If you have successfully gained an interview and possibly have not had an interview for a while, this can often be quite daunting, but if you are well prepared, and have a clear idea of what you are looking to achieve, this will boost your confidence and give you a greater chance of success.
There are two main reasons for an interview:
- to discover whether the role and the company are right for you and whether they will align with your career goals
- to convince the interviewers that you are the perfect candidate for the role
As with so many things, preparation is the key to success, prior to your interview, invest time in learning about the organisation and the role.
Reseach:
Organisation structure and culture
Have a good look at their website and any other information that you can find online about the company and culture.
Visit the Company Website:
- Look for a "Team" or "About Us" page to learn about key leadership figures.
- Explore the "Careers" or "Our Team" section for insights on how they categorise roles and departments.
LinkedIn:
- Search for the company and explore its employee structure by looking at their profiles.
Read the job description and person specification carefully, highlighting the qualifications and skills required for the role, as well as the challenges of the role.
- What Clinical skills are essential for this role?
- What people skills would I need to succeed in this role?
- What do I need to do to demonstrate that my skills and experience are right for this role?
The people who will be interviewing you - there may be professional or personal connections that you have with the people interviewing you.
Having done your research, think about WHY YOU ARE THE PERFECT PERSON FOR THE JOB
This is a chance for you to not only highlight your relevant skills and experience, but for you to give the interviewers more insight into you as a person. In the same way that you researched the job and the organisation, this now gives you the opportunity to relate those to your experiences, values and achievements - prepare a range of examples from your own experiences, to highlight how you you feel that you meet the skills and competences of this role.
Think of the question you don’t want to be asked!
This may seem a strange thing to say, but if there is anything on your c.v. or about your career history or education that you would rather not be asked, such as:
• why are there gaps in your career?
• why you were with a company for a short period of time?
• why you didn’t get better academic results?
There is probably a very good reason for these, but it is something that interviewers are likely to want to ask you about, by thinking about your answer to any questions “that you don’t want to be asked”, you won't be thrown when they do.
End of interview - Prepare questions
If you can, always try to have questions prepared to ask at the end of the interview, remember that the interview is not only for the interviewers to access your ability for the role, but also for you to learn more about the role, the company and its culture and whether you feel that this role and company are right for you.
Also by engaging with your interviewer/s by asking them questions, particularly about the Company, the job role you are being interviewed for, and long term career prospects within the company, you are showing a keen interest in working with their company and that you are not just looking for "any job".
Finally, a note on VIRTUAL INTERVIEWS - Many interviews today take place virtually, if you are having a virtual interview, here are some things that you should do to prepare:
- Prepare your space, make sure that your background is clean and uncluttered.
- Also if you can clean up the area around you, (even if it doesn't show on camer) research shows that a clean environment boosts your mood and makes you feel less stressed!
- Your face should be well lit and visible
- Make sure that your internet speed is sufficient - you can do a google internet speed test and check to ensure that the Wifi you are using is working properly.
- Even though the interview is virtual, it is still an interview, so make you that you dress appropriately.
Good luck and if you have any questions, pease don't hesitate to contact our support team @ WE ARE CAREERS.COM.