3. Traditional Style Interview Questions are designed to find out
about your education and your experience.
Traditional Style Interview Questions are further divided into
four types.
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4. [1] Tell me about yourself.
[2] What is your greatest strength?
[3] What is your greatest weakness?
[4] Who are your role models? Why?
[5] Where do you want to be in five years? Ten Years?
[6] How does your college education or work experience relate to this
job?
[7] Give me three words that describe you.
[8] What motivates you?
[9] What can you offer us?
[10] Why should we hire you rather than another candidate?
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5. [11] Why do you choose to attend your college or university?
[12] Why did you choose your major? Minor?
[13] Tell me about your education at…..
[14] What is your G.P.A. ?
[15] Tell me about your course work.
[16] Tell me about your extracurricular activities while you were in
school.
[17] Tell me about your involvement with your professional organization.
[18] Do your grades accurately reflect your ability? Why or Why not?
[19] Were you financially responsible for any portion of your college
education?
[20] Do you have plans to get additional education?
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6. [21] Why did you choose this field of work?
[22] What job-related skills have you developed?
[23] For what kind of supervisor do you like to work?
[24] Do you consider yourself ambitious?
[25] What do you think should determine the progress a person makes in
a company?
[26] What does teamwork mean to you?
[27] What did you do on your job at ________?
[28] Have you ever quit a job? Why?
[29] What did you like least in your job at ________?
[30] Have you done any volunteer work? What kind? 6By Syed Sohail Ahmed
7. [31] How important is money to you?
[32] Do you like to work alone or with other people? Why?
[33] Are you willing to relocate?
[34] You are younger than most of the people you supervise. What
problems might this pose? How will you resolve them?
[35] What salary do you expect to receive in this job?
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8. Behavioral Style Interviews are designed to focus on an
applicant’s past actions and behaviors in order to determine
how he or she will perform in the future.
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9. [1] Describe a major problem you had with an employee at work and how
you handled it. Describe at what point you decided to confront this
employee at work.
[2] Describe a situations where you were working as a team member on a
class project and a student on the team was not doing his or her work.
Explain how you handled the situation. Explain what happened at the end
of the project.
[3] Describe the most difficult challenge you have faced. Explain why you
believe you met or failed to meet that challenge.
[4] Describe the situation in which you were successful ( or unsuccessful)
in motivating someone.
[5] Describe a situation at work or at school where you took the initiative.
What was the result? How did you feel?
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10. For any type of an interview you should :-
• Be ready for any thing.
• Be polite and attentive.
• Always be yourself.
• Give brief answers but not just “yes” or “no”.
• Turn your weakness to your strengths.
• Take advantage of the opportunity to show your
knowledge for company and the position.
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11. BE READY TO DISCUSS SALARY. The salary question
is an important one. Be ready to answer it. You should
try to get information before the interview if you can.
Also you should try to learn before the interview what
salaries are being paid for the similar jobs.
But if you do not feel pressured to give specific answer,
you might say, “ I would want a salary that is
appropriate for my education and experience.”
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12. You should not only give answers to the interviewer but
should also ask some questions from the interviewer.
You should have some key questions for the interviewer.
Do not only ask questions about your benefits like
retirement programs or vacation programs etc but
should consider asking some of the following questions:
[1] Please describe the duties of the job for me.
[2] Would you describe the normal routine of this position?
Describe a typical day.
[3] What kind of job assignments might I expect the first
six months on the job?
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13. [4] How is job performance evaluated and how often?
[5] How much travel is normally expected? Is a car
provided?
[6] Describe your relocation policy.
[7] Do you have plans for expansion?
[8] Does your company encourage further education?
[9] When do you expect to make a decision?
[10] Where do we go from here?
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14. You should learn as much about the company prior to the
interview. Examples of the questions you should ask
about the organization are as follows:
[1] What is the size of the organization or company?
[2] Describe growth prospects for the company.
[3] What is the percent of annual sales growth in the last
five years?
[4] What type of service or products does the company
offer?
[5] What are the strengths and weaknesses of the
company?
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15. [6] What is the organizational structure?
[7] Is the company an international company?
[8] What is the corporate culture of the company? Does it
match your personality?
[9] What are the typical career paths and advancements
opportunities offered by the company in your field?
[10] What is the salary range for the position?
[11] How long has the company been in business?
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16. You should prepare yourself before the interview. Choose
your clothes carefully, give attention to personal
grooming, and avoid wearing heavy jewelry or strong
colognes. The interviewer(s) may be dressed in more
casual clothing; however, employers expect that you
dress in a conservative business style for an interview.
Wear the clothing at least once before the interview to
be sure it is comfortable.
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17. Appropriate dress is as follows:
FOR MEN:
• Two-piece conservative suit in solid color such as blue or
grey.
• White shirt with a tie in a plain or simple pattern.
• Polished shoes with socks that match the suit.
Remember your belt should match your shoes.
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18. FOR WOMEN:
• Two-piece conservative suit with knee length or longer
skirt in a solid color such as blue or grey. Pants are not
recommended for interviews unless you have been told
they are appropriate.
• White blouse with modest jewelry.
• Polished shoes with plain hosiery. Remember your belt
should match your shoes.
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19. Many companies are now suggesting to students that they
dress in business or office casual for one of the
interviews at the company. Since business casual can
vary greatly from company to company, follow the
following guidelines
FOR MEN
• Sport coat and belted slacks.
• Collared shirt.
• Polished shoes and matching socks.
• A tie is optional; however, you may want to carry one in
your coat pocket
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20. FOR WOMEN:
• Sport coat and belted slacks.
• Blouse.
• Hosiery and polished shoes.
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