Sample Job Interview Questions

Prepare good answers for these questions and

you’ll be ready for any job or college interview!

(Suggested answer strategies are in red)

 

1. Tell me about yourself.  Prepare three good points that you want the interviewer to remember about you and your qualifications.

2. What are your long-range goals?  What would you like to be doing in five or ten years? Talk about your future, and think this out beforehand—but don’t answer in a way that suggests you’re just looking for a “stepping stone” job.

3. Why do you want to work for us?  Show your knowledge of what the company does and how you might help that goal.  Check their mission statement online!

4. Tell me about a time when you used your “people skills.”  Have a story prepared that shows how you worked with others to solve a real problem at work or in school.

5. Tell me about a time when you had to juggle priorities to meet a deadline.  Have a story prepared that shows you can successfully plan work even when you have many things due.

6. In what kind of position are you most interested?  Research beforehand to find out what kinds of jobs are available at this company.  Talk about what interests you, but also what kind of career you would like eventually.

7. What are your strengths?  Weaknesses?  Strengths should be job skills; weaknesses should NOT include attendance or illegal issues, and should also stress how you are working to solve them.

8. Have you ever been fired from a job?  Why?  Answer honestly if you have, but never speak negatively about a previous employer.  Use “personality conflicts” or, if you really were fired for poor behavior, talk about what you’ve done since then to correct this.

9. How do you handle stress?  Talk about things like sports, exercise, music and other legal and appropriate recreational activities.

10. If you could invite three people (real or fictional) to dinner, who would they be?  Choose three people who are not religious figures, political figures or family members; be ready to explain why you admire each one.

11. How do you determine when you are successfully doing your job?   Discuss self-evaluation, not how others think you are doing.

12. What did you think of your last boss?  Focus on what you learned from him/her, not whether or not you liked the person.

13. How did you like school?  Do you want to go back for more education?  It’s always good to say you would like to learn more, but don’t suggest that you’re going to be back in school full-time soon, or plan to quit as soon as you’ve learned more.

14. What would you like your co-workers to say about you?  Your supervisor?  Stress work-related qualities like teamwork and completing your work well and on time, not recreational or after-work activities.

15. Do you work better with single-focus or multi-task work?   Why?  Whichever you choose (and you should choose honestly,) note that you can work well either way if required.

16. In what school activities have you participated?  How would they help you in working for us?  Discuss in-school activities here as well as extracurricular interests.  Relate them to the job you want; that’s what the interviewer is looking for.

17. How has your school work helped prepare you for this position?  You should have some examples and stories from school that specifically relate to the job you want.

18.  How was your school attendance?  How many days off did you take in the last year?  Be very honest with this; they will check with your references.  If you had many absences, explain how you are working to correct the situation.

19. Do you have a Instagram, Facebook or other social networking page?  A web site?  You can expect that they will check this out as well as “Googling” you.  Remove any inappropriate pictures or comments—better yet, don’t post any in the first place.  There’s no such thing as private on the Internet!

20. What magazines and newspapers do you read regularly?  What books have you read recently?  Choose publications that might have to do with the field you want to work in—and be sure you really have read them!  Stay away from school-assigned books; it sounds like you only read things when you are forced to do so.

21. Do you have any questions for us?  Always have two or three basic questions prepared!  Ask about what a typical day would be like, what is best about working for the company, the hiring process, or other questions like that.  Do not ask about salary or benefits until after the first interview. 

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