INTERVIEWS
Purpose of interviews, types of interviews, preparing for interview, Mock interviews
Introduction:
An interview is a conversation between two or more people (the interviewer and the interviewee) where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee. The term ‘interview’ has been derived from the French word ‘Intrevor’ means ‘to glimpse’ or ‘to see each other’. By definition it means a meeting for obtaining information by questioning a person or persons. There are two parties to any interview- the interviewer (who conducts or takes the interview) and interviewee (who appear for the interview). Interview is a form of oral communication, in which an individual interacts with others to know each other.In Interview, the Interviewer seeks the information and the interviewee give information.
The objective of any interview is, to find out as much as possible information about the person or an event and there after making an assessment, appraisal or evaluation about the suitability of the candidate for the offer or position available with the interviewer. Interviews are always goal- oriented with the aim to assess suitability and make a selection.
The interviews may be public or private, formal or informal, social or business, personal or telephonic and career related or otherwise.
Definition:
1 An interview is a formal meeting in which a person evaluates or consults another person.
2 Interview can be defined as an oral tool to test a candidates trait for employment or admission to a premier institution of learning.
3 An interview reveals the view, ideas and attitudes of the person being interviewed as well as the skills of the interviewer.
4 To give an interview is to agree to answer, a set of questions
5 A meeting (public one) at which a journalist asks somebody, questions in order to find out the persons opinions.
Purpose or Need of Interview:
1. To collect information about particular person or event.
2. The purpose of the interview is to meet, talk, discuss, evaluate, counsel and sort out issues.
3. Job or employment interviews for the selection of suitable person on the basis of their qualification and experience.
4. To find out the reason for leaving the organization through exit interview.
5. The need for an interview arises because there is choice, there is a competition, and there are limited vacancies for a large number of aspirants.
6. Interrogation of a person by the police about some happening.
7. Admission interview of a candidate for admission to a course in higher education/professional training.
8. A meeting or conversation between a journalist or radio or television presenter and the person whose views are sought for broadcasting.
Features of an interview:
1. There is a definite purpose and it is known both to the interviewer and interviewee.
2. Interviewer and interviewee need to prepare for the communication event.
3. There is clear exchange of information.
4. The information exchanged may or may be kept secret.
5. All interviews are prearranged. The exception is for dismissal interview.
6. There are at least two participants in the events i.e. interviewer and interviewee. But sometimes there are more than interviewers.
Types of interviews:
There are various types of interviews conducted for variety of purposes. Some are employment related or some are for any other reasons, it depends upon the nature and purpose of interview what which it is conducted.
Employment-related
• Job Interview / Selection Interview:
• Case interview
• Informational Interview
• Exit interview
Other types
• Cognitive interview
• Computer-assisted personal vs. telephone interviewing
• Investigative interview
• Ladder interview
• Mall-intercept personal interview
• Mock Interview
• Multiple Mini Interview
• Parent-teacher interview
• Repertory grid interview
• Structured, Semi-structured, and Unstructured interview
Job Interview/Selection Interview:
A job interview is a process in which a potential employee is evaluated by an employer for prospective employment in their company, organization, or firm, and was established in the late 16th century. Interview conducted by an organization or institution to employ persons for specified posts called job or selection interview. This type of interview is important for both the interviewer and interviewee as both are looking forward to fill up “Right candidate for the right job.” The job interview is considered one of the most useful tools for evaluating potential employees. It also demands significant resources from the employer, yet has been demonstrated to be notoriously unreliable in identifying the optimal person for the job
Types of Job Interview
a. Behavioral interview
A common type of job interview in the modern workplace is the behavioral interview or behavioral event interview. This type of interview is based on the notion that a job candidate's previous behaviors are the best indicators of future performance. In behavioral interviews, the interviewer asks candidates to recall specific instances where they were faced with a set of circumstances, and how they reacted. Typical behavioral interview questions:
• "Tell me about a project you worked on where the requirements changed midstream. What did you do?"
• "Tell me about a time when you took the lead on a project. What did you do?"
• "Describe the worst project you worked on."
• "Describe a time you had to work with someone you didn't like."
• "Tell me about a time when you had to stick by a decision you had made, even though it made you very unpopular."
• "Give us an example of something particularly innovative that you have done that made a difference in the workplace."
• "What happened the last time you were late with a project?"
A bad hiring decision nowadays can be immensely expensive for an organization – cost of the hire, training costs, severance pay, loss of productivity, impact on morale, cost of re-hiring, etc. (Gallup international places the cost of a bad hire as being 3.2 times the individual's salary). Structured selection techniques have a better track record of identifying the soundest candidate than the old-style "biographical" interview.
b. Stress interview
Stress interview is conducted for assessing the ability of the interviewee to face high levels of strain or mental pressure. Stress interviews are still in common use. One type of stress interview is where the employer uses a succession of interviewers (one at a time or en masse) whose mission is to intimidate the candidate and keep him/her off-balance. The ostensible purpose of this interview: to find out how the candidate handles stress. Stress interviews might involve testing an applicant's behavior in a busy environment. Questions about handling work overload, dealing with multiple projects, and handling conflict are typical.
Another type of stress interview may involve only a single interviewer who behaves in an uninterested or hostile manner. For example, the interviewer may not make eye contact, may roll his eyes or sigh at the candidate's answers, interrupt, turn his back, take phone calls during the interview, or ask questions in a demeaning or challenging style. The goal is to assess how the interviewee handles pressure or to purposely evoke emotional responses. This technique was also used in research protocols studying Stress and Type A (coronary-prone) Behavior because it would evoke hostility and even changes in blood pressure and heart rate in study subjects. The key to success for the candidate is to de-personalize the process. The interviewer is acting a role, deliberately and calculatedly trying to "rattle the cage." Once the candidate realizes that there is nothing personal behind the interviewer's approach, it is easier to handle the questions with aplomb.
Example stress interview questions:
• Sticky situation: "If you caught a colleague cheating on his expenses, what would you do?"
• Putting you on the spot: "How do you feel this interview is going?"
• Popping the balloon: "(deep sigh) Well, if that’s the best answering you can give ... (shakes head) Okay, what about this one ...?"
• Oddball question: "What would you change about the design of the hockey stick?"
• Doubting your veracity: "I don't feel like we're getting to the heart of the matter here. Start again - tell me what really makes you tick."
Candidates may also be asked to deliver a presentation as part of the selection process. The "Platform Test" method involves having the candidate make a presentation to both the selection panel and other candidates for the same job. This is obviously highly stressful and is therefore useful as a predictor of how the candidate will perform under similar circumstances on the job. Selection processes in academic, training, airline, legal and teaching circles frequently involve presentations of this sort.
c. Technical Interview
This kind of interview focuses on problem solving and creativity. The questions aim at your problem-solving skills and likely show your ability and creativity. Sometimes these interviews will be on a computer module with multiple-choice questions.
d. Telephonic interview
In this the candidates are assessed on the basis of his/her answers over the telephone call, made by company executive after preliminary assessment. This is usually common when the candidates do not live near the employer and has the advantage of keeping cost low for both the sides.
e. Walk in interview
Job interview may be ‘Walk in’ interview wherein the candidates are called at very short notice through advertisement and spot interviews are conducted.
“Planned interview” are conducted after due scrutiny of application form.
Job interview is usually preceded by the evaluation of submitted resumes from interested candidates, then selecting a small number of candidates for interviews. Multiple rounds of job interviews may be used where there are many candidates or the job is particularly challenging or desirable. Once all the candidates have been interviewed the employer selects the most desirable candidate and begins the negotiation of a job offer.
Preparation
It is very important to be well prepared for an interview. A common reason employers give for not hiring an applicant is the inability of the applicant to fully explain the contents of his or her resume. Therefore it is paramount to be able to discuss in detail every item listed on one's resume, and if possible to give examples when appropriate. It is also wise to research the company before the interview. To avoid being nervous, the applicant should practice answering difficult questions. Good sources of interview questions can be found by searching the Internet.
Process
A typical job interview has a single candidate meeting with between one and three persons representing the employer; the potential supervisor of the employee is usually involved in the interview process. A larger interview panel will often have a specialized human resources worker. While the meeting can be over in as little as 15 minutes, job interviews usually last less than two hours.
The bulk of the job interview will entail the interviewers asking the candidate questions about his or her job history, personality, work style and other factors relevant to the job. For instance, a common interview question is "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" The candidate will usually be given a chance to ask any questions at the end of the interview. These questions are strongly encouraged since they allow the interviewee to acquire more information about the job and the company, but they can also demonstrate the candidate's strong interest in them.
Case Interview
Case interview is a job interview in which the applicant is given a question/situation/problem/challenge and asked to resolve the situation. The case problem is often a business situation or a business case that the interviewer has worked on in real life.
After the applicant is given information about the case, the applicant is expected to ask the interviewer logical and sequential questions that will enable the applicant to understand the situation, probe deeper into relevant areas, gather pertinent information and arrive at a solution or recommendation for the question or situation at hand.
Case interviews are mostly used in hiring for management consulting and investment banking jobs. Firms use case interviews to evaluate analytical ability and problem-solving skills; they are looking not for a "correct" answer but for an understanding of how the applicant thinks and how the applicant approaches problems.
During case interviews, interviewers are generally looking for the following skills.:
• Numerical and verbal reasoning skills
• Communication and presentation skills
• Business skills and commercial awareness
Candidates are often asked to estimate a specific number, often a commercial figure (such as market size or profitability). Candidates are expected to demonstrate reasoning rather produce the exact answer.
A case interview can also be conducted as a group exercise. Here several candidates are given some briefing materials on a business problem and asked to discuss and agree upon a solution. The interviewers normally sit around the exterior of the room as silent observers. They assess candidates communication and interaction as well as analytical thinking and commercial awareness.
Informational Interview
An Informational Interview is a meeting in which a job seeker asks for advice rather than employment. The job seeker uses the interview to gather information on the field, find employment leads and expand their professional network. This differs from a job interview because the job seeker asks the questions. There may or may not be employment opportunities available.
Informational interviews are initiated by the job seeker. There are many avenues the job seeker may pursue to obtain the informational interview. Career and social networking, newspaper want ads, job boards, placement services, company websites, human resource contacts, job search engines, and professional recruiters.
While the job seeker initiates the interview, he must follow the basic guidelines for interview etiquette. He must arrive promptly, dress appropriately, prepare informational questions, and make a good first impression.
Exit interview
An exit interview is an interview conducted by an employer of a who are resigning or retiring (departing) employee. They are generally conducted by a relatively neutral party, such as a human resources staff member, so that the employee will be more inclined to be candid, as opposed to worrying about burning bridges. For this reason, some companies opt to employ a third party to conduct the interviews and provide feedback.
The purpose of an exit interview is usually to gather data for improving working conditions and retaining employees. Common questions asked in exit interviews are, "What are your primary reasons for leaving", "What did you find most satisfying about your job", "What did you find most frustrating about your job", "Were there any company policies or procedures that made your work more difficult", etc. Many career advisers recommend treating an exit interview like a hiring interview, in that criticism of the past employer should be limited to statements about the company as a whole, rather than specific individuals.
Schools may also conduct exit interviews with students before graduation, or even as a requirement of it. This is sometimes called a graduation interview.
During elections, pollsters may conduct random exit polls, though these are not required.
Promotion Interview
Promotion interviews are conducted by organizations for their own eligible employees who are desirous of moving up in the hierarchy. The objective of such interview is to give one, an opportunity and verification of past performance. The candidate has to ensure factual correctness and be sincere and truthful in replying to the questions.
Reprimand Interview
Reprimand implies a severe or formal reproof or censure.( a formal expression of disapproval/ things to be held in check). It is conducted to express rebuke or disapproval. It is done to pull up or correct, usually with a kindly intent. It is done in private, where the erring or misbehaving employee is called by supervisor or authorized person and advised to improve his or her behavior.
The objective is to draw attention to the wrong doing and counsel or instruct the person to concern to correct oneself and to ensure correction in behavior, attitude and performance. It consist of cautioning, suggesting that any repetition of such and act would entail more stringent action. In organization reprimand interview is appropriate in dealing with absentees, insubordination, inter-personal problems, poor performance and other such deficiencies.
Grievance Interview
A grievance (grievance means real or imagine cause for complaint) interview relates to any dissatisfaction, distress or resistance to something that may or may not have happened and has made the person concerned carry a grievance. There are two kinds of grievance in organization or business – grievance relating to the employees and grievance relating to consumers.
It relates to a face to face talk, where the aggrieved person gets an opportunity to meet a person in authority to share the distress and seek remedial action. It provides an opportunity to aggrieved person to hear. In this interview, the interviewer makes the interviewee comfortable and lends a patient ear and uses placating skills to diminish hurt feelings, clear misconceptions and gather all relevant facts.
Oriented interview:
Oriented interviews are onducted after the selection interviews and are in the nature of briefing sessions. The interviewer makes the interviewee comfortable and shares are all releant details about the organization and task in a cordial manner. It is conducted by way of appraisal or education, rather than assessment or evaluation.
OTHER INTERVIEW:
Admission interview
This type of interview is conducted by the authorities of a school, college, professional institutes like IIM etc. The purpose of this interview is to assess the candidates eligibility for admission into a particular course of study or a professional body or association. Generally this follows a written exam and group discussion.
Appraisal Interview
For appraising the performance of the employees, performance appraisal interviews are conducted. Through feedback it helps the employee to improve his/her performance in the organization and also make aware about companies expectation from the employees.
Mock Interviews
Some educational institutes or academic bodies conduct imaginary interviews, for preparing the candidate mentally for the actual interview. This helps the students to learn how to face a real employment interviews. The mock interview includes the job description, interview questions, answer tips, and interview resources. Also available are more interview questions, interview help for specific jobs, and interview guides by job and company.
Panel Interviews
In this panel (it is group of experts form different backgrounds) of experts or interviewers ask questions to a candidate, based on the purpose and plan of the interview.
Problem Interview
It is the interviews of experts in a particular area, to discuss a particular problem. In organization it may be conducted with the employees who are creating problems, to find the reason behind their erratic behavior.
Cognitive interview:
'A Cognitive interview is a procedure designed for use in police interviews that involve witnesses. There were two main forces behind the development of the CI. The first was the need to improve the effectiveness of police interviews when questioning witnesses. The seconds was to apply the results of psychological research to this area, particularly the work of Elizabeth Loftus, whose research had already dispelled the myth that eyewitnesses memory operates like a video camera.' - Psychology, The Complete Companion. Cognitive interviewing also embodies general good practice when conducting investigative interviews, e.g. avoiding leading questions.
Computer-assisted personal interviewing (CAPI)
CAPI is an interviewing technique similar to computer-assisted telephone interviewing, except that the interview takes place in person instead of over the telephone. The respondent or the interviewer sits in front of a computer terminal and enters the answers into the computer. If an emphasis is put on the fact, that no personal interviewer is present, sometimes the term Computer-assisted self interviewing (CASI) is also used.
- The respondent sits in front of a computer terminal and answers a questionnaire on the screen by using the keyboard or a mouse.
- Help screens and courteous error messages are provided.
- The colorful screens and on and off-screen stimuli add to the respondent's interest and involvement in the task.
- This method has been classified as a personal interview technique since an interviewer is usually present to serve as a host and to guide the respondent as needed.
- This approach is used in shopping malls, preceded by the intercept and screening process.
- It is also used to conduct business-to-business research at trade shows or conventions.
For example, CAPI is used as the method of data collection for the British Crime Survey.
Advantages
This form of interview is substantially cheaper when a large number of respondents is required, because
• There is no need to recruit or pay surveyors.
• There is no need to transcribe the results into a computer form. The computer program can be constructed so as to place the results directly in a format that can be read be statistical analysis programs .
• The program can be placed on a web site, potentially catching a world wide audience.
Disadvantages
• The survey is likely to attract only respondents who are "computer savvy", thus introducing potential bias to the survey.
Ladder interview:
A Ladder interview is an interviewing technique where a seemingly simple response to a question is pushed by the interviewer in order to find subconscious motives.
Example
It begins with a simple question, and then another question is asked about that response. For example, an interviewer may ask: "How come you skipped class?" and the response may be: "I went out with my friends". The next question would be something like "Why did you go out with your friends?". Essentially, the format is as follows:
Interviewer: "Why x?"
Subject: "Because z"
Interviewer: "Why z?"
Subject: "Because b"
Interviewer: "Why b?"
The first responses are generally functional justifications, like "I went out with my friends because I wanted some pizza", or "I wanted some pizza because I used to eat it as a child"; but eventually the interviewer hopes to reach a virtue justification like "It's good to be childish". Then it is fair to conclude that the interviewee skipped class because he valued childishness.
Usage
This technique is used for marketing in order to see what values inspire the consumption of the particular product. A chocolate bar producer would do this test so they can match the most common terminal virtue to their product in an advertisement. For example, the virtue of justice, or a virtue of efficiency, or in the above example, the virtue of childhood.
Mall-intercept personal interview:
A mall-intercept personal interview is a survey whereby respondents are intercepted in shopping in malls. The process involves stopping the shoppers, screening them for appropriateness, and either administering the survey on the spot or inviting them to a research facility located in the mall to complete the interview. While not representative of the population in general, shopping mall customers do constitute a major share of the market for many products.
Multiple Mini-interviews
The Multiple Mini-Interview (MMI) [1] is an interview format that uses many short independent assessments, typically in a timed circuit, to obtain an aggregate score of each candidate’s soft skills. Candidate assessment is normally deemed successful when the scores generated by the measuring tool predict for future outcomes of interest, such as job performance or job retention. Meta-analysis of the human resource literature has demonstrated low to moderate ability of interviews to predict for future job performance [2]. How well a candidate scores on one interview is only somewhat correlated with how well that candidate scores on the next interview. Marked shifts in scores are buffered when collecting many scores on the same candidate, with a greater buffering effect provided by multiple interviews than by multiple interviewers acting as a panel for one interview.[3]. The score assigned by an interviewer in the first few minutes of an interview is rarely changed significantly over the course of the rest of the interview, an effect known as the halo effect.Therefore, even very short interviews within an MMI format provide similar ability to differentiate reproducibly between candidates [4]. Ability to reproducibly differentiate between candidates, also know as overall test reliability, is markedly higher for the MMI than for other interview formats [1]. This has translated into higher predictive validity, correlating for future performance much more highly than standard interviews
Parent-Teacher interview
A parent-teacher interview (also a parent-teacher conference) is a once per term, short conference between students' parents and teachers. The interview is a chance for parents to meet their child's teachers and review any issues or concerns the parents or teachers may have with child/student's performance. These interviews are usually between five to fifteen minutes long. Parent-teacher interviews are a tradition in Western school systems
Repertory Grid
The Repertory Grid is an interviewing technique which uses factor analysis to determine an idiographic measure of personality. It was devised by George Kelly in around 1955 and is based on his Personal Constructs theory of personality.
Structured interview
A structured interview (also known as a standardised interview or a researcher-administered survey) is a quantitative research method commonly employed in survey research. The aim of this approach is to ensure that each interviewee is presented with exactly the same questions in the same order. This ensures that answers can be reliably aggregated and that comparisons can be made with confidence between sample subgroups or between different survey periods.
Structured interviews are a means of collecting data for a statistical survey. In this case, the data is collected by an interviewer rather than through a self-administered questionnaire. Interviewers read the questions exactly as they appear on the survey questionnaire. The choice of answers to the questions is often fixed (close-ended) in advance, though open-ended questions can also be included within a structured interview.
A structured interview also standardizes the order in which questions are asked of survey respondents, so the questions are always answered within the same context. This is important for minimizing the impact of context effects, where the answers given to a survey question can depend on the nature of preceding questions. Though context effects can never be avoided, it is often desirable to hold them constant across all respondents.
Structured interviews can also be used as a qualitative research methodology (Kvale, 1996). These types of interviews are best suited for engaging in respondent or focus group studies in which it would be beneficial to compare/contrast participant responses in order to answer a research question (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002). For structured qualitative interviews, it is usually necessary for researchers to develop an interview schedule which lists the wording and sequencing of questions (Patton, 1990). Interview schedules are sometimes considered a means by which researchers can increase the reliability and credibility of research data (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002).
Semi-structured interview
A semi-structured interview is a method of research used in the social sciences. While a structured interview has formalized, limited set questions, a semi-structured interview is flexible, allowing new questions to be brought up during the interview as a result of what the interviewee says. The interviewer in a semi-structured interview generally has a framework of themes to be explored.
However, the specific topic or topics that the interviewer wants to explore during the interview should usually be thought about well in advance (especially during interviews for research projects). It is generally beneficial for interviewers to have an interview guide prepared, which is an informal "grouping of topics and questions that the interviewer can ask in different ways for different participants" (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002, p. 195). Interview guides help researchers to focus an interview on the topics at hand without constraining them to a particular format. This freedom can help interviewers to tailor their questions to the interview context/situation, and to the people they are interviewing (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002).
One - to - one interview: This is also called individual interview. Here one interviewer talks with one applicant. It is widely used in industry and commerce. It is a comparatively relaxed approach.
Matrimonial Interview: Spouse selection through boy-meets-girls interviews.
Media Interview: Where the newspaper, magazines, radio or television representatives seeks views and details.
Consumer Interview: It is similar like mall interview. It is the interview where organizations, marketing and advertising agencies seek responses on products and preferences from customers and prospects.
Assessment Interview: It is conducted to check the creditworthiness of borrowers, suitability for empanelment of various agencies etc.
Psychological Interview: Counseling and guidance meeting with criminals, people under stress, etc Evaluation of temperament.
Structure of an Interview:
An interview is a formal communication event, the aim and outcome of which is understood by both the parties: interviewer and interviewee. The structure of an interview is divided into three parts/stages.
1. Opening/Beginning/Start:
1 Introduction: Which includes casual talk, smile, shake hands etc.
2 Statement of purpose of the meeting
3 Making the other person comfortable.
4 Commitment to the purpose stated above.
5 Preparing to start discussing things frankly.
2. Middle/Main body:
1 Aim at exchange of information.
2 Keeping the discussion to the point.
3 Keep eye to eye contact.
4 Make sure to cover agenda
5 Interruptions if any should be Polite
6 If clarification if needed.
3. Closing:
1 Summing up the discussion or exchange of information.
2 Describing the action taken upon
3 Avoid hurried or abrupt ending.
4 Closing on a positive note.
5 Exchanging feelings of gratitude, thankfulness etc.
Chronology of interview:
6 Introduction: Which includes casual talk, smile, shake hands etc.
7 Company Information
8 Candidates assessment: Through Qualification, Achievement and Questions.
9 Conclusion
Preparations to be made by the Interviewer/ Process of conducting the Interview:
1. Arrangement of place, time and question: The time and place must be decided in advance and interviewer makes proper arrangement for drinking water and sitting. Interviewer should decide the questions to be asked, keeping in mind the purpose of the interview.
2. Acquiring job related information ad general knowledge: The interviewer must be clear about the job requirement, number of positions to be filled and job responsibilities for which he is going to conduct interviews and interviewer should update him/herself about the latest technologies through reading newspapers or magazines.
3. Going through the Resumes: The Interviewer must go through resumes of all candidates to check for requisite qualification, experience and other eligibility details. It helps the interviewer to prepare the questions.
4. Assessing the interviewee’s attitudes: The interviewer should prepare a list of questions which can measure some positive and negative attitudes of the person while conducting the interview.
5. Prepare opening remarks: First impression is the last impression. The interviewer must prepare in advance what he/she is going to speak to the candidate in the very beginning.
6. Recording the proceeding of the interview: The interviewer may tape record or write down the responses of the candidate during the interview. He/She should make the assessment by noting side by side which will help him/her to take the better decision in the end.
How to conduct an Interview/Time honoured conventions for conducting interview:
a. In the first place, the interviewer has to plan the event:
b. The interviewer should make every effort to put the interviewee at ease:
c. Ask the right question:
d. Let the candidate/Interviewee do most of the talking:
e. The interviewer should follow the plan that has been chalked out before the interview:
f. Emphasize the importance of listening:
g. The interviewer must give his entire attention to the interviewee:
h. The interviewer must respect the feelings of the interviewee, even if the latter appears to be wrong:
i. The interviewer must also keep a record of the information gathered from the interview:
j. The interviewer should also stick to the time allocated:
Preparations to be made by the Interviewee to Attend interview:
The candidate appearig for the interview should aim at scoring over other competitior adn approach the interveiw with the required seriousness. The candidate has to prepare for an interviwew well in advance.Attire, apprearance, body language, communication skill, confidence , keenness adn a good understanding of the job requirement would contribute to the success in the interview.The candidate has to prepare for an interviwew well in advance.
The candidate need to prepare at various levels for the interview. The candidate need to prepare himself in the following aspect:
1. Physical Preparation:
• Good formal dress
• Good posture
• Good manner 2. Mental Preparation:
• The candidate needs to revise the subject knowledge.
• Get information about the current affairs adn important issues.
• Information about the company, its products, competitors etc.
• Prepare general and personal questions. 3. Psychological Preparation:
• Practicing honesty
• Practicing negotiating skills
• Will power and determination 4. Self Assessment :
• Evaluate SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) to know where he/she is , to what extent he/she is prepared, understanding level etc.
Guidelines to attend interview to the interviewee:
1. Be prepared for the interview:
• Plan out the events in advance like interviewer.
• Know the purpose of the event/interview.
• Prepare questions and answers related to the interview like area of interest, present position, position applied, nature of organization , current activities, general knowledge etc.
2. Have presentable appearnce:
• Formal Dressing.
• Appear should reflect plesant personality. 3. Show interest by making effective use of body language:
• Eye to eye contact
• Show your interest in the interview.
• Keeness to participate in the interview.
• Correct and Confident posture and gesture.
• Good/positive body language.
4. All the questions must be correctly and completely answered:
• Provide detail information.
• Exchange of information through effective communication skills.
• Say "No" if you dont know the answer instead of bluffing.
• Be honest.
5. Be polite
• Show politeness in all the situations.
6. Avoid talking too much or making boastful statement.
7. Avoid criticism of the previous employer or anybody else.
8. Thank the interviewer for having spared time for you/for conducting interview by giving his time.
9. At the end of the interview if you feel likely to get the job, do not hesitate to ask the questions to seek clarification regardig the company profile, service ,condition etc.
Check list for interview preparation by interviewee:
• Know yourself
• Know your resume and its details
• Know the company (previous and where going for the interview).
• Know the position/ post applied with responsibilites related to it.
• Anticipate and prepare for some questions and answers.
• Know that your non verbal appearanc communicates loudly.
• Know your oral communication skills.
• Know the meeting or interview place , time and other details.
• Know some basic salary ranges for negotiation.
• Must rehearsal before interview.
• Show positive or desirable behaviour like listen attentively, show interest in topic, company , show analytical skills and keep answers in brief (Keep It Short and Simple)
• Avoid negative factors like dishonesty, jargaon, discourtesy,confusing comment , over aggressive etc.
Questions Asked Frequently in the Interview
1. Personal questions
The opening question is generally “Tell us about yourself”. Introduce yourself by stating the most important facts first. This is the best opportunity that you will get for promoting your candidature. Prepare your answer to be relevant, to the point, and interesting – whether you’re given 5 minutes to introduce yourself or are cut off after the first 10 seconds. Talk about your
qualifications, family background, achievements, extra-curricular activities, strengths, aim in life, aspirations, etc. Of course, find your own sequence. Remember, most of the subsequent questions in the personal interviews will follow from the information provided by you in this answer. Hence, you can actually direct the course of your interview by preparing the
answer to this question very carefully.
2. General awareness
Questions pertaining to your general awareness are frequently asked. Most of those can be answered provided you have been reading the daily newspapers regularly. For example, you may be asked,
-What are the three major problems, India / your state / your city, is currently facing?
- How do you propose to solve them?
- What according to you is the / should be the logical end of the match fixing crisis?
A good (but brief and to the point) compendium of current affairs such as the annual issues of Career and Competition Master or Competition and Success Review, is a must for you.
3. Hobbies and extra curricular activities
Questions related to your hobbies and extra-curricular activities, mentioned in your biodata are asked. For example, if classical music has been mentioned as a hobby, there could be questions like : - What are the different ragas? What do they signify?
- What differences are there in the styles of Ravi Shankar and Ustad Vilayat Khan?
Or a cricket player may be asked the following:
- Which Indian player has got the fastest 50. Against which country?
- How do you calculate Net Run Rate? Ceat Cricket Ratings?
- What is the difference in playing styles of Ganguly and Tendulkar?
- What do you understand by Chinaman and Googly?
Reading as a hobby can invite questions like:
- The type of books read
- Writing styles of authors
- Message of a novel or a book
- Comparison of characters in a book
Reading as a hobby has often unnerved many an unwary interviewee for on follow-up, it frequently turns out that the interviewee only has a superficial knowledge of what he professes to read.
4. Miscellaneous
You may be asked to solve a simple Maths problem or a puzzle. The problems are generally on:
Differentiation and Integration
Means (Arithmetic and Geometric)
Drawing graphs of an equation
Proving or solving equations
For example:
1) Which is bigger: Arithmetic mean or Geometric mean. Show that.
2) Give the equation of a line which is continuous but not differentiable at x=0.
Please be thoroughly prepared. Remember you are not supposed to know all the answers. It is better to say “I don’t know Sir / Madam, rather than bluff.
4. There is another genre of questions, which are mainly asked by a psychologist (the panel may have a faculty from the behavioral science area). This expert may ask you questions such as: - Whom do you love the most and why?
- Name two people whom you hate the most?
- Who is your role model in life?
- Suppose, while working as an Engineer on the shop floor you find your Supervisor is stealing bearings. Later on you find his wife is suffering from Cancer and that’s why this trustworthy person has been forced to do something like this. What action would you take?
- Suppose you are deeply in love with a girl / boy and it comes to be known that she / he suffers from HIV, would you still marry her / him?
- What are your strengths and weaknesses as perceived by others?
Here it is necessary to have presence of mind; an attempt to be ‘correct’ will show.
Self Analysis
1) Who do you think you are?
2) What do you want to do in life?
3) What have you achieved so far?
4) What are your dreams, aims and ambitions?
5) Is there any incident in your life which affected you positively or negatively?
6) Your education, relationships, family, friends, etc.
7) What are your hobbies and how have they helped you in your personal development?
8) What are your strengths and how to leverage them?
9) What are your weaknesses and how you plan to overcome them?
10) What are your short-term and long-term goals?
11) Where do you see yourself 5 years / 10 years down the line?
12) How will your professional qualifications help you in achieving your goals.
13) Give three reasons why we should not select you?
14) Give one reason why you should be selected?
These questions are meant to provoke your thinking and self analysis. Your sincerity in trying to answer these questions will
set the pace for giving a successful interview.
The most important practical exercise for you is to be your own interviewer. Ask yourself the most searching questions you
can imagine on:
- your biodata
- your general awareness
- your field of study
- your career plan (the specialization you have chosen)
- your hobbies and other interests
- your strengths and weaknesses
You should be able to anticipate realistically, about 80 percent of the questions any interviewer could possibly ask you. Put
your answers in writing and go over them to see if they are clear, sensible and convincing. If they are, you win the game.
Selection Criteria for Interviews
1. Intellectual understanding:
(a) The depth of knowledge and grasp of the subject
(b) Practical knowledge – how a candidate applies his theoretical knowledge in practical situations.
(c) General knowledge, current affairs, everyday science, controversial topics, sports, social issues, newspaper headlines etc.
2. Communication skills:
(a) Fluency: how fluently the candidate expresses himself/herself
(b) Logic in argument: how rational, clear-headed, analytical and systematic the candidate is in presenting his arguments.
(c) Convincing ability: how the candidate is able to lend conviction to his/her arguments.
3. Personality traits:
(a) Personal disposition: Smiling, cheerful, pleasant and polite.
(b) Liveliness: eager and alert
(c) Enthusiasm: keenness and interest
(d) Poise: Graceful movements, confident approach, brisk walk, eye contact.
(e) Punctuality
(f) Dress and appearance: Smart, well groomed and dressed suitably for the occasion.
4. Career objectives:
(a) Clear aim, ambition and goal in life.
(b) A systematic approach towards career planning.
(c) Analysis of your strengths and weaknesses.
5. Character:
(a) Integrity and moral values.
(b) Sincerity and loyalty.
(c) Self discipline.
6. Hobbies and Interests:
(a) Optimum utilization of spare time for developing interest in leisure activities like reading, cinema, music, philately, fine arts
etc.
(b) Participation in sports and other physical endurance activities like trekking, camping etc
7. Dynamism:
(a) Self confidence
(b) Initiative and enterprise
(c) Industrious temperament
(d) Decision making abilities
(e) Resourcefulness
(f) Motivation
8. Psychological Factors:
(a) Confident and determined approach.
(b) Optimistic and positive.
(c) Absence of anti-social or negative qualities.
9. Social Qualities:
(a) Sense of responsibility.
(b) Adaptability and flexibility.
(c) Preference to group life and activity.
(d) Ability to influence others and get things done.
Every candidate will have a certain degree of proficiency in each of the areas mentioned above. A careful introspection by the
candidate will reveal his strengths and weaknesses with respect to the various criteria. By rigorous preparation, training and
practice the candidate can improve himself / herself in spheres in which he / she lack ability.
Practical Hints:
In an interview the art of conversation is perhaps the most valuable attribute. A good conversation is contingent on the rapport a candidate establishes with the interview board. The process of rapport building must start from the moment enters the room.
A smile and a formal greeting and developing eye contact from the beginning is essential. The first impression you create goes a long way in your ultimate selection. Your bearing should be that of a person who is eager to tackle the most difficult questions.
The three primary components of a conversation are: voice, delivery and words.
The voice should be well modulated, the tone of delivery pleasant and the volume in accordance with the distance. The delivery pace should be optimal i.e. neither fast nor slow. You should not rush your answers. Proper spacing of words with periodical pauses helps in emphasizing appropriate words. The sentences should be short and the language simple. Successful conversation demands clear thinking, expressed in concise and grammatically correct language, which must convey facts in an easily understandable and interesting manner.
Self-evaluation:
1. Did you manage to present your strengths convincingly to the board?
2. Did you avoid the following traps?
(a) Jumping to conclusions.
(b) Answering loaded questions.
(c) Getting into arguments on morals and integrity.
(d) Undermining the interviewers.
(e) Exaggerating your claims.
(f) Breaking down under stress.
Cross-checking one’s performance in an interview with the above checklist helps one prepare better for future interviews.
Preparing For the Main Question Areas
It is important to anticipate and review the sort of information you may be asked for.
Questions can be asked on the information given in the application form, so it is also advisable to get the form xeroxed for yourself and have a look at it before going for the interview.
The main questions are about:
1. Family background
2. Education and Training
3. Work experience (if applicable)
4. Motivations and Aspirations
5. Leisure interests
6. General topics
7. Specializations and other Technical matters
8. Health
1. Family Background
What does your father do?
What does your mother do?
How many brothers and sisters do you have? What do they do etc?
Reasons:
a) To find out how well you have done in relation to the opportunities available to you
b) To assess formative influence on your personality and character to determine the extent to which your decisions are influenced by your family members.
2. Education and Training
Why did you choose the particular stream after school?
How is it going to help you in developing a career in this field?
Which subject did you like the most and why?
Besides the academic knowledge what did you gain during your degree course?
What is the effect of your course on your attitudes and aspirations? etc.
Reasons:
a) As some young applicants have either no work experience or only a minimal amount, the interview often centres strongly around the individual’s educational background.
b) These questions help in getting information about the non-academic aspects of school / college life.
c) It also helps in getting to know your experience and attitudes. Also, what is relevant to the position/course you are applying for.
3. Work Experience:
What was your job responsibility in the previous organization?
What parts of the job did you like the best and why?
Why did you leave the previous job? etc.
Reasons:
a) To assess the extent to which your previous jobs have contributed to your ability to do the one you are applying for now.
b) To find out what duties were involved in the jobs you have done, and the implications that can be drawn about your ability to
exercise responsibility, etc.
c) To analyse the reasons for taking and leaving jobs.
4. Motivation & Aspirations:
Where do you see yourself 5 / 10 / 15 years down the line?
Given a free choice, what sort of work would you like to do the most?
Given a large sum of money and authority to spend it, where would you like to spend it?
What makes you feel good and motivates you while you are working? etc.
Reasons:
a) To assess if you have a clear idea of what you want to do or are still drifting along aimlessly.
b) Are your ambitions realistic or are you is just building castles in the air?
5. Interests:
? What are your interests / hobbies?
? How much time do you spend regularly on your interests?
? Have you achieved something outstanding in your area of interest? etc.
Reasons:
a) To know about you as a person.
b) To give you an opportunity to express yourself better because now you are talking about something you are interested in.
c) The interests of an individual sometimes compliment his work and matches with the job he is applying for.
d) Although, interests and hobbies vary from person to person yet it is advisable, that you emphasize more on `socially impressive interests’ rather than going for something like : watching TV, sleeping, partying, etc.
6. General Topics:
There can be various questions on general topics including current affairs, politics, economy, science, literature, philosophy, etc.
Reasons:
a) The interviewer wants to see your level of awareness, whether you take any interest in society as a whole or not.
b) If you take interest then to what extent are you able to form and express `your’ opinion on the topic.
c) How good you are at defending your view-point against arguments and counter-arguments.
7. Specialist & Technical Matters:
Such questions are asked mainly in interviews for scientific, technical or professional fields.
Reasons:
a) To see how well you can explain the subjects you have specialized in.
b) How adept you are in conveying technical concepts and procedures in a way that a non-
specialist is able to understand.
c) To have extra evidence on your technical expertise.
d) To determine whether you had thought about the way in which your specialist knowledge is related to the particular job applied for.
e) Also gives an idea to the interviewer of how quickly you can think when placed under pressure.
8. Health:
Some jobs require evidence of good health because of their physically demanding nature.
Remember, no interview is 100 % predictable. There will always be surprises for you; situations and questions you did not expect, even if you have really prepared thoroughly. So be prepared for such situations also and take them in your stride.
Preparing Your Own Questions
Normally at the end of the interview, the candidate is given a chance to put his/her queries. It is an opportunity to fill the gaps in information about the job, working conditions, culture, growth opportunities, career advancement, etc. It is helpful in showing your ‘level of seriousness’ for the job. Some of these questions can be: a) What freedom would I have in determining my own work objectives, deadlines and methods of measurements?
b) What are the advancement opportunities available in this position and within what time frame?
c) In what ways has the Organization been most successful in terms of products and services over the years?
d) What significant changes do you expect in the near future?
e) How is one evaluated in this position?
f) What accounts for success within the company?
g) What in-service training opportunities does the organization provide?
Some Do's And Dont’s For An Interview
DO’S FOR AN INTERVIEW
? Dress formally for the interview.
? Greet the chairperson on entering the room.
? Maintain eye contact during the interview.
? Sit upright and lean slightly forward.
? Be yourself.
? Take your time in answering questions i.e. ‘Think before you speak’.
? Look and sound both enthusiastic and interested.
? Have presence of mind
? Speak up and answer to the point
? Get across information that will help your case.
? Carefully qualify your answers to ‘hypothetical’ questions.
? Be willing to defend your viewpoint in a friendly way.
? Ask one or two questions of your own if the opportunity arises.
DONT’S FOR AN INTERVIEW
Do not-
? Slouch in the chair
? Fidget
? Panic if there is a period of silence
? Talk for the sake of talking
? Adopt a critical attitude
? Be evasive in your answers, or try to bluff
? Be casual
? Boast or ‘sell’ yourself directly unless invited to.
? Argue with the interviewers in any heated way.
? Allow yourself to be put off if the interviewer seems unenthusiastic or bored.
? Speak too quickly.
? Volunteer information about your real or imagined deficiencies.
Questions Asked At Interviews
ABOUT YOURSELF
1. How would you describe yourself?
2. What does your name mean? (if it is an unusual name)
3. What is your contribution to college life?
4. What are the social issues that concern you the most?
5. Information about place of birth or residence.
6. Give information about your college, its founder, history and background of your college,
number of staff, number of students, approx. budget, your experiences, have they been
fulfilled? What did you get out of it?
7. What influence have your parents had on the decisions you have taken in your life?
8. Give explanations for the gap in your academic career
9. Cite one event of which you are proud of. Why?
10. What do you consider the key to your success?
ABOUT YOUR SUBJECTS / HOBBIES / INTERESTS
32. What guided your choice of subjects / courses?
33. Distinguish between Arts and Science.
34. Questions based on your GD:
35. How do you rate your performance in the GD? What did you contribute to the GD? Who was better than you? What points did you want to add to the GD but did not? What do you think about the GD? Do you have any points to add? Write down the GD topic. Was the topic really discussed? How did you feel in the company of the other people who came for the GDs.
QUESTIONS ON ECONOMICS
38. What are the implications of privatization?
39. Tell us something about the role of the public sector.
40. Which areas would private investment not invest in?
41. How would you rate the performance of the public sector?
42. Do you think that personal income tax should be abolished? Why do you think this would lead to greater savings?
QUESTIONS ON POLITY
75. Evaluate the social change in India and compare it to the political change. Compare the political change in the rest of the
world to the political change in India?
76. How would you solve the Punjab problem?
77. If you were asked to predict the election results, how would you go about it?
78. What do you want to do for your country? What have you done so far?
79. How many districts are there in your state? Your neighbouring states? Is your city a district? What is a district? Who is
the head of a district?
QUESTIONS ON GENERAL AWARENESS
1 . Who are the editors of the various newspapers?
2 Tell us something about drama today?.
3 To female candidates: (though it depicts a gender bias!).
4 How would you manage a job and a family?
5 Do you think its fair to bring up your family with the mother working?
QUESTIONS ON HOME STATE:
- Political situation
- Is it economically advanced? Why? Give statistics in favour of answer?
- Name some industries in your state?
- What are the problems in your state?
-Which rivers flow though India and Bangladesh?
-Who was Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Vivekananda, Dayananda, Aurobindo Ghosh etc? Who
was Gandhi? Where and when was he born?
-Name a famous book of his? Have you read it? What do you consider the chief
contribution of Gandhiji?
--------------------------------By - Supernova Amravati
Purpose of interviews, types of interviews, preparing for interview, Mock interviews
Introduction:
An interview is a conversation between two or more people (the interviewer and the interviewee) where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee. The term ‘interview’ has been derived from the French word ‘Intrevor’ means ‘to glimpse’ or ‘to see each other’. By definition it means a meeting for obtaining information by questioning a person or persons. There are two parties to any interview- the interviewer (who conducts or takes the interview) and interviewee (who appear for the interview). Interview is a form of oral communication, in which an individual interacts with others to know each other.In Interview, the Interviewer seeks the information and the interviewee give information.
The objective of any interview is, to find out as much as possible information about the person or an event and there after making an assessment, appraisal or evaluation about the suitability of the candidate for the offer or position available with the interviewer. Interviews are always goal- oriented with the aim to assess suitability and make a selection.
The interviews may be public or private, formal or informal, social or business, personal or telephonic and career related or otherwise.
Definition:
1 An interview is a formal meeting in which a person evaluates or consults another person.
2 Interview can be defined as an oral tool to test a candidates trait for employment or admission to a premier institution of learning.
3 An interview reveals the view, ideas and attitudes of the person being interviewed as well as the skills of the interviewer.
4 To give an interview is to agree to answer, a set of questions
5 A meeting (public one) at which a journalist asks somebody, questions in order to find out the persons opinions.
Purpose or Need of Interview:
1. To collect information about particular person or event.
2. The purpose of the interview is to meet, talk, discuss, evaluate, counsel and sort out issues.
3. Job or employment interviews for the selection of suitable person on the basis of their qualification and experience.
4. To find out the reason for leaving the organization through exit interview.
5. The need for an interview arises because there is choice, there is a competition, and there are limited vacancies for a large number of aspirants.
6. Interrogation of a person by the police about some happening.
7. Admission interview of a candidate for admission to a course in higher education/professional training.
8. A meeting or conversation between a journalist or radio or television presenter and the person whose views are sought for broadcasting.
Features of an interview:
1. There is a definite purpose and it is known both to the interviewer and interviewee.
2. Interviewer and interviewee need to prepare for the communication event.
3. There is clear exchange of information.
4. The information exchanged may or may be kept secret.
5. All interviews are prearranged. The exception is for dismissal interview.
6. There are at least two participants in the events i.e. interviewer and interviewee. But sometimes there are more than interviewers.
Types of interviews:
There are various types of interviews conducted for variety of purposes. Some are employment related or some are for any other reasons, it depends upon the nature and purpose of interview what which it is conducted.
Employment-related
• Job Interview / Selection Interview:
• Case interview
• Informational Interview
• Exit interview
Other types
• Cognitive interview
• Computer-assisted personal vs. telephone interviewing
• Investigative interview
• Ladder interview
• Mall-intercept personal interview
• Mock Interview
• Multiple Mini Interview
• Parent-teacher interview
• Repertory grid interview
• Structured, Semi-structured, and Unstructured interview
Job Interview/Selection Interview:
A job interview is a process in which a potential employee is evaluated by an employer for prospective employment in their company, organization, or firm, and was established in the late 16th century. Interview conducted by an organization or institution to employ persons for specified posts called job or selection interview. This type of interview is important for both the interviewer and interviewee as both are looking forward to fill up “Right candidate for the right job.” The job interview is considered one of the most useful tools for evaluating potential employees. It also demands significant resources from the employer, yet has been demonstrated to be notoriously unreliable in identifying the optimal person for the job
Types of Job Interview
a. Behavioral interview
A common type of job interview in the modern workplace is the behavioral interview or behavioral event interview. This type of interview is based on the notion that a job candidate's previous behaviors are the best indicators of future performance. In behavioral interviews, the interviewer asks candidates to recall specific instances where they were faced with a set of circumstances, and how they reacted. Typical behavioral interview questions:
• "Tell me about a project you worked on where the requirements changed midstream. What did you do?"
• "Tell me about a time when you took the lead on a project. What did you do?"
• "Describe the worst project you worked on."
• "Describe a time you had to work with someone you didn't like."
• "Tell me about a time when you had to stick by a decision you had made, even though it made you very unpopular."
• "Give us an example of something particularly innovative that you have done that made a difference in the workplace."
• "What happened the last time you were late with a project?"
A bad hiring decision nowadays can be immensely expensive for an organization – cost of the hire, training costs, severance pay, loss of productivity, impact on morale, cost of re-hiring, etc. (Gallup international places the cost of a bad hire as being 3.2 times the individual's salary). Structured selection techniques have a better track record of identifying the soundest candidate than the old-style "biographical" interview.
b. Stress interview
Stress interview is conducted for assessing the ability of the interviewee to face high levels of strain or mental pressure. Stress interviews are still in common use. One type of stress interview is where the employer uses a succession of interviewers (one at a time or en masse) whose mission is to intimidate the candidate and keep him/her off-balance. The ostensible purpose of this interview: to find out how the candidate handles stress. Stress interviews might involve testing an applicant's behavior in a busy environment. Questions about handling work overload, dealing with multiple projects, and handling conflict are typical.
Another type of stress interview may involve only a single interviewer who behaves in an uninterested or hostile manner. For example, the interviewer may not make eye contact, may roll his eyes or sigh at the candidate's answers, interrupt, turn his back, take phone calls during the interview, or ask questions in a demeaning or challenging style. The goal is to assess how the interviewee handles pressure or to purposely evoke emotional responses. This technique was also used in research protocols studying Stress and Type A (coronary-prone) Behavior because it would evoke hostility and even changes in blood pressure and heart rate in study subjects. The key to success for the candidate is to de-personalize the process. The interviewer is acting a role, deliberately and calculatedly trying to "rattle the cage." Once the candidate realizes that there is nothing personal behind the interviewer's approach, it is easier to handle the questions with aplomb.
Example stress interview questions:
• Sticky situation: "If you caught a colleague cheating on his expenses, what would you do?"
• Putting you on the spot: "How do you feel this interview is going?"
• Popping the balloon: "(deep sigh) Well, if that’s the best answering you can give ... (shakes head) Okay, what about this one ...?"
• Oddball question: "What would you change about the design of the hockey stick?"
• Doubting your veracity: "I don't feel like we're getting to the heart of the matter here. Start again - tell me what really makes you tick."
Candidates may also be asked to deliver a presentation as part of the selection process. The "Platform Test" method involves having the candidate make a presentation to both the selection panel and other candidates for the same job. This is obviously highly stressful and is therefore useful as a predictor of how the candidate will perform under similar circumstances on the job. Selection processes in academic, training, airline, legal and teaching circles frequently involve presentations of this sort.
c. Technical Interview
This kind of interview focuses on problem solving and creativity. The questions aim at your problem-solving skills and likely show your ability and creativity. Sometimes these interviews will be on a computer module with multiple-choice questions.
d. Telephonic interview
In this the candidates are assessed on the basis of his/her answers over the telephone call, made by company executive after preliminary assessment. This is usually common when the candidates do not live near the employer and has the advantage of keeping cost low for both the sides.
e. Walk in interview
Job interview may be ‘Walk in’ interview wherein the candidates are called at very short notice through advertisement and spot interviews are conducted.
“Planned interview” are conducted after due scrutiny of application form.
Job interview is usually preceded by the evaluation of submitted resumes from interested candidates, then selecting a small number of candidates for interviews. Multiple rounds of job interviews may be used where there are many candidates or the job is particularly challenging or desirable. Once all the candidates have been interviewed the employer selects the most desirable candidate and begins the negotiation of a job offer.
Preparation
It is very important to be well prepared for an interview. A common reason employers give for not hiring an applicant is the inability of the applicant to fully explain the contents of his or her resume. Therefore it is paramount to be able to discuss in detail every item listed on one's resume, and if possible to give examples when appropriate. It is also wise to research the company before the interview. To avoid being nervous, the applicant should practice answering difficult questions. Good sources of interview questions can be found by searching the Internet.
Process
A typical job interview has a single candidate meeting with between one and three persons representing the employer; the potential supervisor of the employee is usually involved in the interview process. A larger interview panel will often have a specialized human resources worker. While the meeting can be over in as little as 15 minutes, job interviews usually last less than two hours.
The bulk of the job interview will entail the interviewers asking the candidate questions about his or her job history, personality, work style and other factors relevant to the job. For instance, a common interview question is "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" The candidate will usually be given a chance to ask any questions at the end of the interview. These questions are strongly encouraged since they allow the interviewee to acquire more information about the job and the company, but they can also demonstrate the candidate's strong interest in them.
Case Interview
Case interview is a job interview in which the applicant is given a question/situation/problem/challenge and asked to resolve the situation. The case problem is often a business situation or a business case that the interviewer has worked on in real life.
After the applicant is given information about the case, the applicant is expected to ask the interviewer logical and sequential questions that will enable the applicant to understand the situation, probe deeper into relevant areas, gather pertinent information and arrive at a solution or recommendation for the question or situation at hand.
Case interviews are mostly used in hiring for management consulting and investment banking jobs. Firms use case interviews to evaluate analytical ability and problem-solving skills; they are looking not for a "correct" answer but for an understanding of how the applicant thinks and how the applicant approaches problems.
During case interviews, interviewers are generally looking for the following skills.:
• Numerical and verbal reasoning skills
• Communication and presentation skills
• Business skills and commercial awareness
Candidates are often asked to estimate a specific number, often a commercial figure (such as market size or profitability). Candidates are expected to demonstrate reasoning rather produce the exact answer.
A case interview can also be conducted as a group exercise. Here several candidates are given some briefing materials on a business problem and asked to discuss and agree upon a solution. The interviewers normally sit around the exterior of the room as silent observers. They assess candidates communication and interaction as well as analytical thinking and commercial awareness.
Informational Interview
An Informational Interview is a meeting in which a job seeker asks for advice rather than employment. The job seeker uses the interview to gather information on the field, find employment leads and expand their professional network. This differs from a job interview because the job seeker asks the questions. There may or may not be employment opportunities available.
Informational interviews are initiated by the job seeker. There are many avenues the job seeker may pursue to obtain the informational interview. Career and social networking, newspaper want ads, job boards, placement services, company websites, human resource contacts, job search engines, and professional recruiters.
While the job seeker initiates the interview, he must follow the basic guidelines for interview etiquette. He must arrive promptly, dress appropriately, prepare informational questions, and make a good first impression.
Exit interview
An exit interview is an interview conducted by an employer of a who are resigning or retiring (departing) employee. They are generally conducted by a relatively neutral party, such as a human resources staff member, so that the employee will be more inclined to be candid, as opposed to worrying about burning bridges. For this reason, some companies opt to employ a third party to conduct the interviews and provide feedback.
The purpose of an exit interview is usually to gather data for improving working conditions and retaining employees. Common questions asked in exit interviews are, "What are your primary reasons for leaving", "What did you find most satisfying about your job", "What did you find most frustrating about your job", "Were there any company policies or procedures that made your work more difficult", etc. Many career advisers recommend treating an exit interview like a hiring interview, in that criticism of the past employer should be limited to statements about the company as a whole, rather than specific individuals.
Schools may also conduct exit interviews with students before graduation, or even as a requirement of it. This is sometimes called a graduation interview.
During elections, pollsters may conduct random exit polls, though these are not required.
Promotion Interview
Promotion interviews are conducted by organizations for their own eligible employees who are desirous of moving up in the hierarchy. The objective of such interview is to give one, an opportunity and verification of past performance. The candidate has to ensure factual correctness and be sincere and truthful in replying to the questions.
Reprimand Interview
Reprimand implies a severe or formal reproof or censure.( a formal expression of disapproval/ things to be held in check). It is conducted to express rebuke or disapproval. It is done to pull up or correct, usually with a kindly intent. It is done in private, where the erring or misbehaving employee is called by supervisor or authorized person and advised to improve his or her behavior.
The objective is to draw attention to the wrong doing and counsel or instruct the person to concern to correct oneself and to ensure correction in behavior, attitude and performance. It consist of cautioning, suggesting that any repetition of such and act would entail more stringent action. In organization reprimand interview is appropriate in dealing with absentees, insubordination, inter-personal problems, poor performance and other such deficiencies.
Grievance Interview
A grievance (grievance means real or imagine cause for complaint) interview relates to any dissatisfaction, distress or resistance to something that may or may not have happened and has made the person concerned carry a grievance. There are two kinds of grievance in organization or business – grievance relating to the employees and grievance relating to consumers.
It relates to a face to face talk, where the aggrieved person gets an opportunity to meet a person in authority to share the distress and seek remedial action. It provides an opportunity to aggrieved person to hear. In this interview, the interviewer makes the interviewee comfortable and lends a patient ear and uses placating skills to diminish hurt feelings, clear misconceptions and gather all relevant facts.
Oriented interview:
Oriented interviews are onducted after the selection interviews and are in the nature of briefing sessions. The interviewer makes the interviewee comfortable and shares are all releant details about the organization and task in a cordial manner. It is conducted by way of appraisal or education, rather than assessment or evaluation.
OTHER INTERVIEW:
Admission interview
This type of interview is conducted by the authorities of a school, college, professional institutes like IIM etc. The purpose of this interview is to assess the candidates eligibility for admission into a particular course of study or a professional body or association. Generally this follows a written exam and group discussion.
Appraisal Interview
For appraising the performance of the employees, performance appraisal interviews are conducted. Through feedback it helps the employee to improve his/her performance in the organization and also make aware about companies expectation from the employees.
Mock Interviews
Some educational institutes or academic bodies conduct imaginary interviews, for preparing the candidate mentally for the actual interview. This helps the students to learn how to face a real employment interviews. The mock interview includes the job description, interview questions, answer tips, and interview resources. Also available are more interview questions, interview help for specific jobs, and interview guides by job and company.
Panel Interviews
In this panel (it is group of experts form different backgrounds) of experts or interviewers ask questions to a candidate, based on the purpose and plan of the interview.
Problem Interview
It is the interviews of experts in a particular area, to discuss a particular problem. In organization it may be conducted with the employees who are creating problems, to find the reason behind their erratic behavior.
Cognitive interview:
'A Cognitive interview is a procedure designed for use in police interviews that involve witnesses. There were two main forces behind the development of the CI. The first was the need to improve the effectiveness of police interviews when questioning witnesses. The seconds was to apply the results of psychological research to this area, particularly the work of Elizabeth Loftus, whose research had already dispelled the myth that eyewitnesses memory operates like a video camera.' - Psychology, The Complete Companion. Cognitive interviewing also embodies general good practice when conducting investigative interviews, e.g. avoiding leading questions.
Computer-assisted personal interviewing (CAPI)
CAPI is an interviewing technique similar to computer-assisted telephone interviewing, except that the interview takes place in person instead of over the telephone. The respondent or the interviewer sits in front of a computer terminal and enters the answers into the computer. If an emphasis is put on the fact, that no personal interviewer is present, sometimes the term Computer-assisted self interviewing (CASI) is also used.
- The respondent sits in front of a computer terminal and answers a questionnaire on the screen by using the keyboard or a mouse.
- Help screens and courteous error messages are provided.
- The colorful screens and on and off-screen stimuli add to the respondent's interest and involvement in the task.
- This method has been classified as a personal interview technique since an interviewer is usually present to serve as a host and to guide the respondent as needed.
- This approach is used in shopping malls, preceded by the intercept and screening process.
- It is also used to conduct business-to-business research at trade shows or conventions.
For example, CAPI is used as the method of data collection for the British Crime Survey.
Advantages
This form of interview is substantially cheaper when a large number of respondents is required, because
• There is no need to recruit or pay surveyors.
• There is no need to transcribe the results into a computer form. The computer program can be constructed so as to place the results directly in a format that can be read be statistical analysis programs .
• The program can be placed on a web site, potentially catching a world wide audience.
Disadvantages
• The survey is likely to attract only respondents who are "computer savvy", thus introducing potential bias to the survey.
Ladder interview:
A Ladder interview is an interviewing technique where a seemingly simple response to a question is pushed by the interviewer in order to find subconscious motives.
Example
It begins with a simple question, and then another question is asked about that response. For example, an interviewer may ask: "How come you skipped class?" and the response may be: "I went out with my friends". The next question would be something like "Why did you go out with your friends?". Essentially, the format is as follows:
Interviewer: "Why x?"
Subject: "Because z"
Interviewer: "Why z?"
Subject: "Because b"
Interviewer: "Why b?"
The first responses are generally functional justifications, like "I went out with my friends because I wanted some pizza", or "I wanted some pizza because I used to eat it as a child"; but eventually the interviewer hopes to reach a virtue justification like "It's good to be childish". Then it is fair to conclude that the interviewee skipped class because he valued childishness.
Usage
This technique is used for marketing in order to see what values inspire the consumption of the particular product. A chocolate bar producer would do this test so they can match the most common terminal virtue to their product in an advertisement. For example, the virtue of justice, or a virtue of efficiency, or in the above example, the virtue of childhood.
Mall-intercept personal interview:
A mall-intercept personal interview is a survey whereby respondents are intercepted in shopping in malls. The process involves stopping the shoppers, screening them for appropriateness, and either administering the survey on the spot or inviting them to a research facility located in the mall to complete the interview. While not representative of the population in general, shopping mall customers do constitute a major share of the market for many products.
Multiple Mini-interviews
The Multiple Mini-Interview (MMI) [1] is an interview format that uses many short independent assessments, typically in a timed circuit, to obtain an aggregate score of each candidate’s soft skills. Candidate assessment is normally deemed successful when the scores generated by the measuring tool predict for future outcomes of interest, such as job performance or job retention. Meta-analysis of the human resource literature has demonstrated low to moderate ability of interviews to predict for future job performance [2]. How well a candidate scores on one interview is only somewhat correlated with how well that candidate scores on the next interview. Marked shifts in scores are buffered when collecting many scores on the same candidate, with a greater buffering effect provided by multiple interviews than by multiple interviewers acting as a panel for one interview.[3]. The score assigned by an interviewer in the first few minutes of an interview is rarely changed significantly over the course of the rest of the interview, an effect known as the halo effect.Therefore, even very short interviews within an MMI format provide similar ability to differentiate reproducibly between candidates [4]. Ability to reproducibly differentiate between candidates, also know as overall test reliability, is markedly higher for the MMI than for other interview formats [1]. This has translated into higher predictive validity, correlating for future performance much more highly than standard interviews
Parent-Teacher interview
A parent-teacher interview (also a parent-teacher conference) is a once per term, short conference between students' parents and teachers. The interview is a chance for parents to meet their child's teachers and review any issues or concerns the parents or teachers may have with child/student's performance. These interviews are usually between five to fifteen minutes long. Parent-teacher interviews are a tradition in Western school systems
Repertory Grid
The Repertory Grid is an interviewing technique which uses factor analysis to determine an idiographic measure of personality. It was devised by George Kelly in around 1955 and is based on his Personal Constructs theory of personality.
Structured interview
A structured interview (also known as a standardised interview or a researcher-administered survey) is a quantitative research method commonly employed in survey research. The aim of this approach is to ensure that each interviewee is presented with exactly the same questions in the same order. This ensures that answers can be reliably aggregated and that comparisons can be made with confidence between sample subgroups or between different survey periods.
Structured interviews are a means of collecting data for a statistical survey. In this case, the data is collected by an interviewer rather than through a self-administered questionnaire. Interviewers read the questions exactly as they appear on the survey questionnaire. The choice of answers to the questions is often fixed (close-ended) in advance, though open-ended questions can also be included within a structured interview.
A structured interview also standardizes the order in which questions are asked of survey respondents, so the questions are always answered within the same context. This is important for minimizing the impact of context effects, where the answers given to a survey question can depend on the nature of preceding questions. Though context effects can never be avoided, it is often desirable to hold them constant across all respondents.
Structured interviews can also be used as a qualitative research methodology (Kvale, 1996). These types of interviews are best suited for engaging in respondent or focus group studies in which it would be beneficial to compare/contrast participant responses in order to answer a research question (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002). For structured qualitative interviews, it is usually necessary for researchers to develop an interview schedule which lists the wording and sequencing of questions (Patton, 1990). Interview schedules are sometimes considered a means by which researchers can increase the reliability and credibility of research data (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002).
Semi-structured interview
A semi-structured interview is a method of research used in the social sciences. While a structured interview has formalized, limited set questions, a semi-structured interview is flexible, allowing new questions to be brought up during the interview as a result of what the interviewee says. The interviewer in a semi-structured interview generally has a framework of themes to be explored.
However, the specific topic or topics that the interviewer wants to explore during the interview should usually be thought about well in advance (especially during interviews for research projects). It is generally beneficial for interviewers to have an interview guide prepared, which is an informal "grouping of topics and questions that the interviewer can ask in different ways for different participants" (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002, p. 195). Interview guides help researchers to focus an interview on the topics at hand without constraining them to a particular format. This freedom can help interviewers to tailor their questions to the interview context/situation, and to the people they are interviewing (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002).
One - to - one interview: This is also called individual interview. Here one interviewer talks with one applicant. It is widely used in industry and commerce. It is a comparatively relaxed approach.
Matrimonial Interview: Spouse selection through boy-meets-girls interviews.
Media Interview: Where the newspaper, magazines, radio or television representatives seeks views and details.
Consumer Interview: It is similar like mall interview. It is the interview where organizations, marketing and advertising agencies seek responses on products and preferences from customers and prospects.
Assessment Interview: It is conducted to check the creditworthiness of borrowers, suitability for empanelment of various agencies etc.
Psychological Interview: Counseling and guidance meeting with criminals, people under stress, etc Evaluation of temperament.
Structure of an Interview:
An interview is a formal communication event, the aim and outcome of which is understood by both the parties: interviewer and interviewee. The structure of an interview is divided into three parts/stages.
1. Opening/Beginning/Start:
1 Introduction: Which includes casual talk, smile, shake hands etc.
2 Statement of purpose of the meeting
3 Making the other person comfortable.
4 Commitment to the purpose stated above.
5 Preparing to start discussing things frankly.
2. Middle/Main body:
1 Aim at exchange of information.
2 Keeping the discussion to the point.
3 Keep eye to eye contact.
4 Make sure to cover agenda
5 Interruptions if any should be Polite
6 If clarification if needed.
3. Closing:
1 Summing up the discussion or exchange of information.
2 Describing the action taken upon
3 Avoid hurried or abrupt ending.
4 Closing on a positive note.
5 Exchanging feelings of gratitude, thankfulness etc.
Chronology of interview:
6 Introduction: Which includes casual talk, smile, shake hands etc.
7 Company Information
8 Candidates assessment: Through Qualification, Achievement and Questions.
9 Conclusion
Preparations to be made by the Interviewer/ Process of conducting the Interview:
1. Arrangement of place, time and question: The time and place must be decided in advance and interviewer makes proper arrangement for drinking water and sitting. Interviewer should decide the questions to be asked, keeping in mind the purpose of the interview.
2. Acquiring job related information ad general knowledge: The interviewer must be clear about the job requirement, number of positions to be filled and job responsibilities for which he is going to conduct interviews and interviewer should update him/herself about the latest technologies through reading newspapers or magazines.
3. Going through the Resumes: The Interviewer must go through resumes of all candidates to check for requisite qualification, experience and other eligibility details. It helps the interviewer to prepare the questions.
4. Assessing the interviewee’s attitudes: The interviewer should prepare a list of questions which can measure some positive and negative attitudes of the person while conducting the interview.
5. Prepare opening remarks: First impression is the last impression. The interviewer must prepare in advance what he/she is going to speak to the candidate in the very beginning.
6. Recording the proceeding of the interview: The interviewer may tape record or write down the responses of the candidate during the interview. He/She should make the assessment by noting side by side which will help him/her to take the better decision in the end.
How to conduct an Interview/Time honoured conventions for conducting interview:
a. In the first place, the interviewer has to plan the event:
b. The interviewer should make every effort to put the interviewee at ease:
c. Ask the right question:
d. Let the candidate/Interviewee do most of the talking:
e. The interviewer should follow the plan that has been chalked out before the interview:
f. Emphasize the importance of listening:
g. The interviewer must give his entire attention to the interviewee:
h. The interviewer must respect the feelings of the interviewee, even if the latter appears to be wrong:
i. The interviewer must also keep a record of the information gathered from the interview:
j. The interviewer should also stick to the time allocated:
Preparations to be made by the Interviewee to Attend interview:
The candidate appearig for the interview should aim at scoring over other competitior adn approach the interveiw with the required seriousness. The candidate has to prepare for an interviwew well in advance.Attire, apprearance, body language, communication skill, confidence , keenness adn a good understanding of the job requirement would contribute to the success in the interview.The candidate has to prepare for an interviwew well in advance.
The candidate need to prepare at various levels for the interview. The candidate need to prepare himself in the following aspect:
1. Physical Preparation:
• Good formal dress
• Good posture
• Good manner 2. Mental Preparation:
• The candidate needs to revise the subject knowledge.
• Get information about the current affairs adn important issues.
• Information about the company, its products, competitors etc.
• Prepare general and personal questions. 3. Psychological Preparation:
• Practicing honesty
• Practicing negotiating skills
• Will power and determination 4. Self Assessment :
• Evaluate SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) to know where he/she is , to what extent he/she is prepared, understanding level etc.
Guidelines to attend interview to the interviewee:
1. Be prepared for the interview:
• Plan out the events in advance like interviewer.
• Know the purpose of the event/interview.
• Prepare questions and answers related to the interview like area of interest, present position, position applied, nature of organization , current activities, general knowledge etc.
2. Have presentable appearnce:
• Formal Dressing.
• Appear should reflect plesant personality. 3. Show interest by making effective use of body language:
• Eye to eye contact
• Show your interest in the interview.
• Keeness to participate in the interview.
• Correct and Confident posture and gesture.
• Good/positive body language.
4. All the questions must be correctly and completely answered:
• Provide detail information.
• Exchange of information through effective communication skills.
• Say "No" if you dont know the answer instead of bluffing.
• Be honest.
5. Be polite
• Show politeness in all the situations.
6. Avoid talking too much or making boastful statement.
7. Avoid criticism of the previous employer or anybody else.
8. Thank the interviewer for having spared time for you/for conducting interview by giving his time.
9. At the end of the interview if you feel likely to get the job, do not hesitate to ask the questions to seek clarification regardig the company profile, service ,condition etc.
Check list for interview preparation by interviewee:
• Know yourself
• Know your resume and its details
• Know the company (previous and where going for the interview).
• Know the position/ post applied with responsibilites related to it.
• Anticipate and prepare for some questions and answers.
• Know that your non verbal appearanc communicates loudly.
• Know your oral communication skills.
• Know the meeting or interview place , time and other details.
• Know some basic salary ranges for negotiation.
• Must rehearsal before interview.
• Show positive or desirable behaviour like listen attentively, show interest in topic, company , show analytical skills and keep answers in brief (Keep It Short and Simple)
• Avoid negative factors like dishonesty, jargaon, discourtesy,confusing comment , over aggressive etc.
Questions Asked Frequently in the Interview
1. Personal questions
The opening question is generally “Tell us about yourself”. Introduce yourself by stating the most important facts first. This is the best opportunity that you will get for promoting your candidature. Prepare your answer to be relevant, to the point, and interesting – whether you’re given 5 minutes to introduce yourself or are cut off after the first 10 seconds. Talk about your
qualifications, family background, achievements, extra-curricular activities, strengths, aim in life, aspirations, etc. Of course, find your own sequence. Remember, most of the subsequent questions in the personal interviews will follow from the information provided by you in this answer. Hence, you can actually direct the course of your interview by preparing the
answer to this question very carefully.
2. General awareness
Questions pertaining to your general awareness are frequently asked. Most of those can be answered provided you have been reading the daily newspapers regularly. For example, you may be asked,
-What are the three major problems, India / your state / your city, is currently facing?
- How do you propose to solve them?
- What according to you is the / should be the logical end of the match fixing crisis?
A good (but brief and to the point) compendium of current affairs such as the annual issues of Career and Competition Master or Competition and Success Review, is a must for you.
3. Hobbies and extra curricular activities
Questions related to your hobbies and extra-curricular activities, mentioned in your biodata are asked. For example, if classical music has been mentioned as a hobby, there could be questions like : - What are the different ragas? What do they signify?
- What differences are there in the styles of Ravi Shankar and Ustad Vilayat Khan?
Or a cricket player may be asked the following:
- Which Indian player has got the fastest 50. Against which country?
- How do you calculate Net Run Rate? Ceat Cricket Ratings?
- What is the difference in playing styles of Ganguly and Tendulkar?
- What do you understand by Chinaman and Googly?
Reading as a hobby can invite questions like:
- The type of books read
- Writing styles of authors
- Message of a novel or a book
- Comparison of characters in a book
Reading as a hobby has often unnerved many an unwary interviewee for on follow-up, it frequently turns out that the interviewee only has a superficial knowledge of what he professes to read.
4. Miscellaneous
You may be asked to solve a simple Maths problem or a puzzle. The problems are generally on:
Differentiation and Integration
Means (Arithmetic and Geometric)
Drawing graphs of an equation
Proving or solving equations
For example:
1) Which is bigger: Arithmetic mean or Geometric mean. Show that.
2) Give the equation of a line which is continuous but not differentiable at x=0.
Please be thoroughly prepared. Remember you are not supposed to know all the answers. It is better to say “I don’t know Sir / Madam, rather than bluff.
4. There is another genre of questions, which are mainly asked by a psychologist (the panel may have a faculty from the behavioral science area). This expert may ask you questions such as: - Whom do you love the most and why?
- Name two people whom you hate the most?
- Who is your role model in life?
- Suppose, while working as an Engineer on the shop floor you find your Supervisor is stealing bearings. Later on you find his wife is suffering from Cancer and that’s why this trustworthy person has been forced to do something like this. What action would you take?
- Suppose you are deeply in love with a girl / boy and it comes to be known that she / he suffers from HIV, would you still marry her / him?
- What are your strengths and weaknesses as perceived by others?
Here it is necessary to have presence of mind; an attempt to be ‘correct’ will show.
Self Analysis
1) Who do you think you are?
2) What do you want to do in life?
3) What have you achieved so far?
4) What are your dreams, aims and ambitions?
5) Is there any incident in your life which affected you positively or negatively?
6) Your education, relationships, family, friends, etc.
7) What are your hobbies and how have they helped you in your personal development?
8) What are your strengths and how to leverage them?
9) What are your weaknesses and how you plan to overcome them?
10) What are your short-term and long-term goals?
11) Where do you see yourself 5 years / 10 years down the line?
12) How will your professional qualifications help you in achieving your goals.
13) Give three reasons why we should not select you?
14) Give one reason why you should be selected?
These questions are meant to provoke your thinking and self analysis. Your sincerity in trying to answer these questions will
set the pace for giving a successful interview.
The most important practical exercise for you is to be your own interviewer. Ask yourself the most searching questions you
can imagine on:
- your biodata
- your general awareness
- your field of study
- your career plan (the specialization you have chosen)
- your hobbies and other interests
- your strengths and weaknesses
You should be able to anticipate realistically, about 80 percent of the questions any interviewer could possibly ask you. Put
your answers in writing and go over them to see if they are clear, sensible and convincing. If they are, you win the game.
Selection Criteria for Interviews
1. Intellectual understanding:
(a) The depth of knowledge and grasp of the subject
(b) Practical knowledge – how a candidate applies his theoretical knowledge in practical situations.
(c) General knowledge, current affairs, everyday science, controversial topics, sports, social issues, newspaper headlines etc.
2. Communication skills:
(a) Fluency: how fluently the candidate expresses himself/herself
(b) Logic in argument: how rational, clear-headed, analytical and systematic the candidate is in presenting his arguments.
(c) Convincing ability: how the candidate is able to lend conviction to his/her arguments.
3. Personality traits:
(a) Personal disposition: Smiling, cheerful, pleasant and polite.
(b) Liveliness: eager and alert
(c) Enthusiasm: keenness and interest
(d) Poise: Graceful movements, confident approach, brisk walk, eye contact.
(e) Punctuality
(f) Dress and appearance: Smart, well groomed and dressed suitably for the occasion.
4. Career objectives:
(a) Clear aim, ambition and goal in life.
(b) A systematic approach towards career planning.
(c) Analysis of your strengths and weaknesses.
5. Character:
(a) Integrity and moral values.
(b) Sincerity and loyalty.
(c) Self discipline.
6. Hobbies and Interests:
(a) Optimum utilization of spare time for developing interest in leisure activities like reading, cinema, music, philately, fine arts
etc.
(b) Participation in sports and other physical endurance activities like trekking, camping etc
7. Dynamism:
(a) Self confidence
(b) Initiative and enterprise
(c) Industrious temperament
(d) Decision making abilities
(e) Resourcefulness
(f) Motivation
8. Psychological Factors:
(a) Confident and determined approach.
(b) Optimistic and positive.
(c) Absence of anti-social or negative qualities.
9. Social Qualities:
(a) Sense of responsibility.
(b) Adaptability and flexibility.
(c) Preference to group life and activity.
(d) Ability to influence others and get things done.
Every candidate will have a certain degree of proficiency in each of the areas mentioned above. A careful introspection by the
candidate will reveal his strengths and weaknesses with respect to the various criteria. By rigorous preparation, training and
practice the candidate can improve himself / herself in spheres in which he / she lack ability.
Practical Hints:
In an interview the art of conversation is perhaps the most valuable attribute. A good conversation is contingent on the rapport a candidate establishes with the interview board. The process of rapport building must start from the moment enters the room.
A smile and a formal greeting and developing eye contact from the beginning is essential. The first impression you create goes a long way in your ultimate selection. Your bearing should be that of a person who is eager to tackle the most difficult questions.
The three primary components of a conversation are: voice, delivery and words.
The voice should be well modulated, the tone of delivery pleasant and the volume in accordance with the distance. The delivery pace should be optimal i.e. neither fast nor slow. You should not rush your answers. Proper spacing of words with periodical pauses helps in emphasizing appropriate words. The sentences should be short and the language simple. Successful conversation demands clear thinking, expressed in concise and grammatically correct language, which must convey facts in an easily understandable and interesting manner.
Self-evaluation:
1. Did you manage to present your strengths convincingly to the board?
2. Did you avoid the following traps?
(a) Jumping to conclusions.
(b) Answering loaded questions.
(c) Getting into arguments on morals and integrity.
(d) Undermining the interviewers.
(e) Exaggerating your claims.
(f) Breaking down under stress.
Cross-checking one’s performance in an interview with the above checklist helps one prepare better for future interviews.
Preparing For the Main Question Areas
It is important to anticipate and review the sort of information you may be asked for.
Questions can be asked on the information given in the application form, so it is also advisable to get the form xeroxed for yourself and have a look at it before going for the interview.
The main questions are about:
1. Family background
2. Education and Training
3. Work experience (if applicable)
4. Motivations and Aspirations
5. Leisure interests
6. General topics
7. Specializations and other Technical matters
8. Health
1. Family Background
What does your father do?
What does your mother do?
How many brothers and sisters do you have? What do they do etc?
Reasons:
a) To find out how well you have done in relation to the opportunities available to you
b) To assess formative influence on your personality and character to determine the extent to which your decisions are influenced by your family members.
2. Education and Training
Why did you choose the particular stream after school?
How is it going to help you in developing a career in this field?
Which subject did you like the most and why?
Besides the academic knowledge what did you gain during your degree course?
What is the effect of your course on your attitudes and aspirations? etc.
Reasons:
a) As some young applicants have either no work experience or only a minimal amount, the interview often centres strongly around the individual’s educational background.
b) These questions help in getting information about the non-academic aspects of school / college life.
c) It also helps in getting to know your experience and attitudes. Also, what is relevant to the position/course you are applying for.
3. Work Experience:
What was your job responsibility in the previous organization?
What parts of the job did you like the best and why?
Why did you leave the previous job? etc.
Reasons:
a) To assess the extent to which your previous jobs have contributed to your ability to do the one you are applying for now.
b) To find out what duties were involved in the jobs you have done, and the implications that can be drawn about your ability to
exercise responsibility, etc.
c) To analyse the reasons for taking and leaving jobs.
4. Motivation & Aspirations:
Where do you see yourself 5 / 10 / 15 years down the line?
Given a free choice, what sort of work would you like to do the most?
Given a large sum of money and authority to spend it, where would you like to spend it?
What makes you feel good and motivates you while you are working? etc.
Reasons:
a) To assess if you have a clear idea of what you want to do or are still drifting along aimlessly.
b) Are your ambitions realistic or are you is just building castles in the air?
5. Interests:
? What are your interests / hobbies?
? How much time do you spend regularly on your interests?
? Have you achieved something outstanding in your area of interest? etc.
Reasons:
a) To know about you as a person.
b) To give you an opportunity to express yourself better because now you are talking about something you are interested in.
c) The interests of an individual sometimes compliment his work and matches with the job he is applying for.
d) Although, interests and hobbies vary from person to person yet it is advisable, that you emphasize more on `socially impressive interests’ rather than going for something like : watching TV, sleeping, partying, etc.
6. General Topics:
There can be various questions on general topics including current affairs, politics, economy, science, literature, philosophy, etc.
Reasons:
a) The interviewer wants to see your level of awareness, whether you take any interest in society as a whole or not.
b) If you take interest then to what extent are you able to form and express `your’ opinion on the topic.
c) How good you are at defending your view-point against arguments and counter-arguments.
7. Specialist & Technical Matters:
Such questions are asked mainly in interviews for scientific, technical or professional fields.
Reasons:
a) To see how well you can explain the subjects you have specialized in.
b) How adept you are in conveying technical concepts and procedures in a way that a non-
specialist is able to understand.
c) To have extra evidence on your technical expertise.
d) To determine whether you had thought about the way in which your specialist knowledge is related to the particular job applied for.
e) Also gives an idea to the interviewer of how quickly you can think when placed under pressure.
8. Health:
Some jobs require evidence of good health because of their physically demanding nature.
Remember, no interview is 100 % predictable. There will always be surprises for you; situations and questions you did not expect, even if you have really prepared thoroughly. So be prepared for such situations also and take them in your stride.
Preparing Your Own Questions
Normally at the end of the interview, the candidate is given a chance to put his/her queries. It is an opportunity to fill the gaps in information about the job, working conditions, culture, growth opportunities, career advancement, etc. It is helpful in showing your ‘level of seriousness’ for the job. Some of these questions can be: a) What freedom would I have in determining my own work objectives, deadlines and methods of measurements?
b) What are the advancement opportunities available in this position and within what time frame?
c) In what ways has the Organization been most successful in terms of products and services over the years?
d) What significant changes do you expect in the near future?
e) How is one evaluated in this position?
f) What accounts for success within the company?
g) What in-service training opportunities does the organization provide?
Some Do's And Dont’s For An Interview
DO’S FOR AN INTERVIEW
? Dress formally for the interview.
? Greet the chairperson on entering the room.
? Maintain eye contact during the interview.
? Sit upright and lean slightly forward.
? Be yourself.
? Take your time in answering questions i.e. ‘Think before you speak’.
? Look and sound both enthusiastic and interested.
? Have presence of mind
? Speak up and answer to the point
? Get across information that will help your case.
? Carefully qualify your answers to ‘hypothetical’ questions.
? Be willing to defend your viewpoint in a friendly way.
? Ask one or two questions of your own if the opportunity arises.
DONT’S FOR AN INTERVIEW
Do not-
? Slouch in the chair
? Fidget
? Panic if there is a period of silence
? Talk for the sake of talking
? Adopt a critical attitude
? Be evasive in your answers, or try to bluff
? Be casual
? Boast or ‘sell’ yourself directly unless invited to.
? Argue with the interviewers in any heated way.
? Allow yourself to be put off if the interviewer seems unenthusiastic or bored.
? Speak too quickly.
? Volunteer information about your real or imagined deficiencies.
Questions Asked At Interviews
ABOUT YOURSELF
1. How would you describe yourself?
2. What does your name mean? (if it is an unusual name)
3. What is your contribution to college life?
4. What are the social issues that concern you the most?
5. Information about place of birth or residence.
6. Give information about your college, its founder, history and background of your college,
number of staff, number of students, approx. budget, your experiences, have they been
fulfilled? What did you get out of it?
7. What influence have your parents had on the decisions you have taken in your life?
8. Give explanations for the gap in your academic career
9. Cite one event of which you are proud of. Why?
10. What do you consider the key to your success?
ABOUT YOUR SUBJECTS / HOBBIES / INTERESTS
32. What guided your choice of subjects / courses?
33. Distinguish between Arts and Science.
34. Questions based on your GD:
35. How do you rate your performance in the GD? What did you contribute to the GD? Who was better than you? What points did you want to add to the GD but did not? What do you think about the GD? Do you have any points to add? Write down the GD topic. Was the topic really discussed? How did you feel in the company of the other people who came for the GDs.
QUESTIONS ON ECONOMICS
38. What are the implications of privatization?
39. Tell us something about the role of the public sector.
40. Which areas would private investment not invest in?
41. How would you rate the performance of the public sector?
42. Do you think that personal income tax should be abolished? Why do you think this would lead to greater savings?
QUESTIONS ON POLITY
75. Evaluate the social change in India and compare it to the political change. Compare the political change in the rest of the
world to the political change in India?
76. How would you solve the Punjab problem?
77. If you were asked to predict the election results, how would you go about it?
78. What do you want to do for your country? What have you done so far?
79. How many districts are there in your state? Your neighbouring states? Is your city a district? What is a district? Who is
the head of a district?
QUESTIONS ON GENERAL AWARENESS
1 . Who are the editors of the various newspapers?
2 Tell us something about drama today?.
3 To female candidates: (though it depicts a gender bias!).
4 How would you manage a job and a family?
5 Do you think its fair to bring up your family with the mother working?
QUESTIONS ON HOME STATE:
- Political situation
- Is it economically advanced? Why? Give statistics in favour of answer?
- Name some industries in your state?
- What are the problems in your state?
-Which rivers flow though India and Bangladesh?
-Who was Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Vivekananda, Dayananda, Aurobindo Ghosh etc? Who
was Gandhi? Where and when was he born?
-Name a famous book of his? Have you read it? What do you consider the chief
contribution of Gandhiji?
--------------------------------By - Supernova Amravati
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