Effective Interview Skills

1. Effective Interview Skills Jane MacDonald Manager, Student Career Services Manager, Co-operative Education Program

2. Activity Please break into pairs and ask your partner the following questions. Please record the answers. • Why dietetics? • Tell me five skills that would contribute to your success in my Internship program.

3. Purpose of the Interview Three questions the interviewer is considering during the interview… • Can you actually do the job? Is your experience, training, education, aptitude and interest sufficient so you would be productive for me? • Who are you? What are you like? What characteristics and traits do you possess? • Will you fit in with the others in the profession? Will you be part of a problem or part of a solution? Are you a liability? Risk to the profession?

4. Interview Basics- Before • Research the internship, organization, and prepare questions • Review your resume and the internship description • Determine the requirements of the internship & then plan how you can prove you meet those requirements by giving examples of your accomplishments • Turn off communication devices and arrive early Dress: Appropriate • No perfume/cologne • Pressed shirts and pants/skirts • Not too short or too low • Do not carry multiple bags • Pay attention to hygiene & grooming

5. Interview Basics-During • Keep smiling and make eye contact • Listen to what is being asked • Ask for clarification • Be honest and positive • No slang, “yes” instead of “yup” • Use a confident tone • Stay away from answering with “negatives” • Include specifics in your answers

6. Interview Basics-After • Use the interview as a learning experience • Take notes on what happened in the interview • Do not forget to follow up Questions to ask the interviewer: • What makes your org. an interesting place to work? • What are the main responsibilities and objectives of an intern? • What adjectives would you use to describe your working environment? • What do you enjoy about being an RD?

7. Verbal Communication During an Interview Do your answers make sense to someone who doesn’t know you?

8. Non-Verbal Communication 55% of the meaning people send is contained in facial expression 38% of the meaning is in the voice 7% meaning is contained in nonverbal messages (Mehrabian & Weiner, 1967)

9. Types of Questions • Unexpected • Situational • Technical • Behavioral

10. Unexpected Questions “How many ping pong balls can you fit in a 747?” Tip: The interviewer wants to hear your thought process as to how you would find this answer. For example, what questions would you ask, what assumptions would you make, potential calculations?

11. Situational Questions “You are working for ABC Company. As you were walking down the hall, you overhear two Registered Dietitians talking about another staff member. The comments were of the “gossip and malicious” type and they were using the first and last names. As they are talking, other staff and clients can hear their comments. What would you do?” Hint: Outline what steps you would take.

12. Situational Question Tips • Situational questions demand that the interviewee utilize their analytical and problem-solving skills. • By giving a job seeker a hypothetical situation, the interviewer wants to see how they will react in the moment…with short notice and little preparation. • Tip on answering: • Share your assumptions and thought processes with the interviewer as to how you would handle the situation if you need to make a few considerations in your answer.

13. Behavioral Questions “Tell me about a situation (personal, academic, or professional) in which you were responsible for planning and organizing an event.” Hints: How did you get the assignment? How did you approach the task? How did you keep track of things? What tools did you use (to do list, organizer etc.) to help you? What was the first thing you did? What steps were followed? How did you feel when the event took place?

14. Behavioral Interviewing • Employers are determining personal attributes. • Give examples of times when you’ve effectively used your skills to meet other similar needs. • Past performance is the best predictor of future behavior. • Always end positively.

15. The Phrasing of Behavioral Questions If the internship posting states “is looking for a team player”, possible interview questions could include: • Tell me about a time when you had to adjust to a co-worker’s working style in order to successfully complete a project. • Describe a situation when working with others produced better results than if you had completed the project on your own. • Describe a time when you demonstrated your ability to work as a collaborative team member?

16. Behavioral Competencies • Communication • Stress • Decision Making • Continuous Learning and Growth • Sales Ability • Tenacity • Planning and Organizing • Leadership and Influence • Initiative • Team work

17. STAR-L Method What did you learn? Do differently? L LEARNING

18. Answering Questions • Have inventory of important points • Consider each question an opportunity to provide information • Do not assume anything • Pause before you answer • Never answer with just “yes” or “no” • Be positive • Include specific information

19. Leadership-Related Questions • Choose a strong example, use specifics • Include a benefit/contribution/accomplishment. • Watch the “we” when you mean “I” statements. • Reflect on what leadership means to you? How you define leadership. • Examples… • Tell me about a time when you demonstrated leadership skills. • Tell me about a time that you took the lead on a difficult project. • When have you delegated effectively? • Describe a time when you led by example.

20. Group Interviews • Listen to your peers • Engage the other people in the group, especially the introverts • Take control if no one else is, particularly if it’s a leadership position • Don’t be confrontational, put other candidates’ answers down, or cut other candidates off when they are speaking

21. Telephone Interviews • Speak slower and with a smile • Use a good quality phone (not a cell phone) • No background noises • Have cheat notes in front of you • Dress professionally, sit at a table as if you were speaking face-face • Be comfortable with silence • Ask if the interviewer can hear you

22. Using your portfolio during your idi interview

23. Preparing for the Interview • Practice various interview questions (common, resume-based, behaviorial, situational). Use specific details in answer! • Find ways to use your portfolio to answer a question as the interviewers won’t ask to see it! Demonstrates ability to think on one’s feet, critical thinking, and resourcefulness. • When adding documentation to your portfolio, think about how you would use this item to help answer a question. Make strong connections, be prepared to share these connections with the interviewer. Pick the best visual examples for your documentation.

24. Using your Portfolio at the IDI Interview • Arrange documents in an order that coincides with the job description or that places the most relevant illustrations and examples at the beginning.  • Be familiar with the organization of your portfolio. • Be comfortable with using your portfolio. • In the past, some interview questions were give to candidates 15 minutes before starting the interview. Good time to solidify how you will use your portfolio to answer specific questions. Make notes. Maybe bring a sticky to flag items in your portfolio.

25. Interview Questions that You can Use Your Portfolio to Demonstrate the Answer • Pick the most proudest accomplishment in your portfolio. Explain why you picked that item. • Describe how you organized your portfolio. • What is one thing that you would like to put in your portfolio? • What did you learn about yourself from going through the portfolio development process? • Pick one item from your portfolio and tell me about that experience.

26. More Interview Questions… • Tell me about a time that you had to work within a group setting to complete a project. • Give an example of a time that demonstrates your willingness to complete additional training. • Tell me about a time where you had to make a difficult decision. • Is there anything else you want us to know about you that we haven’t covered during the interview?

27. Example of Preparing for a Question

28. Tips for your IDI Interview Portfolio • Pick the most important items that demonstrate your skills according to the skills IDI Committee are looking for. • Visuals (good quality, colour for impact). • Box or highlight key skills • Well organized, clear, consistent, professional • Use a good quality binder, sleeves, printing, typing, and etc. • Think usability during the interview • Practice using your portfolio! • You should be able to use your portfolio with each interviewer.

29. Interview Stream https://sites.stfx.ca/scc/interviewstream.html Take a pre-made interview

30. Questions?