DEALING WITH CORE QUESTIONS DURING INTERVIEW

For First jobbers

Most interviewers will allow for inexperience and nervousness, but even they cannot gain a good impression if you are very shy or tongue-tied. If you know this is your problem, ask a family member or friend to do a practice session with you beforehand, to give yourself a better start. Practise relaxation too.

School and college leavers may have had a paper round, Saturday job or worked in the holidays, so make sure this useful experience is known to the interviewer. It shows that you are used to the discipline of work – being on time, working for several hours at a stretch. Try to find out in advance what this particular job involves, either by talking to someone doing it – or something similar – or by reading up leaflets and books in your careers library.

Questions

• Tell me about your school/college.




• Did you have a good attendance record?




• Were you offered the chance to take GCSEs?




• Which subjects do you feel you could have passed, given the opportunity?




• Did you do as well in A levels as you expected?




• Why did you decide to do business studies for BTEC?




• What special projects did you undertake at school?




• Did you consider applying for Youth Training?




• What do you really want to do in life?




• Do you see your hobbies/interests/sport as separate from work or connected with it?




• What was involved in your Saturday job with Safeway?




• Do you live with your parents?




• Do you have any brothers or sisters?




• Are they older or younger than you?




• Do your parents work? What do they do?




• Are you ambitious?




• Do you plan to continue your education later on?




• Have you considered a vocational course?

A school reference will probably be asked for, in the absence of work experience. Give the name of your head. If you were in care or had a disrupted childhood, and this motivates you to do well at work and build a new life for yourself, can you put this across to the interviewer? If so, allowances will probably be made for your less advantageous start in life. Many jobs will offer training for school leavers, especially in organisations which have gained an Investors in People assessment.