Need tips on interviewing for jobs

The Mana Knight

The Mana Knight

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All right, usually I blog about everything, but I decided to start a thread instead. My current situation is that I've been interviewing for multiple jobs this year. I applied to MANY jobs, but I've also gotten many requests for interviews. Pretty much all jobs are Engineering (mostly Electrical, some have been more software/systems/etc. type of Engineering). Although I'm currently employed, I've been looking for a better opportunity which utilizes my college degree/skills/interests, one that gives me the good professional experience to advance my career, and a job I'd feel happy to go to each day. I've been really down about my current situation, so I'm trying to do better.

Anyway, I had over 15 interviews this year (mostly in-person, some phone interviews. One phone interview led to an in-person interview). Majority have been internal to my company or at a company which use to be a part of my company. I've traveled around on job interviews with my hotel paid, meals paid, trip paid, etc. but still no luck.

Anyway, I'm just looking for some helpful hints on job interviewing that could help me out such as questions to ask the Hiring Manager, what questions might I be asked and how to answer them, or even just general interviewing tips.

I really hope to land something soon because there's a chance I'll be laid off my current job in less than a year (with the downsizing going on) and it could be a massive financial drain if I end up going back to school (I'd like to go back, but would rather wait until I get the Professional experience that helps).
 
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Since I've quit my job for ethical/professional reasons, I've had trouble getting interviews in the first place, despite targeting jobs that I am well-qualified for, sending targeted resumes/cover letters, etc. I'm wondering if hiring is slow in December due to the holidays or what. It just sucks. I'm starting to wonder if I'm blacklisted somehow or if they just dump my resume in the trash since I only list having that job for 4 months (even though I wasn't fired and quit for good reasons). I don't know what to do- if I leave that job off my resume, there's about a 6 month gap in my resume that I'd also have to explain.

TMK, Google the topic and tons of interview stuff comes up. I'd say one of the more important things is if they ask if you have questions, don't say "no" or "I'm all set," even if you are. What type of questions are you asking/answering in your interviews? I could help but I'm betting the questions are different for accounting than they are for engineering. Additionally, make sure you appear confident at all times. Antisocial people like us get marked down in interviews a lot just for being ourselves.
 
"Tell me more about yourself". Sometimes they often ask an applicant like this. I learned that when answering this kind of approach you need not to start on telling them about your name etc etc that could also be seen on your resume. You must answer this differently. Like for example: "Actually Ma'am/Sir, there are lots of things to tell about myself. But I would like to focus on..." You must tell them of your good qualities and experiences about the job that you are applying but of course you must not sound boastful.

Hope this helps. :)
 
Be extremely positive about everything and make sure to tell the person giving you the interview that you plan to do everything you can to climb the work ladder.
 
[quote name='crystalklear64']"Where do you see your company in 10 years?"[/QUOTE]That sounds better than how I asked a similar question. Thanks

[quote name='maryanne']"Tell me more about yourself". Sometimes they often ask an applicant like this. I learned that when answering this kind of approach you need not to start on telling them about your name etc etc that could also be seen on your resume. You must answer this differently. Like for example: "Actually Ma'am/Sir, there are lots of things to tell about myself. But I would like to focus on..." You must tell them of your good qualities and experiences about the job that you are applying but of course you must not sound boastful.

Hope this helps. :)[/QUOTE]I use to stumble on that question, but I planned for it much better the last few times. Some job interviews I wasn't even asked that.
 
Something I learned recently while I got to sit on in a couple interviews for a n00b in our department is that if you're at the point where you are in to interview, they know you're qualified for the position. They're looking for someone they know will fit in and that they'll get along with. As my HR person put it, "Someone you'd want on your bowling team."

We had two people come in for final interviews. The first person was composed, confidant and easy to converse with. The second person was clearly nervous, focused on emphasizing his computer skills (the focal point of what my boss was hiring for) and short winded. Quite frankly, he reminded me of what I probably come across as in interviews and it made me realize why I struggled in the past. In the end, I recommended the first person because they seemed more rounded and comfortable with us even though maybe the second person may be more computer apt.

Neither asked many questions to us but here are some examples of what I was expecting (This is for an accounting position):
What accounting software do you use?
How many people are in the department?
What you do you like about this job? Dislike?
Do you find the work challenging?
Are there points in time that are regularly more busy than others? (We have monthly closing.. the first few days of the month suck lol)
Is there a lot of cross training?
Is there room for advancement?
What is a typical day like for you?

Etc..
 
Just be yourself. I don't understand why people get so nervous about interviewing for a position, all you are doing is selling your best qualities, how hard can that be?
 
eliminating "Uhh" and "Umm" from your vocabulary is a really good way to keep a conversation flowing. I used to do that when I was a teenager, and it annoys me to this day when people (still in their 20s, 30s) still do it. If you need time to think about something, you can add fillers, like "That's a really good question" or short pauses of about a second (don't pause too long.)

Talking slightly slower helps with thinking on the fly as well. Also helps for those who talk really fast in normal speech. Just don't be too slow.
 
"I know it might seem like a good idea to walk in, stab someone, and say 'Well, it looks like you have an opening,' but... it's not. That's not a good idea."

- Justin McElroy, My Brother My Brother and Me
 
[quote name='perdition(troy']Just be yourself. I don't understand why people get so nervous about interviewing for a position, all you are doing is selling your best qualities, how hard can that be?[/QUOTE]

Some people are just nervous/awkward talking to strangers in general. Add in the pressure of many really needing a job to ramp of the nerves, and it's easy to see why some people struggle with them.

I've never had problems personally, but have friends who sweat bullets before interviews.
 
[quote name='BizarroPunisher']"I know it might seem like a good idea to walk in, stab someone, and say 'Well, it looks like you have an opening,' but... it's not. That's not a good idea."

- Justin McElroy, My Brother My Brother and Me[/QUOTE]

Oh man, that's awesome.

It's also exactly how I feel after three years of perpetual job hunting. I'm a master of interviews now, I just need to you know... LAND THE JOB.

I've also perfected a look of complete awe and disbelief when they call and tell me, "We're going through a lot of changes and we'll keep your resume on file" or "We were impressed by your qualifications and will keep you in mind for future openings". Stuff like that.

Anyhow, good luck OP. I'm convinced it's who you know, not what you know and COMPLETE LUCK when it comes to getting hired these days. Being the guy they want on the bowling team, that's solid advice. I always try to project that image.
 
[quote name='The Mana Knight']I really hope to land something soon because there's a chance I'll be laid off my current job in less than a year (with the downsizing going on) and it could be a massive financial drain if I end up going back to school (I'd like to go back, but would rather wait until I get the Professional experience that helps).[/QUOTE]


I'd really just try and wing a few without any preparation whatsoever.

I've found I'm much more comfortable that way...and am batting 1.00 with that method.
 
[quote name='perdition(troy']You don't really want to completely wing it, you have to be somewhat knowledgeable about the company and the direction they are going etc.[/QUOTE]

It's how I got a offer at a public accounting firm 2 hours after interviewing and my current one.

I guess it could help, not really a need in my profession though.
 
[quote name='perdition(troy']Just be yourself. I don't understand why people get so nervous about interviewing for a position, all you are doing is selling your best qualities, how hard can that be?[/QUOTE]

This is actually very good advice. No reason to be nervous - I mean, yeah, you want the job but just relax and be yourself. You wouldn't get the in-person interview if they didn't think you were qualified. At that point they are looking for a personality fit since they have to spend a majority of their day with whoever they hire.
 
[quote name='Spokker']Send a thank you note after the interview to every person who interviewed you.[/QUOTE]I've been doing that for a bit. Sometimes I question if my thank you letters are good enough.

[quote name='dmaul1114']Some people are just nervous/awkward talking to strangers in general. Add in the pressure of many really needing a job to ramp of the nerves, and it's easy to see why some people struggle with them.

I've never had problems personally, but have friends who sweat bullets before interviews.[/QUOTE]I have MAJOR problems stuttering. I try to improve it, but I say some filler words. I even do it around people I know.

[quote name='Broseph']
Anyhow, good luck OP. I'm convinced it's who you know, not what you know and COMPLETE LUCK when it comes to getting hired these days. Being the guy they want on the bowling team, that's solid advice. I always try to project that image.[/QUOTE]I believe it. Most who got into my company got in that way. After I interview for this job, I may tell my Dad what job I applied to at another company because he knows the president (due to hiring him many years ago).
 
never wear underwear. when you go in free balling and they see the way you hang and sway they will respect your manliness instantly and you will be in.
 
[quote name='Invicta 61']My best piece of advice is to not tell them about your chicken finger fetish.[/QUOTE]

He's not DLF. For TMK it would be fried chicken or Sony.

Anyone have any advice for my problem?
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']He's not DLF. For TMK it would be fried chicken or Sony.

Anyone have any advice for my problem?[/QUOTE]


I have to ask... What kind of ethical reasons did you quit for? If I were hiring someone I would be impressed if the reasons were good.
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']He's not DLF. For TMK it would be fried chicken or Sony.

Anyone have any advice for my problem?[/QUOTE]

LOL I swear I thought it was TMK that always put up dating advice blogs and talks about wanting to get chicken fingers at dinner. I guess I need to pay closer attention.

As for your problem, do you use your former employer as a reference? No company wants to be accused of being unethical and I'm sure if your name is mentioned to them they would not have good things to say. Also, if you mention to a prospective employer that you left your previous job for ethical reasons they may just view you as a trouble maker. They don't want to hire you and then have to watch their back.

Just my opinion, but I would leave that employer out of your history and see how it goes since it was only four months. Just go with the history from the employers before them and act like you never had that job.

Good luck.
 
Job interview today. I'm prepared on questions to ask, but didn't really prepare yet on "tell me about yourself" or prepare for their questions. I realized preparing for questions does not help because I most questions I'm asked are not what I expected. I just need to get better of thinking of a good answer quickly. Sometimes I give an example, then realized I could have given a better one.

More will be posted later.
 
[quote name='The Mana Knight']Job interview today. I'm prepared on questions to ask, but didn't really prepare yet on "tell me about yourself" or prepare for their questions. I realized preparing for questions does not help because I most questions I'm asked are not what I expected. I just need to get better of thinking of a good answer quickly. Sometimes I give an example, then realized I could have given a better one.

More will be posted later.[/QUOTE]

Much luck to you. In my experience, the best answer for "tell me about yourself" includes briefly going over some recent history, and how that helps your plans 2 years down the road, and then in 5 years. It isn't something that's touched upon in your resume, and it lets them know that you have a sense of direction.
 
It's all about telling your interviewer how you are going to either make the company money or save the company money.

That's it.
 
Fellow EE here (just graduated last weekend!)...one thing that I've been asked by everyone is what projects I've worked on. So try to incorporate projects you've worked on/been a part of, or at the very least things you've done at your previous job that are a good showcase of your skills.

Also, what area of EE are you looking into?
 
Here's one I'm experiencing right now. Make sure your reference didn't take off on a two-week vacation so your prospective employer can't call them to find out if you stole office supplies at your last job. Tracking down your reference is apparently harder than it sounds.
 
[quote name='Invicta 61']LOL I swear I thought it was TMK that always put up dating advice blogs and talks about wanting to get chicken fingers at dinner. I guess I need to pay closer attention.
[/QUOTE]

It might be TMK then, I dunno, I don't read the blogs much. All I know is some poster here has fried chicken quotes from TMK. :lol:

The ethical reasons have to do with the application (or lack thereof) of accounting and auditing principles, which would kind of be a big deal for someone in the accounting industry. I haven't used them as a reference. I haven't even mentioned the ethical issues on the jobs I applied for. I've only mentioned it to external recruiters so they can say to employers that I had a good reason to quit, and I've never given specific details.
 
I'm super tired right now, but I had an interesting job interview day. Let's say that I drove down to VA (3 1/2 hours away from where I live) on Thursday. Got a nice hotel paid for and everything (my third time I stayed down there because it's my third time interviewing with the company). One Hiring Manager wanted to speak with me after seeing my resume. But before I met him, I met the recruiter in HR. She asked me if I had time because there was a second hiring manager that wanted to speak with me in another department (since I applied for the job just under two weeks ago, and he was wanting to bring me down for an interview, but I was already down there today). I went ahead and did it. After having two interviews and returning to HR to send me off, I was told a third department/hiring manager wanted to interview me. So I ended up leaving really late having three interviews.

Each interview was quite different. First one did ask me to tell them about myself, and explained how some things in his area really were (just so I wouldn't be surprised). Honestly, I feel I bombed the question because I didn't explain it how I wanted and came up short, but everything else was okay. Second manager gave me a massive overview of the area, then went through the standard interview process (he seemed to be the manager I got along with the best). Third manager (along with a fourth one who was there) had the position that seemed like the best fit for me overall. Only issue with that interview was that they couldn't go as long as needed because HR was closing at 4pm. Funny because I was worried about interviewing others later, yet I felt I did better as the day went on.

On top of all those interviews, I drove all the way back home (4 hour drive from the company) in the dark/rain (next to no light). Eh, I just want to relax now.

Some things CAGs mentioned did help (like on questions to ask). I won't find out until early January. I could have three job offers, or I could end up with nothing.
 
[quote name='Invicta 61']Being interviewed by three different people for one company sounds pretty promising. Good luck.[/QUOTE]

This right here. Keep us posted!
 
[quote name='Invicta 61']Being interviewed by three different people for one company sounds pretty promising. Good luck.[/QUOTE]Yes and no. I could get up to three job offers, or I could get none. My least favorite position (strictly because I would maybe have to work 2nd shift, but the pay would be great) sent me an email back after the thank you letter. They said very good things about me and that they only have to interview one more person. They said I was high on their list.

Quite honestly, my situation is a bit tough. I LOVE Baltimore (and DC area) a lot and wish I could stay here the rest of my life (I came from Indiana where I hated it all these years). I made several new friends, have an awesome barber (I'm picky with my haircut), love being near several anime conventions (like Otakon), near a few mountain resorts (for snowboarding), and so on. However, cost of living sure does suck out here and I want a better job. The area I interviewed is just over 3 hours away and doesn't have as much fun stuff, but at least cost of living is much cheaper giving me more out of my paycheck and puts my career in a great position. It's really a choice between comfort or advancing my career, but I'm likely choosing advancing my career leaving everything behind.
 
Got myself an interview tomorrow. Got word of it at like 4:30 PM today. This should be fun.... Not sure if I want this job, as it's with another CPA firm, but we'll see how it goes. It'll be just as much me interviewing them as they'll be interviewing me. One big perk though is that their office is just down the street from my husband's.
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']Got myself an interview tomorrow. Got word of it at like 4:30 PM today. This should be fun.... Not sure if I want this job, as it's with another CPA firm, but we'll see how it goes. It'll be just as much me interviewing them as they'll be interviewing me. One big perk though is that their office is just down the street from my husband's.[/QUOTE]
That's good to hear. :D I've gotten calls too myself for jobs I can't say if I wanted. Glad you are doing the interview regardless. If it's nearby, I'll take any interview that's offered to me. I had some job interviews where I realized I would really like the job, ones where they liked me and figured I'd be a better fit elsewhere (where they keep me on my mind), and ones I realized I rather not be at.

Just try to do your best and don't make any decision until they give you an offer.

Good luck. :D
 
I would like first to say goodluck to both of you TMK and DOK.

Dont get down on yourself's its a very tough market. I really dont have anything constructive to say other than just keep chipping away and dont give up it will come to you.
 
[quote name='The Mana Knight'] I came from Indiana where I hated it all these years.[/QUOTE]

LOL Indiana says hello.

A friend moved to Baltimore to work for a military manufacturer but the cost of living was prohibitive. He came back after a couple of years but he can do his job from home so he still works for the company.
 
Interview went well. They seemed to like me and I'd expect an offer. They said they'll let me know sometime next week. Not sure if I'd accept though, they have probably the best perks of any CPA firm I've seen but it's a CPA firm, so I'd have to work 55+ hours a week for 3 months out of the year as usual. Don't know if I want to do that anymore.

Got an interview for a temp position with a big nonprofit here next week, and a recruiter called me about another company that wants to interview me. Weird how all this shit is coming at once, especially during the holidays.
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']Interview went well. They seemed to like me and I'd expect an offer. They said they'll let me know sometime next week. Not sure if I'd accept though, they have probably the best perks of any CPA firm I've seen but it's a CPA firm, so I'd have to work 55+ hours a week for 3 months out of the year as usual. Don't know if I want to do that anymore.

Got an interview for a temp position with a big nonprofit here next week, and a recruiter called me about another company that wants to interview me. Weird how all this shit is coming at once, especially during the holidays.[/QUOTE]
For me I either have nothing going on or too much. It's also weird because when I get rejected for a job, the next day I get a call or a new posting to something I want comes up.

Good luck.
 
So looks like I'll probably be getting an offer soon from the first place I interviewed with last week, per the recruiter who hooked me up with the interview. I still don't know if I want it though. The job would probably be awesome IF I wanted to stay in public accounting. It's close to my husband's job, I'd be driving and not taking the T (I partially blame the T for me getting sick so much at my last job), seems to be nice enough people/environment, probably going to be a good salary. But I so abhor the 3 month straight busy season required of public accounting, and my focus would not be on non-profit clients, which would be what I'd really want if I stayed in public.

I got some leads on some non-profit and eco-conscious organizations, but no solid interviews (except for a temp position phone interview that I was passed on for due to being overqualified; however, the organization says they are interested in me for a perm role), let alone offers, yet. It looks like most of these would take at least a month to materialize an offer if I even get that far. That's the stuff that I really want to work on though. However, the pay would likely be less, and I'd probably need to take the T into Boston, risking my health thanks to my shit immune system. I'm also really fucking bored having not worked for 2 months and want to start back pretty soon.

Anyone got any advice based on this? There are both pros and cons to each. Wondering if anyone on here has been in a similar situation....
 
Okay I need help with an interview question. I have an interview in a few days for a intern/coop position. My school has a system set up where you're allowed to request a certain amount of interviews and then after a few weeks, any company that is interested in you will offer you an interview. Problem is, for this round, I was only offered ONE interview (I would say most students in my major average around 4-6). I believe I am qualified for the position but I myself am a very quiet person and have trouble "selling myself" in interviews.

That being said, the question I am dreading is "how many interviews do you have this round?". I'm afraid that when I tell them my only interview is with them, they will immediately mark me as a no for the position. Is there any way I should answer that question to make it sound as positive as possible?
 
[quote name='Invicta 61']Hear anything yet?[/QUOTE]Cannot access my email until I return to work later this week. Also, companies are shutdown during this time.
 
[quote name='The Mana Knight']Cannot access my email until I return to work later this week. Also, companies are shutdown during this time.[/QUOTE]

....Why the fuck wouldn't you use a personal email for your job search?
 
Yeah, never use a work email for job search stuff. Work emails aren't private and you're screwing ourself if someone is monitoring your email and see you're looking for another job.
 
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