Most embarassing interview moments and maybe a few interview tips as well
 

So I'm a COOP student at university and I am right now in the process of going through interviews with potential employers. So what I'd like to know is your your most embarassing interview moments and maybe a few tips as well.

Don't be shy - if they ask you your good qualities, don't be humble. Don't go on for hours though...

It wasn't embarrassing, but I was interviewed by a real jerk once. This was for a job as a reporter at a magazine covering congressional issues. I went in for the interview, and he went on and on about himself, how he got started, how his apartment in New York was near the Twin Towers (this was shortly after 9/11), and he didn't really ask me a whole lot. Then he asked if I had any questions for him. He'd pretty well described the job and told me all about himself, so I told him no. He then launched into this schpiel about how he didn't hire anyone who wasn't inquisitive, and that I should have questions for him, and told me in so many words that I had wasted his time. So glad I didn't get hired.

Tip 1: Ask questions even if you don't have any.

Read up on the company/organization you are applying for. With the Internet it's usually pretty easy to do a little background research, and more local companies probably have some kind of magazine or brochure about themselves. They might ask you what you think their company is/does.

Don't use: "It'd be a wonderful chance for me expand my skillset" or anything in that vein, for that matter.
Usually the company is looking out for it's own interests and they want to know what you can do for them.
Yep, my Commerce professor was very adamant with that point last week.

Go to your universities career centre and ask them if they give mock interviews. It will help a lot.

I've been to a few too many career sessions, unfortunately:

• Research the company and the position beforehand as well as you can - their website, stock trends, news articles on them, ask former employees if you can, etc.
• Arrive 10 minutes early...so be in the neighbourhood earlier
• Bring in copies of your resume, cover letter, and references. Take extra copies in case there's other interviewers or people you want to leave it with. You might also take in anything you want to be able to show them (maybe you have some kind of impressive portfolio of past work?)
• Dress well, conservatively, good shoes and neat hair, take a shower, don't wear cologne or perfume. If you don't know the dress code, dress better than you have to (or call and ask). Shake the hands of all interviews firmly. For women, wear a jacket over your blouse. If you're a student and don't have everything that's probably ok, just go as nice as you can or borrow for the day.
• Turn off your damn phone
• Bring a nice, professional looking binder to take notes in and a good pen (not bic). Sit slightly off-center so you're not facing them directly.
• When they ask you "tell me about yourself" have a good, succinct (SHORT) answer ready to go. Who you are, a few good traits, what you're looking for. The interview HAS started.
• Have a list of sample stories that demonstrate some great qualities. Lots of employers ask questions in the vein of "tell me a time when you demonstrated leadership" or "tell me a time when you had to deliver quality on a tight deadline, and how you managed to do it" You want to have your knock-out stories ready to go to display your good traits. These stories should be short: set up the problem, show how you solved it, and highlight the key traits along the way
• If you get stuck on one question, and you can tell the interviewer has a list of questions, ask to come back to it at the end. Maybe you'll think of a good story by then
• Just the same, be ready for stupid interviewers who ask easy questions or just prattle on about themselves
• If you need to stall, ask them to repeat a question, or repeat it to them in your own words "to make sure I understand what you're asking"
• If they ask you something technical and you don't know the answer, describe how you'd go about finding the solution
• Don't get boxed into talking about salary or asking about benefits until they make an offer, if possible. (You don't have any leverage until you know they want you). But, know a decent range for the job you're applying for just in case you're pressured to name a figure. And don't say a figure lower than what you'd actually accept
• As noted, always have questions if possible. There's always vague or fluffy questions like "what drew you to this company?" or "what are the key daily priorities for this position?" if they answered everything already
• Practising might be a good idea if you're shy, or not used to talking yourself up for 45 minutes at a time
• Always get the contact information of the person who interviewed you. Always send a thank-you note. E-mail at a minimum, letter is better
• If they just-barely reject you, send a "thank you for the opportunity" letter anyway in case it'll help you be next in line if one of the people flunks out
• Don't accept an offer until you're ready! If you accept, even verbally, it's a contract. You'll look like an ass if you flake out after accepting. Just ask for awhile to think it over. Since you're a co-op student, you can say "sounds great - I just wanna discuss it with my folks first" or some such BS

Thanks for the tips How Unfortunate :)

Thanks a lot for all the advice. Very helpful stuff there

I've got a question:
Usually you get interviewed for a specific position, right? Well, for my first and only interview job (Wal-Mart) I was being hired as a cart-pusher. During the interview I asked how quickly the "associates" are able to transfer between positions. Apparantely they thought that was presumptious, because they were like "well, we really need a cart-pusher...". I realize Wal-Mart's a bad example, but I always thought asking about internal mobility was a good expression of interest in working for the company. I need to look for a summer job soon, so was this a bad question to ask?

The entire interview is awkward for me. As if I weren't bad at social situations, I hate lying. Interviewers ask questions that should not be truthfully answered by anyone.

For once, I'd like to get hired because I respond with, "because I need to pay the bills."

Yeah . . . I hate trying to make answers up to "Why are you interested in this job?" I usually end up with something cheesy . . . Also sucks since I have to translate everything to French since I'm tyring for government positions mostly.

Double Post:
LizardSC: Hmmmmm . . . I dunno . . . In my career sessions, they say that asking about ability to move higher does show interest . . . But to be honest, I dunno if that applies with companies like Wal-Mart cuz the jump from cart-pusher to say . . . cashier isn't that high.

I don't have any embarassing moments during my interview because most of them were just... not embarrasing o_O but I've got lots of tips on interviews because I asked around alot (as I am a Co-OP student as well). So I'll coin these tips in a more of a term of co-op.

1. They already know you're here for the "learning experience" so don't over do that part... WE ALL KNOW IT ALREADY! But what will impress them more is to show your interest in the field and that you've already have qualities that you will be adding to their company as an improvment.

2. Know what the company is about - alot of employers are not very impressed how sloppy some co-op students are showing up in interview and not knowing what the job/company is about. Not only that, it just dosn't make you look proffessional at all and it still makes you look like a "kid" in the end. Not to mention they will believe that's about how much interest you're having in the job itself.

3. Depending on the job, if it's communicative (that you have to know how to speak ethicly and that you can just talk to others) they may leave you hangin' dry there for about a minute in just nothing is happening. Don't think that it means you didn't answer your previous question correctly or not elborately enough. Feel free to ask them if they want more details or if they have any more questions.

4. In an interview where you have more than one person evaluating you, make sure you acknologe their presence. Who knows, the guy that isn't doing the talking sitting in the corner can be the boss for all you know.

5. Don't coin yourself down to the tasks of the job in question - show that you're open to other challenges as well so if you at least don't land this job, they may still consider you up for another job that may pop up a few days later.

6. Also avoid words such as "umm.." and "like" - it's ok just to pause and ASK for time to think over about the question (just not over a minute please... nothing to long). If you can't think of an answer to a question just ask them if you can answer it later on the interview (don't worry, they usualy let you) and if you get lucky, the time just might run out before you get to answer their silly question anyways ^_^! BUT DO CONSIDER IT TO BE ANSWERED!... don't just cross your fingers for the time to run out on ya!

ok I need to pack up now to get my butt out of my co-op job area :D term is ending so fast!

Here's the only the tip that matters. When they ask, like they always do, "What's your biggest weakness?" look them straight in the eye and say, "Kryptonite." Works like a charm.