Co-op Programs Office

Transcription

1 Co-op Programs Office 1) Tell me about yourself? Do not provide a life history or a laundry list by simply reciting your resume = BORING, NOT EFFECTIVE Do not start with Hi, I am a BBA Co-op student at Brock University. Use your work, professional extra-curricular and academic experiences to provide proof of your skills and accomplishments (use work and professional extra curricular activities to support your skills / accomplishments more often then school) Avoid talking about your personal life Provide a two to three minute snapshot of who you are and why you are the best candidate Talk about your unique abilities and skills 1. Begin with your most significant point which relates to the job you are applying to 2. State skills and traits relevant to the position 3. Use examples that paint a picture of success 4. Demonstrate how your skills and accomplishments match the prospective employer 5. End your answer confidently by stating that you are the right person for the position 2) Why should we hire you? You need to tell them that you are the BEST candidate for the position and then provide reasons and examples as to why you are the most suitable 1. Confidence that you can do the job is a great start 2. Mention traits and skills that qualify you for the position 3. Support claims with specific examples 4. Researching the company and connecting it to your fit demonstrates that you are serious 5. Continue to highlight traits and skills and provide evidence of how you have these skills 3) What is your greatest strength? Prepare at least three strengths and select those that are directly related to the job Don t come across as egotistical or arrogant avoid bragging Be sure to back up your strengths with specific examples from work., or professional extra- curricular activities 1. State your strengths in a clear and concise manner 2. Ensure that you demonstrate how you have these strengths by providing evidence from your work, professional extra-curricular involvement or academic history or through a combination of these experiences

2 4) What is your greatest weakness? Prepare three weaknesses, select those that are not directly related to the job Don t respond that you have no weaknesses Don t select a strength and try and turn it into a weakness ex. I work too much Don't use a cliché or try to present a strength as a weakness by saying your weakness is that you are a workaholic this is a commonly used strategy that any interviewer will see right through Use positive language as much as possible, without sugarcoating your answer 1. Describe your weakness honestly, this demonstrates strong character 2. Share examples of any positive results from your weakness 3. Describe the steps or actions you have taken to improve your weakness 5) Why do you want to work here? If your answer is that you just need a job and paycheck, then dig little deeper Make sure you have a clear understanding of why you want to work for them. The key is what is important to you about this company You MUST conduct RESEARCH and come up with two or three SPECIFIC reasons why you want to work for the company and in that industry. Explain how your qualifications and goals complement the company s mission, vision and values (use SPECIFIC examples) Don t tell them the real answer if your goal is to make a lot of money or get a job in a particular location Find out company goals, mission statement, structure, products, services, financials, and current issues The company s web site is a good starting point, however you must conduct more in depth research to stand out from the crowd - try Google News or Canadian Business & Current Affairs (CBCA), an e- database available at James Gibson Library Sincerity is extremely important and will be easily sensed 6) What has been your greatest accomplishment? Try and find a work related rather then an academic accomplishment Give specific details about what you did, how you did it and what the results were Employers like to hear about accomplishments that reduced expenses, raised revenues, solved problems or enhanced a company s reputation 1. Start with an overview and then go into details 2. Highlight characteristics that contribute to your achievement 3. Connecting example to the position is a strong way to end 7) Where will you be in 5 years from now? Interviewer is trying to determine if you plan ahead and sets goals and if those goals match those of the company and the position 1. Share the key reasons why you want to work for the company 2. Outline a recent position, what you did and what you liked about it

3 3. State any professional improvements that you done made which support your goal 4. Tie your specific career goal with duties that are possible with the company 8) What is your biggest failure? Don t act as if you have something to hide Making excuses or blaming others for the failure demonstrates you have difficulty accepting responsibility Minimizing the failure doesn t make it look less significant 1. Be honest and don t sugarcoat your answer 2. Sharing your feelings in a professional way shows that you can about your work 3. Your reaction can indicate your response to future failures 4. Share if you turned that failure into a success 5. Stating that you learned from your mistake is a strong way to end 9) Which course(s) did you like most? Least? For courses that you liked, select those that complement the job you are being interviewed for Talk about skills you developed, especially in courses you didn t like or want to take (employers like to hear that a candidate did well in a courses they didn t care for) Develop answers that focus on the subject, not the workload or professor s personality (talking about past troubles with an authority figure will introduce a possible negative and complaining too much is not the way to impress your potential boss) 10) What did you like most about your last position / employer? 11) What did you like least about your last position / employer? Interviewer is fishing for incompatibilities Keep your answer short and sweet Don t say anything negative about your previous employer or position, focus on the positives (employers generally do not like complainers or negative people) Talk about positive things about why you want a new job 12) How has your education / training prepared you for work in this field?

4 1. How did your education/training prepare you for work in this field? 2. How do you stay in tune with new and emerging changes within your field?

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