should I mention future plans for a family when interviewing? by Alison Green on April 7, 2014 A reader writes: I could use a hiring manager’s eye on my answer to “Where do you see yourself in five years?” Honestly, once my student loans are paid off and my husband and I buy a house, I think I am going to try to drop to part time or quit work entirely and […] Read the full article →
employer scheduled an interview with me — but just assigned me a date and time without asking about my schedule by Alison Green on April 3, 2014 A reader writes: I had applied for a job with a state government about 2-3 months ago online and hadn’t heard any response back from them since then. In fact, I had forgotten that I had applied. However, I heard back this morning with an email stating that an interview has been scheduled for next […] Read the full article →
if you’re getting interviews but no job offers, here’s what to do by Alison Green on March 24, 2014 If you’re getting plenty of job interviews without any job offers, it’s time to think about what could be going wrong. Since you’re making it past the initial screening, the problem is unlikely to be your resume or cover letter. That means that it could be your interview skills, or something about your experience that […] Read the full article →
an employer wants to take a photo of me at my interview by Alison Green on March 24, 2014 A reader writes: I have been invited to interview for a large global research company. This is the second stage interview, and as part of the email confirmation, I was told I would be doing a 2-hour interview with a task (normal enough) and that they would like to take a photo of me! (Exact […] Read the full article →
what does this interview question mean? and why must it be answered in an essay? by Alison Green on March 3, 2014 A reader writes: I have a question regarding an email I received from a potential employer. This is the first contact we’ve had since I applied last night. They said that they wanted to know more about me, and if I could please answer the following questions. The first one was a typical “what are […] Read the full article →
8 lies interviewers tell job candidates by Alison Green on March 3, 2014 As a job seeker, you might occasionally think about padding your experience or exaggerating your role on a key project. (Don’t do this.) But has it occurred to you that your interviewers may be misleading you right back? Interviewers regularly deliver statements to job candidates that aren’t entirely accurate and sometimes are outright false – and […] Read the full article →
the most common job interview questions — and how to answer them by Alison Green on February 24, 2014 Got an interview coming up? The best thing that you can do to prepare is to think through the questions that you’re likely to be asked and formulate answers ahead of time. Here are the seven most common interview questions, along with what a strong answer will look like. 1. “Tell me about yourself.” This […] Read the full article →
interviewing for a job with pieces that I won’t be good at by Alison Green on February 12, 2014 A reader writes: How can I stop myself from focusing on the aspects of a job I know I won’t be good at? The organization has contacted me for an interview, which means they think I’m qualified. But I’m scared they’re going to smell my fear – fear that they’re interviewing someone for an administrative […] Read the full article →
should I turn my questions to interviewers into a sales pitch for myself? by Alison Green on February 3, 2014 A reader writes: I have read, and made good use of, all of your posts about the best sorts of questions to ask an interviewer and how an interview should be a conversation. However, some issues have been coming up during that part of the interview in a number of recent interviews, and I am […] Read the full article →
when an employer calls me at work, can I ask how long the call will take or to reschedule? by Alison Green on January 30, 2014 A reader writes: When a recruiter/manager of a job I’ve applied to calls me back, I almost always let it go to voice mail — mostly because I work in an open space and can’t drop what I’m doing right away and take the call in front of my boss. They leave a message asking […] Read the full article →