I’ve got an interview tomorrow afternoon for a summer programmer position at a webmail company. I want this interview to go well for me, for after half a dozen applications, I have yet to land a job.
I guess part of the problem is that I am not interviewing well. My problem is that I’m not sure how to interview well, and so I ask the learned people of this board for some assistance.
If you were interviewing a person, what would you be looking for?
Dress appropriately.
Don’t fidget.
Look people in the face when answering questions.
Speak clearly.
Stay on subject and don’t go off on tangents.
<Jamie Fox> Try to act like you’ve got some sense. </Jamie Fox>
Personability and the ability to work together with a team, combined with a quality of being well-spoken, outgoing, and in command of yourself. Simple enough, eh? 
A good way to leave this impression is to conduct the interview more as a conversation than a mere question and answer. When you walk away, your target is going to have impressions of you that can be made more important than any particular fact (for ex: this job is a little beyond your current qualifications.)
Depending upon the situation, it’s not a bad idea to use the conversational aspects of the interview back upon the interviewer - when you enter the room, take a quick glance and comment on what you see. Pictures of kids? Ask how many. Blue ribbons or diplomas on the wall? Ask them what they’re for, what school they went to. People remember this stuff and it’s done too rarely by most interviewees. When you leave, say “my best to your family” or “good luck on your next race” or something, whatever ties in with what you mentioned in the very beginning.
As far as the meat of the interview goes: know your shit. If this is a publicly traded company you should not walk in there without knowing the name of the current Pres/CEO/Chairman (even if its three people) or the previous days closing stock price. If it’s not a publicly traded company, find local news reports that mention the company or, failing that, read a bit about the industry.
My little girl wants me to swing her on her jungle gym, so I hope that’s enough for now!
I agree with the “conversation” bit posted by JohnT, although you may have to fight the interviewer to get them to converse. Proper interview procedure does not typically call for a conversation, but if you can gaud them into doing it, you’re much more likely to leave an impression as someone who will “fit in” with the company.
And, ultimately, that’s what they’re looking for.
If you’re familiar with the style of dress that is company appropriate, try to nail that as closely as possible. If you are not, try to dress as middle-of-the-road business professional as is possible – well-fitted suit that is not flashy or fashionable, neutral shirt (white or light blue, though white is preferable), a tie that is not busy or flashy in red or blue.
Think of it as dressing the way a politician does – boring but entirely inoffensive.
Shine your shoes up a bit, groom well before leaving, etc.
Gaud? What the hell?
Goad. Sorry.
Relax. Be personable but not casual.
Is there something you feel you can offer that’s fairly unique? Make sure you work that in, they’re looking for something that sets one person above all the others.
Have some questions ready for them about the company that shows you’re interested in what they do and what your role with the company would be.
Selling yourself is difficult, but that’s what it comes down to. You want to make them feel you are a perfect fit, that you can step into the position and make it seem like you’ve been there forever. So, be confident too.
I interview people fairly regularly in academia, were the expectations and standards of interview behaviour are probably way off the charts relative to an industrial/corporate position. (So don’t take my advice, basically, I’d take on a paranoid schizophrenic if they knew enough science and could put in a twleve hour day.:))
Nonetheless, its worth remembering that your talent and ability is what really matters. Focussing on this before and during (if you can) the interview will give you a lot of self belief and confidence, a priceless commodity in that environment. Going in worrying about the myriad of presentation/interaction foibles will be very distracting IMO, so try and avoid it.
With it being a summer job, you don’t want to go in saying that you’re going to tear the house down in a glorious webmail revolution. You probably need to pitch it below this a little bit, but definitely prepare a positive case for why you want the job, what you’re going to give them and also what they’re giving you.
Good luck!
Didn’t we just have a thread on interviewing? My connection is slow tonight, otherwise I’d search for it and give you a link. There was some good information in it.
We’re currently interviewing for interns (both undergrad and grad students). The biggest problem we’ve had with the candidates is that we cannot get them to talk! It’s like they’re so afraid of giving the wrong answer or saying the wrong thing that they just sit there and force us to drag answers out of them.
For example, I usually ask candidates if they consider themselves more analytical or more creative. There’s only one wrong answer and that’s if they say they’re really bad at one or the other. However, I’ve had candidates who just gave the answer (e.g. “I’m analytical”) and said nothing else. An ideal candidate would answer one or the other, then give some examples of how they’ve demonstrated those skills, then say that they realize the other skills are important and they have some in that area as well, they’re just really good at whatever they chose. Even when I pry and ask them how they’ve demonstrated those skills, they just say “oh, all the time in my coursework.” That doesn’t tell me much.
They also don’t ask any questions. I mean NONE! I can’t imagine that in a half hour interview I’ve managed to give them all the information they need about the company, our culture, the position, the skills needed… I know I’m not that good!
Actually, six or so applications isn’t that many. Don’t beat yourself up. When I was going for an internship, there was a rumour that a local bar was giving away free shots for every rejection letter you brought in. It’s a good thing that was a rumour or I would have died of alcohol poisoning! I got that many rejections. Yet I still found a damn good internship. I got a bit nervous towards the end, but it happened.
Sit on the back of your jacket. That way it doesn’t bunch around your shoulders and look wrinkley.
As much as I hate to say it, it all comes down to looking better than the next/last guy. If you look good, they may get past the first reaction and actually listen to the lame answers you give to the lamer questions they ask you. If you are ugly (like me), its an uphill battle, no matter how skilled you are.
But I could be wrong. It would be a first, however.
Be punctual. (For your own benefit, arrive a little early so you can sit down and prepare.)
Dress neatly. (Just to prove you can.)
Listen carefully.
Have a question or two ready for the end. (When I applied to join Government service, I asked about the pension plan. This was well received!)
How about getting someone (a mate or businessman) to practice with you and make helpful remarks afterwards?
Sound interested in the work, and a likable person.
This is a really crucial point. The interviewer asks if the interviewee has any questions for a reason—they want to know that you are thinking, that you care about the job, that you are capable of forming intelligent questions.
Ask why they themselves came to work for the company.
Ask if, at this point, they have any other questions or concerns about your ability to perform the job—this is your chance to refute any concerns, rather than leaving and having the interviewer think, “Now, if only I thought s/he could do X,Y,Z…”
Ask what they consider the biggest challenges in that position to be—and then talk about your ability to handle them.
Take JohnT’s advice as well, and ask questions about what you have read. Not questions which you should know the answer to, but things like, “I saw in the business journal that <blah, blah, blah> Can you tell me a little bit about what led the company there?”
Of course, looks like your interview was today, so we may be too late this time, but good luck!
By the time I’m interviewing you, I’ve determined from your resume that you have the talent and ability. In an interview, I’m looking for two things:
Unless you are in a really specific field, I’m interviewing twelve people with your talent and ability (or something close enough to it). Of those, six to eight will have fooled me on their resume, so you are competing with four to six on personality.
And personality is a funky thing. Sometimes we are looking for someone with a “strong” personality - a “take no prisoners - get the job done” person. Sometimes we are looking for a good compliment to someone we already employ. Sometimes we want someone who is going to keep their head down and follow the rules. You might be perfect for a job where being a “good leader” is an asset, the next job the “good leader” attitude may make us concerned you’ll be disappointed in the role and not stick around for long enough to make hiring you worthwhile.
I agree with most of what’s been mentioned.
I also pay a lot of attention to how candidates deal with questions they can’t answer. Some stumble and get really flustered. Some say “I don’t know” and just sit there until I ask something else. Some try to BS their way through it without admitting ignorance.
By far, my favorites are the folks who say “I haven’t done that, so I’m not sure offhand… but let me think… I imagine I’d need to blah blah blah, and then perhaps blah. Actually, this sounds a lot like blah, so perhaps I could blah blah blah…”. This really gives me a feel for how smart people are and how well they’ll be able to solve problems.
Similarly, I love it when candidates ask me to tell them more about something they didn’t know. Obviously, it’s no good if they’re doing that every 2 seconds, but once or twice during the course of the interview lets me know that they’re actually interested in what we’re discussing, not just passing an interview.
So… how’d it go?
I would find a friend or relative and do a practice interview. It really helps to prepare for the live questions you might get. Every time I’ve interviewed for a job, I’ve gotten my wife to do this with me and the interview went extreemly well.
Don’t do anything suggested here during the interview. 
I generally suggest 4 things to people who ask me for interviewing help. They all relate to how you treat the interview and often help people overcome problems that make them “bad interviews”. I suggest that they absorb these four attitudes:
Treat the interview as an opportunity to show how smart, yet humble, you are. Act as though the questions are being asked by someone who has no idea of the correct answer but is trying to get some advice from you. Many people are friendly and full of information when informing a junior at work but clam up in interviews and give really scant answers.
Relate everything you have done in previous jobs to the business benefit that drove it. Most things can be approached in these terms and focussing on what the business purpose of your job is makes it easier to understand and communicate what you have been doing.
When you work out what questions they will ask you try to think of answers that make you stand out from the crowd. Usually they involve some lateral thinking. Many interviewees for supervisory positions answer communication questions by stressing their ability to get their message across. Too few mention their listening skills or ability to judge what is going on in the workplace by observation. Years ago I interviewed for a job and was asked “What steps would you take to initiate new work procedures in this unit?” Afterwards I found out I was the only applicant who suggested getting the staff involved to check the initiative to make sure that it would work and avoid egg on the face for management.
Don’t forget that you have a life outside work and many of your experiences there may be more useful than work experiences to use in answers. My greatest claim to management/supervision skills is my experience managing and coaching a kids cricket team - far more delicate to deal with than a bunch of salaried employees.
I’ve done a lot of interviews, and here’s what I look for:
1.) Signs of a work ethic. There’s nothing worse than a person who isn’t personally motivated. One of our questions was “tell us about a time when you went above and beyond in order to accomplish a specific goal…” and people would sometimes say “Um, once I stayed a half hour late.” Yikes. What about what you DO at work?
2.) Communication skills. I know you’re nervous, but talk to me. I’m hiring for a job that requires communication with clients, and I don’t want you to clam up under stress. Consider my questions essay responses, not true/false or multiple choice. Tell me the answer and then why.
3.) Ask questions. It really does show interest in the job. It also says to me “Hey, I’m a good candidate, and I’m looking for a job with certain requirements, I’m not just a desperate person who’s going to take the first job I can get”. Don’t ask about pay, benefits, time off, that sort of thing – at least not until the offer is extended – but ask about what the job will be like, what will you be doing, who will you be working with, etc.
4.) Say good things about previous jobs. Find something that you learned, at least. If I ask you about your experience, I don’t want to hear about how much your old job sucked, especially if it’s a similar position (I don’t want a negative person around). If pressed about why you left, be honest but reserved. (i.e. “I wanted to find a position with more X and less Y, because X is primarily my interest and where my skill lies” vs. “I hated doing Y”.)
5.) If you don’t have experience with something I’ve asked about how you’ve handled, i.e. ‘how have you dealt with a difficult client’ or ‘how have you dealt with a team goal and how did you lead the team’, tell me about something similar, or if all else fails, how you would handle it.