What to Concern Most in Your First, Actual and Second Interviews:

FIRST INTERVIEW

Interview Tips

Interview is a way for you and a potential employer to get to know each other. It is a dialogue in which the employer assesses your background and skills, and provides you with information about the job, organization and you provide information about your skills and get enough information to decide whether this job/organization is right for you.   READ MORE

Getting an interview usually means that you're qualified for the position, so the actual interview is a chance for the interviewer to confirm your qualifications, and to find out what you're like and how you will fit into the organization.

Qualities you should try to demonstrate in an interview are

1. Good communication skills.
2. Self confidence (being aware of your strengths and weaknesses).
3. Your personality.
4. Your accomplishments.
5. Knowledge of organization with which you're interviewing .

How to prepare for an interview?

Interviewing is a skill that is learned and developed over time; everyone gets nervous at first. Preparation and practice are the keys to overcoming nervousness and becoming an effective interviewee. Here are some tips:

• Know yourself, your skills, strengths and accomplishments. Prepare short examples to illustrate these qualities. 
• Be sure that you can talk about (and give examples relating to) everything listed on your resumé.
• Research the employer/job so that you know as much as you can about the organization and possible position. Interviewers won't expect you to spout statistics, but they will expect you to know the basics about the position/organization and how your skills relate. 
• Prepare questions to ask of your interviewer.

ACTUAL INTERVIEW

Dress for success

• Dressing appropriately is important. Your goal is to dress so that the interviewer does not notice what you are wearing. The interviewer should remember your qualifications, not your clothes.
• The rule of thumb is to dress like the people who will be interviewing you. Suits and ties are still appropriate for men; suits or nice dresses for women.
• Avoid scents, flashy earrings, anything that detracts from your presentation of your qualifications. 
Preliminaries
• Arrive early to your interview (leave time to get lost if you live far from the interview place). 
• It is appropriate to bring a portfolio/nice folder and a purse, in to the interview.
• Leave briefcases, umbrellas, etc. in the reception area.
• Bring extra copies of your resumé and a list of reference names into the interview with you. You may not need them, but you will be prepared if asked. 

Tips for the Actual Interview

• Interviews should be like conversations, where participants take turns speaking and listening. Try to avoid creating a situation in which the interviewer asks all the questions.
• The first few minutes of an interview are important. Try to greet interviewer confidently, make eye contact and shake hands. Know their name and make sure they get yours right. Practice saying your name in a confident, easy to understand manner.
• Be positive.
• Be honest about what you want.
• Be specific, give examples to make your dialogue interesting. 
• Practice interviewing can help you feel comfortable and sure of yourself.

After the Interview

• Be nice to everyone, including receptionists and secretaries. They may not have the power to hire you, but they may be asked for input into the decision. 
• Follow-up your interview with a thank-you note as soon as possible. Call, if appropriate, to continue to express interest in the position. 

Telephone Interviews

Sometimes an initial interview will be over the telephone rather than in person. Always schedule a phone interview in advance, then prepare in the same way as you would for an in-person meeting. Before the interview begins, assemble your resumé, notes, and questions in front of the phone. And remember, since the interviewer cannot see you, your voice has to convey all your interest and enthusiasm.

SECOND INTERVIEW

Being asked back to a second interview means that you are qualified for the position and that those who conducted your first interview think you have the potential to be a "good fit" with the organization. The second interview is designed to: 

• see how you "perform" in a longer interview situation; 
• To have you meet and interview with more people in the organization;
• Confirm that your background, skills and personality will, in fact, mesh with the job and organization. 
Often a second interview will be used to make a final hiring decision between two or three finalists. 

A second interview is structured as follows: 
• It is usually held at the employment site, is often several hours long and may include a meal.
• Typically, time is scheduled so that you have a series of meetings, including one with personnel, one with the person to whom you will report, and one with a higher-level manager. You may also be introduced to recent hires to give you a sense of what an entry-level position is like.
Tips for second interviews
• Make any necessary travel arrangements before the interview. Get directions and a copy of the interview schedule, if possible. 
• Dress as you did for the first interview. You can even wear the same outfit, if necessary, but try to wear a different tie or scarf to change the outfit a bit. 
• The same rules outlined above apply about what to bring in to a second interview.
• Always be on best and most proper behavior, even if you are having lunch with an entry-level person and/or alum from your university who invites you to "go ahead and ask the questions that are really on your mind." This person is still a representative of the company and may have input into the hiring decision.
• Send a thank-you letter to every person with whom you interviewed. If some of your interviews involved several people, it is appropriate to send the thank-you to the senior person, and ask him/her to thank the other members of the group on your behalf.
Prepare for a second interview in the same way as you prepared for the first
• Use what you learned in the first interview to refine your ability to relate your skills, interest and experiences to the qualifications necessary for the position. Practice some more if necessary. 
• Read any information about the job/organization given to you in the first interview. 
• Use an on-line database and/or the Internet to search for recent articles about the organization. Keeping current on the organization may help in making conversation and answering questions. 

Questions

Questions you may be asked will differ from interview to interview. Some interviewers will follow your resumé closely and ask you questions about what you've done in the past. Others will ask more general questions. PRACTICE, and be prepared for anything.