Reading/Speaking. A job interview. Marjorie Rosenberg Aims. Tasks. Lead-in. Reading and discussion

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1 A job interview Marjorie Rosenberg Aims To talk about interview tips To prepare for and role play a job interview To discuss useful strategies regarding interviews Tasks Read and discuss tips for successful interviews Match statements people might make to the tips Prepare for a job interview Role play an interview Write a short self-reflection on the interview Lead-in Work in groups of 3 4. Answer the questions below. When did you have your last job interview? What about it was positive for you? Were there any negative aspects? Have you interviewed any candidates yourself? What type of experience is this for you? Reading and discussion These tips are from a recruitment officer in a central European country. Read through them and discuss them in your group. To what extent do you agree with these tips? Would they work in your culture or another culture you know well? Why or why not? 1 Prepare for the interview carefully. Find out the name of the HR director and write to him or her personally. Use the company s homepage to get the correct name and title. If possible, find out before the interview the name of the person who will be interviewing you and greet them by name. 2 Make sure you include an updated CV and cover letter with your application. You should include your date of birth and a recent photo but not your references (these will be written on the application form you receive at the company). 3 Think carefully about your strengths and weaknesses before going to a job interview. Decide how to make your weaknesses seem positive. 4 Try to find your own USP (unique selling proposition). In other words, what makes you different than other candidates? 5 Be careful with what you put on sites such as Facebook. Remember that HR managers today are quite computer-savvy and if you are short-listed, they may look you up on social media sites. 6 Make sure that you demonstrate self-confidence. 7 Arrive early enough to your interview. Greet the receptionist or secretary in a friendly way and shake hands with everyone you meet. See if you can find out how long the interview will last (does anyone know how much time the interviewer has planned to spend with you?) 8 Prepare questions ahead of time regarding various aspects of the job. These can include working hours, payment and benefits, on-the-job training, when you need to start, etc. Find out if there is a standard salary for the job across the industry as a whole 9 Don t speak negatively about your last (or current job). Find a good way to explain why you are looking for a new job. 10 Ask if you can make some notes during the interview. Bring along paper and be prepared to do this. 11 Find out before you leave what the next steps are. Will you be expected to phone or should you receive a letter within a certain amount of time? Find out as well if there anything else you will need to do.

2 Matching Read the statements by candidates and match them to the tips above. Then discuss in groups if the statements are acceptable in your country. A I am quite sure that I will be able to do this job. G I have always been very good at working under pressure. Both my colleagues at university and in my last job have commented on how calm I stay even when there are deadlines to meet. B I believe that you have my latest CV. I can give the names of my references now if you like or just write them out on the application form. H I really enjoy the job I am in. However, I feel that there is not enough of a possibility for me to grow in it. C I would be interested in knowing what the remuneration would be. As far as I know, there is a standard in the business, is that right? I Good morning. My name is... and I am here for an interview with... Do you happen to know how long he / she has planned for this? D You may have noticed my interest in sports on the internet. I often post information after attending a competition and like to put photos up for my friends to see. J Would it be alright with you if I jot down some points during our discussion? I ve brought some paper with me if it is OK. E Should I contact you in the next couple of weeks to find out if you need me to come for a second interview? K You are right, I have always had a talent for organisation. I assume that you have seen that on my CV. F Good morning, Dr Georgio. I understand that I will first be talking with your assistant, Mr. Valiante but that you may also have some questions for me as well. L I guess I could say that I sometimes spend too long dealing with the details. I don t like to pass on unfinished work and take my time to make sure that it has been done correctly.

3 Preparing for an interview Work in a group of four. First, split into two pairs. Look at the jobs in your pair and decide together which one you want to be interviewed for. Check that the other pair in your group has chosen a different job. Now work with your partner and decide on the following: Who are you? What are your formal qualifications? (education) Have you had any extra training? If so, what kind? What are your special talents, strengths, USPs? Are there any weaknesses you need to consider? What kind of experience do you have? Where do you see your future in the next several years? Why do you want this job and why do you think you are suited for it? When you have finished preparing for the job you would like, look at the job the other pair is preparing for. Prepare some questions for the interview and create some information about the company and the job itself. Role play Interview one of the other pair individually. When you have finished, change roles and they interview you. Then discuss the interviews in the group of four. Who was convincing? Who used good interview techniques? Give each other feedback. Self-reflection Make some notes immediately following your interview. Write down what you thought went well and what you think you would need to improve. You can share your ideas with the group or keep them for yourself for the future.

4 Video game designer Do you know what makes a good video game? Do you have a good imagination? Are you a fan of video games? We are looking for a good problemsolver who is willing to work hard to solve problems that arise in development and production. You also need to be able to work under pressure, be patient and efficient. A technical or artistic background is helpful and good maths and visual skills are essential. Teamwork is important as you will be working in a group of designers and production staff. Starting salary 40,000 with salary rises in the first few years for good performance. PR manager for a large group of hotels If you have excellent communication skills, this may be the job for you. PR managers must be able to speak and write exceptionally well in addition to being able to think on their feet in unexpected situations. You may need to explain our policies and mission to the press, the local community or public interest groups. Your job would also include improving relations between management and staff. You will be in charge of the in-house newsletter and produce informative and promotional videos. Part of your job will also be to draft speeches for the CEO or board members, set up events, and seek ways to publicize the company and its goals. A degree in business administration or public administration is necessary as well as PR experience. Starting salary 60,000 Bank branch manager We are looking for someone to take over administrative duties and be responsible for the daily operation of one of our branches. You would be in charge of 15 staff members who deal with customer accounts, loans, product sales, customer service and security. You will be expected to develop new deposit and loan business and motivate your staff to meet targets. You would need to provide a model of leadership, train and supervise staff and take part in community events to raise the image of the bank. You will also be expected to analyse reports and have management experience in the financial sector. Starting salary 50,000 plus bonuses Distribution manager in a production company You will play an important role in the supply chain and liaise with a number of different people including suppliers, wholesalers, retailers and forwarding companies. You will also be responsible for stock control, forecasting stock levels, dealing with delivery times and transport costs, and import and export legislation. You need both a technical and a business background as you have to be able to analyse data, deal with information systems and find new business partners. In addition, you have to supervise and monitor your staff; carry out training programmes and set objectives and targets. Experience and good qualifications are a must! Starting salary 70,000

5 A job interview Marjorie Rosenberg Aims To talk about interview tips To prepare for and role play a job interview To discuss useful strategies regarding interviews Tasks Read and discuss tips for successful interviews Match statements people might make to the tips Prepare for a job interview Role play an interview Write a short self-reflection on the interview Level Stronger classes (B2-C1) Some of the vocabulary work may require a dictionary. Timing 65 minutes (including checking answers and discussion). This activity can stand alone or be used in connection with Cambridge English for Job- Hunting, Colm Downes. Lead-in (5 minutes) Students work in small groups and talk about their experiences with job interviews using the questions provided. Reading and discussion (10 minutes) Students read through a list of tips for going to job interviews. They discuss them and bring in their own ideas and viewpoints. As these are based on a central European company, students may have very different ideas depending where they are located. These tips are from Silvia Leitner, a recruitment officer from the Steiermaerkische Bank, Graz, Austria. Matching (5 minutes) Students match the statements with the tips and discuss them. Key 1 F 2 B 3 L 4 G 5 D 6 A 7 I 8 C 9 H 10 J 11 E Preparing for an interview (15 minutes) Put students into groups of four. They split into pairs and each pair chooses a job they would like to be interviewed for. The pairs (pair A and pair B) prepare for the interview by making notes about questions they would have and creating a profile for themselves. They then look briefly at the job the other pair has chosen and prepare interview questions to ask them. Role play (20 minutes) Divide the groups of four into A/B pairs to conduct individual interviews. When they have finished with one interview, they swap roles so that each student has held an interview and been interviewed. Students then discuss their experiences and give feedback to each other in their groups. Self-reflection (5 minutes) Allow students time to work individually and make notes about their performance in the interview. If they like, students can discuss this with their partners or they can keep this to themselves for future reference. Sources video-game-designer Banking/Bank-manager.html Relations-Manager.html and_distribution_manager_job_description.jsp