Got an Interview? Now help to secure that job!:

How to prepare and conduct yourself

With your CV/Resume and Cover Letter shining, an interview is the next step. While interviews may seem daunting, they are a great way to showcase exactly why you deserve the position! Follow this easy timeline to ensure a fun and stress free day:

The Day Interview Information is Received:

• Review the letter or email to ensure you fully understand the interview and what may be needed. Double check for any confirmations deadlines. If there is a confirmation requested, do so immediately to ensure your spot at the interviews is held.

Day After Interview Information is Received:

• If you currently have a job or other obligations, make sure you notify the correct people to ensure you have your interview day free. Interviews can be short and sweet, or require up to 8 hours. Either way it is best to be available for the day of interview, to ensure important information is not missed, and to ensure that you are not giving off a bad impression to future employers.

• Book any necessary travel/hotels for your interviews. By taking care of your travel and accommodation early on, you are able to avoid any last minute stress by trying to find a hotel or transport that isn’t filled as well as ensure you know exactly where you are going on the interview day.

Two or Three Weeks Before the Interview:

• Check your paperwork! Ensure you have your CV/Resume up to date, as well as any necessary paperwork that is required. If copies are required, do ensure you take these as well. Nothing looks worse then asking your future employer to make copies for you when you were told in advance to have them!

• Organize your paper work in a folder to ensure everything is there and easily able to locate when asked for it.

Day Before the interview:

• Double check your documents once again, and verify that all paper work, confirmations of travel/hotels, and any other requested information is organized and ready to go.

• Go to bed early! By getting a good night’s sleep you will feel rested and rejuvenated for your big day.

Interview Day:

• Appearance: For interviews, your appearance should be natural. Ladies should avoid extreme hairstyle, extra long nails, and overdoing the make up, keep everything simple. If you can notice you are wearing make up, you may be wearing too much. You want to the interviewer to be impressed by your skills and personality, not be staring at your make up! Gentle men should keep hair clean cut, extreme hairstyle should be avoid as well. Also keep your beard or moustache trimmed.

• Dress code: When interviewing, keep in mind any dress codes stated in your interview letter. If no dress code was presented, a suit is always universal for professionalism. It is extremely important to think about the company you will be interviewing with. International positions may be located in countries with different dress style to your own country. While low cut tops may be accepted in the UK, it may make American employers question your motives.

• Enjoy yourself! The fact you are interviewing should never be a reason for you to act differently or avoid others. The employer wants to see you as you are in person, and by changing your persona will only make the interviewer question other things about you. Also, with most interviews, employers are watching you from the step you walk in the door to the point you leave. If you stay in a corner of the room by yourself, you may be harming your chances. Team work is massive in companies, so if you can not talk with someone else who is interviewing, can the employer rely on your to communicate with your co workers?

During the Interview:

• Smile! The interviewer wants you to be excited about the job. Monotone people may bore the interviewer and not leave as much of a lasting impression.

• Know your motivation. Are you just trying to move to a new place? Do you want new skills? Or maybe you just want a job that pays well enough to move out of your parents house? Either way, you need to know you motivation for the position and think about why you really want the job. This will assist you in answering the questions more easily.

• Keep your body language neutral. Crossing arms or not giving eye contact can be translated that you are not 100% interested in the position being offered. Sit normally, with your hands in your lap, and do remember to look the interviewer in the eyes.

• Ask a question! Companies want to know you are interested in the business, so have a few questions at hand to ask if prompted.

With these tips and timelines, you are sure to have a great experience no matter what the interview is like!