Interview

Interview

Dear friends, perhaps the most important part of the job is job interviews. You have prepared a cover letter and a resume (CV) that reveals your knowledge and academic and personal achievements up to today. You have successfully managed the job or internship searching process through the right channels and now it's time to have a job interview as you imagined.

It may be possible to handle the interview process in three stages:

• Preparing for an interview
  • Taking proper notes of interview details
  • Mastering your own background
  • Personal image
  • Having sufficient information about the institution to be interviewed

• During the interview
  • Communication language (self-expression)
  • Question-answer

• After the interview

 

Now, we can take a look at these stages one by one.

• Preparing for an interview:

You made your applications and they called you from a company for an interview or reached you by e-mail. At this stage, be sure to ask clearly on what day and time, with whom from the company and where you will meet and write them down. You can even ask them to send the interview details to your e-mail address following this phone call. In this way, you will prevent any misunderstanding and you will have the contact details as it will be appropriate to inform the other party in case of a mishap that may occur at the last minute.

You should remember all the information and details you had written in your cover letter and resume. You should not tell anything other than what is written on your resume, while talking about these again during the interview. What you wrote should be consistent with what you say during the interview.

You should go with suitable clothes and shoes, definitely being aware that you are going to a serious meeting. Some institutions (operating in the fields such as advertising agencies, visual communication) may not require formal dress on the dress code in the interview. In this case, the healthiest choice would be to make appropriate choices for the institution or company you will be interviewed. Attend the interview with the care required by the institution and the position, but as simple, clean and elegant as possible. Let's not forget that first impression is important, and personal image is an important complement to how we express ourselves.

• It is useful to choose dark colours such as navy blue, black and grey. You should not prefer brown.
• When choosing shoes, you should choose shoes that are not extravagant and have no Stones.
• You should do your hair and make-up plain and natural without exaggerating. Take care that your hair is not messy like getting out of bed. Just keep your hair clean and neat. You shouldn't overdo it.
• Besides the right clothes, you should also pay attention to personal hygiene. Your nails should be clean. You should prefer light scents. You shouldn't put on too much perfume. This creates a bad effect.

 

Perhaps the most critical step of the preparation phase is getting to know the institution you will be interviewed. This preparation is important in terms of having a knowledge that will allow you to ask questions about the institution when appropriate. Because a candidate's ability to ask relevant and meaningful questions is always considered as a plus point in the employment interviewing. As we will mention in the question and answer section during the interview, "What do you know about our company?" is a frequently asked question and it may be possible to answer this question in an impressive way through the research done before going. Knowing the details such as the institution's expertise, industry knowledge, market share, even product range, perhaps its stakeholders in social responsibility projects and sponsorships can create an opportunity for candidates to stand out.

• During the interview:

As we mentioned before, attend the interview with the care required by the institution and the position, but as plain, clean and elegant as possible. Make eye contact with the interviewees during the interview. It is very important to be confident and to express yourself clearly. Communication skills are a common criterion for almost all job postings, so communicating well with interviewers will take you one step ahead. Pay attention to use Turkish carefully, and avoid informal words and complements (really, blah, you know, well, see, etc.).

The interview is an opportunity to introduce yourself; it is therefore important to be able to focus on your strengths and attributes without having arrogant attitude. In order for new graduates to show what they can do, they should also state why they want the job at hand, why they apply to the said company, what kind of work they have done about their field and what they know about the position they applied for.

During the interview, you should be job-oriented rather than salary-oriented. In addition, focus on the development opportunities that the business and the organization will offer you, rather than salary, title and fringe benefits. If possible, find out in advance about the managers who will conduct the interview (information can be obtained from LinkedIn or social networks.)

Listen carefully to the questions asked, give responses that are as accurate as possible and do not speak in circles unnecessarily. Also, avoid one-word answers. (Like Yes, No, Maybe.)

 Keep a positive attitude, even if you understand that the position is different from your expectations and revaluate it when the interview ends.

Do not hesitate to ask questions to the participants during the interview. You can ask about the company's future goals and plans, the role of the position you are being interviewed for in this plan, where the position is on the company's career map, what the training and development opportunities are.

Do not ask questions such as salary, private insurance, leave applications, entry-exit times, whether there is a weekend shift at the first interview. It would be more appropriate to ask these types of questions when the final offer is made to you.

 

• After the interview

In the post-interview process, it is important to call the interviewer, for example, 10 days later, to ask what stage the process is and whether they have any other requests.

Regardless of the outcome, proactive steps reveal skills for building new relationships and can provide information about another open position

Never Do These!

Try not to make the following mistakes:

• Having  spelling mistakes in a CV,
• Missing or incorrect contact information,
• Unsuitable photos,
• Writing only the name of the company and the position as experience,
• Not giving information about the work done,
• Not dressing properly for the interview,
• Not coming to the interview on time,
• Giving unrelated answers to the question asked,
• Asking about salary, transportation service or annual leave at the first interview,
• Asking about salary, transportation service or annual leave at the first interview,
• Making too much preparation for the interview process and attending the interview by memorizing cliché interview answers, (Explaining the topics that you want to highlight, apart from the interview questions without waiting for the interviewer to ask; showing oneself different than he/she is and losing naturalness during the interview),
• Not having any information about the company to be interviewed and the position applied for.

 

Most common Job Interview Questions

It is important to be prepared to answer the questions effectively that are asked most frequently by Human Resources Experts. These questions are asked so often that you are expected to be able to answer them easily and without hesitation.

Of course, you don't need to know all your answers by heart, but when you encounter these types of questions, you should think about what to say beforehand. If you are prepared, know what waits for you during the interview, and have an idea of ​​what to focus on during this process your answers will be more effective and powerful. Even if you do not fully remember the answers you have planned, just being prepared for the interview will increase your self-confidence, reduce your stress and make you feel more comfortable.

Review the questions below before the interview and think about what answers you can give. If you don't think of clear and creative ideas, try to get an idea of ​​how you can answer by doing research on the internet.

• Tell us about yourself

This question is probably one of the first questions you will be asked.. Be prepared to talk about yourself and come up with ideas about your suitability for the job you are applying for. Be careful to give neither too little nor too much personal information when answering questions about yourself. You can start by sharing your personal interests and experiences that are not directly related to the job you are applying for. For example: your favourite hobby, briefly information about where you grew up, your education, topics that motivate you, etc.

A simple method to follow to share such information is present-past-future. First, briefly describe what you are doing in the present (your current job or the school you attended, personal hobby or topics you are interested in, etc.). Then specify how you came to this point (You may have important experiences such as your educational background, work, internship, volunteer work). Finally finish it by explaining a goal for the future.

It is also helpful to explain why the position you applied for is among your future plans. Whatever your answer is, it is important to write it down beforehand in order to make the content natural. Make sure your answer is short and clear, as you don't want to be perceived as a person who talks constantly about himself/herself.

• Why should we employ you?

Be prepared to talk about why you are the candidate to be employed. Explain in a confident, clear and focused way what you have achieved and what you can achieve in this company and why you could get the job. At this point, it will help you consider the qualifications and conditions sought in the job posting and prepare a response that matches the features on demand.

• What is your greatest strength?

This is a question that is often asked all the time. Use this question to demonstrate your suitability for the position you are applying for and your difference from other candidates, and specify your qualifications for the job. Before the interview, try to match your characteristics and the job requirements stated in the advertisement. So, your examples that show your suitability for the job will be ready. Also, for example instead of saying that you are a good problem solver, patient or creative, it would be more meaningful if you tell an anecdote that shows this and includes concrete examples.

• What is your greatest weakness?

One of the typical questions asked in the interview is about your weaknesses. While preparing your answer by focusing on the positive aspects of your abilities and personal qualities as an employee; you can accept your weaknesses as areas open for improvement and talk about your efforts for its development. Of course, do not say things that are not true while doing that. For example, you might say: “I've always struggled with my perfectionist side; I want to do something right when I do something for the first time, but this can sometimes make me spend too much time on a job. In this process, I learnt to balance this feature with the equally important responsibility of completing the work on time. "

Besides, you can talk about how you made an effort to work on your weakness and improve yourself by giving examples of the skills you have improved.

• Why do you want this job?

This question gives you the opportunity to show the interviewer the information you have about the job and the institution. Therefore, do some research on the company, its products and services, corporate culture and mission in detail before the interview. Give your specific and clear opinion about your suitability for this position. Also specify the aspects of the organization and the business that attract you.

• How do you deal with stress and pressure?

What do you do if things don't work out the way you wanted? How do you deal with difficult situations? What do you do if things get messed up?

The best answer to these types of questions will be how you dealt with previous stressful situations. Do not claim that you never experience stress or you are hardly ever stressed. It will be hard to believe that. It will also cause the interviewer to believe that you have only worked in low stress jobs and therefore you cannot deal with difficult situations. Therefore, state more accurately that you are familiar with the stress at work and are able to cope with it.

• What are your salary expectations?

Although this question seems simple, your answer may put you in a difficult position if your expectation is higher than you should have. However, if you keep your expectations low, you can also get a low salary offer. You must first research about the sector, institution and position in order to get the salary you deserve.