An interview can be a frightening prospect for many college graduates as they begin their career search, but it need not be. While an interview is definitely meant to help the employer discover the best candidate for the job, it is also an opportunity for you to learn more about the company and find out if it is a suitable match for you.
Once you are actually in an interview and you begin to feel those butterflies taking flight in your stomach, it can be quite difficult to remember this. By the time you reach the part of the interview where the employer asks if you have any questions, your mind has probably drawn a blank and the only thing you can think to do is to squeak out a ‘no.’
If you fail to ask questions during the interview you are passing up a golden opportunity. Not only does asking questions during the interview provide you with the chance to learn more about the company, but it can also help you to stand out from the competition as well.
A candidate who asks engaging and well researched questions is able to demonstrate their interest in the company as well as their knowledge. These candidates are the ones who are typically able to move up to the top of the employer’s short list.
To make the process easier, begin by preparing a list of questions prior to the interview. Make sure that your questions demonstrate your knowledge about the company as well as your interest in the job. Some possibilities include:
• What can you tell me about your plans for growth in the next five years?
• I recently read that you are going to be launching a new…… What can you tell me about it?
• How would you describe the future for this industry?
It is also a good idea to ask about the position itself. Naturally everyone wants to know why a position is vacant. Discovering this information will provide you with tremendous insight into the company as well as the potential for advancement within that company. Consider asking the following questions:
• Why is this position currently vacant?
• Is this a newly created position?
• What types of skills are you looking for within this position?
You should also focus some attention on asking questions about the responsibilities related to that particular job as well. This can help to avoid confusion later on and will give you a good understanding of what will be expected of you. These questions can give you this type of insight:
• What do you consider to be the most important parts of this job?
• What is a typical day in this position?
• How will I be evaluated at this company?
Of course, you should also make sure you end with the all important question: What is the next step of the interview process?