Competitive Enviroment

Introduction to Interviewing

When we consider what the factors are that contribute to successful interviews, we sum them up using the P-I-P concept. P-I-P stands for:

❑ Preparation

❑ Information

❑ Practice

Preparation- Using this highly successful system designed to improve your interview skills, we will be outlining a level of interview preparation that is most likely more than you have done in the past. In a highly competitive job market, candidates who come to the interview prepared for any eventuality are the ones who get the job offers. Proper preparation will convert the ‘sweaty palms’ anxiety to focused, professional self-confidence.

Information- In today’s ‘information rich’ world, interviewers are looking for candidates who can demonstrate their ability to:

▪ Acquire information (knowledge of what information is important in any given field and where and how to find that information)

▪ Manage information (be able to sort through a variety of sources and organize information to meet any given purpose)

▪ Present information (be able to present information in a clear, concise manner)

Practice- We will be reviewing 38 interview questions that you are likely to encounter in an interview. Once you have learned some techniques for answering the standard questions skillfully, you should type up the 38 questions with your personal answers and practice until you are comfortable with your responses. A great idea is to ‘buddy up’ with a classmate and do question drills. If you are in command of the standard questions, it will take much of the anxiety out of the interview for you.

Another concept we would like to share is that you should see yourself as a colleague of the interviewers throughout the applicant search process. At the master’s level, interviewers are looking for peers, not job applicants. Remember: The person who emerges from the process as a winner immediately becomes a peer and co-worker...