Interview Preparation

Questions commonly asked at interview

· Talk us through your career to date.

· What has been your greatest achievement to date?

· Where do you see yourself in two/five/ten years time?

· What motivates you?

· Why do you want to leave your present employer?

· What are your strengths?

·  What are your weaknesses?

·  What do you know about us?

·  What will you bring to this company?

·  Tell us about your interests.

·  What would your friends/colleagues say are your strengths and/or weaknesses?

·  How do you think that your career is progressing?

Some questions to ask at interview

·  How will I fit into the team?

·  To whom would I be reporting?

·  What are the challenges facing your company?

·  Does the company have a record of promoting from within?

·  Why has this position become vacant?

·  How will you encourage/support me in my studies?

·  When would you like me to start (if I get the job)?!

Competency Questions

Competency based questions are those which ask you to demonstrate, through your own experience, your skills or attributes which match those defined for the new role.

Some, although few, companies use formal structured competency based interviews in which you are asked a question and given time to consider your answer. There may even be two interviewers; one conducting the questions and one making notes. Most commonly though, competency based questions will be introduced as part of a conventional biographical interview.

Examples of competency-based questions

·  Can you give us an example of when you have had to work to tight deadlines in your current role and how you dealt with it?

·  Give an example of a project you have undertaken and how you managed it.

·  Surveying roles always include some routine and mundane elements that require attention to detail. Can you demonstrate, through experience in your working career, your ability to cope with these important elements of the job?

·  Like most busy departments, we sometimes face stressful situations. Can you give an example of when you have had to cope with stress, in a working or social context, and how you dealt with it?

·  In most businesses the only thing that does not change is the need to change. Please give an example of where you have had to deal with change in your working career and how you dealt with it.

·  One of the key aspects of this role is managing people. Please give us an example of where you have had to deal with a problem with a member of your team and how you solved it.

·  Everybody has to deal with disappointment, or even failure, occasionally in his or her career. Can you give an example and tell us how you dealt with and what you learnt from it?

 Researching the Company and Industry

Find out about the Company, the industry and the position you are after. This can be done by the obvious methods of journals and the internet but to get a real understanding of the Company and its culture, attend the Milk rounds and Career Fairs and talk to the people who already work for the company; talk to friends/family or those already working in the Surveying profession. This will help you determine if the company, its culture and way of working is right for you.

Completing the Application Form

·  Keep your responses brief and to the point because there is only limited amount of space available for your answers. Keep to the point and don’t ramble.

·  Avoid bad email habits, poor spelling, grammar and slang or abbreviations. Remember the message from school when sitting exams – read the instructions carefully before you start.

·  Always print off a copy of your final application before submitting it, so to proof read it. Ask family members or friends to check over it, as a fresh pair of eyes will be able to pick up any errors or bad grammar.

·  Review your application as part of your interview preparation as some of your answers or points may be referred to in your interview.

·  Finally when you have completed your application, read it back and ask yourself the question “if this application was submitted to me, as an employer, would I want to see this person”?

·  Read the Company profile and literature as there are key words within the details that the employer expects you to use. For example, someone who has the ability to work in a team and works on their own initiative. Give appropriate examples of when you last worked in a team and worked on your own. Use the key words.

Accepting an offer is more than just saying ‘Yes’

First you should agree to terms verbally. By offering you a position, the employer is acknowledging that you can contribute to his firm. Avoid letting gratitude carry you away and so settle for less than you might be able to negotiate in relation to salary and conditions.

Few people like to talk about money. But, to avoid disappointment in the written offer, you should look to agree financial terms prior to having them put in writing. To do this, it is best to get all non–contentious elements out of the way first. Are all other terms of the job satisfactory and as they have been described? Is career progression defined and acceptable to you? Once the field is clear, the subject of money can be raised, first in terms of an approximate figure and then more specifically. Before the session is ended, you should have agreed upon a figure that commits both you and the employer. It is all too easy for either party to lose face at this stage and for the entire negotiation to break down. Consider the employer’s viewpoint and take care.

Ask to see the offer confirmed in writing and establish that you expect the employer to refrain from taking up references until you have accepted. References should be no more than double–checking a decision already taken and the employer ought not to prejudice your current situation unnecessarily. In some firms, an offer will be contingent upon either satisfactory references, or the results of a medical examination, or both. You must warn your referees that they will be contacted and by whom. Also, it is wise to confirm what they will say (you may want to offer an alternative referee). Make sure you know about and agree to those conditions in advance. You could otherwise find that you have resigned one post, only to have another fall through