BAZA ZNANJA

Kurs: - Upper-Intermediate

Modul: Expressing the Future

Autor: prof. Gordana Matorkić

Naziv jedinice: Your First Interview

YOUR FIRST INTERVIEW

With unemployment so high, and often numbers of applicants chasing after every job, you will consider yourself lucky to be called for an interview. If it’s your first, it’s normal to be nervous. (In fact if you aren’t nervous maybe your attitude is wrong!). The only way you can get a job is by leaving a good impression on the person interviewing you. Here’s how:

DO

Find out as much as you can about the job you will be applying for. Ask the job centre or employment agency for as much information as possible. By the time you have decided on how related you are to the job in question, you will already have jotted down your qualifications and experience. It will further help you get into the shoes of your future employer. Then answer the question: why should the employer give a job to me and not to somebody else?

Choose your clothes with care; no one is going to employ you if you look as though you’ve wandered out of a disco. Whether you like it or not, appearance counts.

Make sure you know where the interview office is and how to get there. Be on time, or better, a few minutes early.

Bring a pen; you will probably be asked to fill in an application form. Answer all the questions as best as you can. And write neatly. The interviewer will be looking at the application during the interview, so he or she must be able to read it.

DON’T

Ever walk into the interview chewing a gum or smoking.

Forget to bring with you any school certificates, samples of your work or letters of recommendation from your teachers or anyone else you might have worked part – time for. The prospective employer will be asking for them.

Have a drink beforehand to give you courage.

DO

Make a real effort to answer every question the interviewer asks. Be clear and concise. Answers like ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ are not going to leave a memorable effect.

Admit if you don’t know something. Stress that you are willing to learn.

Concentrate on what the interviewer is saying, and if he or she asks if you have any questions, have at least one ready to show that you are interested.

Sell yourself. This doesn’t mean exaggerating (you’ll just get caught out) or making your experience or interests seem unimportant.

Ask questions at the close of the interview. For instance, about the pay, hours, holidays, or if there is a training course.

DON’T

Forget to shake hands with the interviewer.

Smoke or sit down until you are invited to.                            

Give the interviewer a hard time by giggling, yawning, rambling on unnecessarily or appearing cocky.

Ever stress poor aspects of yourself, like your problem of getting up in the morning. Always show your best side: especially your keenness to work and your sense of responsibility! Good luck!