would be saved for the end of the interview and you get to leave on a positive note.
    • Generally they're going to ask you about your past work experience, so be ready to talk about past roles - try to think of them in terms of the job spec for this job so concentrate on day to day things you've done before that correlate and noteworthy achievements.
    • I would take copies of your cv with you, enough for the amount of people you know will attend, an extra in case one forgets or don't get a copy and then also you can sit with your own copy to refer to - place it on the table in front of you or in your lap - the only thing I would advise is don't use it to gesture with (I gesture a LOT, so it's a concern for me in interviews lol).
    • Moving on from past work experience they might ask you to tell them why you think you'd be right for the job - again draw on past roles, even if you're repeating yourself. Research on the company fits here too as you can refer to company values.
    • Don't work too hard thinking about what they might or might not ask as the key is to be yourself as much as possible - they need to see you for you, so your answers should be what YOU think, not what websites prepare you to say - they'll have heard standard pre-prepared answers before, plus trying to learn answers beforehand will make you even more nervous - trust me.
    • If you're a confident person generally - that's a great starting point - go in there with a view that you're meeting people who want to know more about you. That really is the bottom line and the more you concentrate on that, hopefully the less nervous you'll be.
    • Get there early. If you get there an hour early (worries about public transport or traffic etc) that's fine - go for a coffee and get to the interview ideally 15 mins early.
    • Also no need to learn info on the company - if you have a read a few times that should be fine - a general idea is good, they won't expect you to know fine detail (I suppose depends on the position?).
    • You can take material with you, so if something catches your eye, print it and refer to it.
    • Anything you try to learn parrot fashion will make you more nervous and detract from your answers to be honest.
    It all boils down to simplicity in the end and that's what I've learnt over time; the more you over complicate, the harder you make the interview for yourself.

    It can only result in 1 of 2 outcomes, you get the job or you don't and in my opinion most of that is down to personality, chatting and getting on with the people you might work with - you can't prepare for that. You're obviously technically capable of doing the job as you've already got the interview.

    Very hard to not build it up as a huge thing when you're out of work but then I suppose I'm a glass half empty kinda gal - don't expect to get it - go in there, have a chat - leave, THEN hope for the best.

    I hope that helps and if you need any more advice let me know - I've been on lots of interviews, used to work in recruitment so been an interviewer too and now give coaching (in a fairly relaxed and generally unpaid manner! not my full time)

    pippitypip
    I know I'm in my own little world, but it's ok - they know me here! :D
  • When applying for a job its like your selling but the only difference is your selling yourself and your best qualifications. First impression is lasting so always feel at your best and carry yourself even in the most tough situation. Load yourself a bag full of self confidence. I'm sure you can have a job.
  • Having a good CV and doing a good interview is still not enough. You need something extra.
    You need to make sure that you have experience in the field that you are applying for, even it is just voluntary work.
    Thorought research is the key....rehearse answers to the questions like they are a script for a play that you must remember.
  • vaporate
    vaporate Posts: 1,955 Forumite
    Having a good CV and doing a good interview is still not enough. You need something extra.
    You need to make sure that you have experience in the field that you are applying for, even it is just voluntary work.
    Thorought research is the key....rehearse answers to the questions like they are a script for a play that you must remember.


    Impossible if you're a fresh grad lol Few have voluntary experience.
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  • Hi,

    You should make the most of the people you know and make it clear that you want them to tell you if they hear of any jobs that might appeal to you.

    I used to do interviews at a large company. If you come recommended by someone who already works there, it gives the interviewer more confidence that you will turn out ok and fit in.

    If you are looking for professional type work, it would be worth building your network on 'Linked In'. For those of you who haven't heard of it - it's a bit like facebook for business contacts. The website address is http://www.linkedin.com/ and it is free to join. You can then add your profile with details from your CV, state that you are looking for job offers and to reconnect with old contacts. You can then search for people that you know or have worked with before and ask for them to connect with you. I've had lots of people I don't know, contact me about jobs that I'm suitable for through LinkedIn. It takes quite a lot of time and effort to build your contacts, but I think it's worth it in the longer term.

    I put a lot of information about preparing for competency based interview questions on my blog, as well as a list of all the possible competency questions you may be asked. I did this when I was looking for a job after redundancy. I'm not sure if it would be ok to post the link here or not?

    Good luck with the job hunting.

    Paulina.
  • Niemand
    Niemand Posts: 117 Forumite
    Some of the videos here may be useful: VideoJug: Job Search advice.
    Niemand
  • The job market is prety dead at the moment. I am an account I have been registered with several agencies for about six months and have only had two interviews.
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