Common interview questions basic Interview Questions I "Tell me a little about yourself."

"If I were to redo college again, I don’t think I would change my major. I liked the fact that I majored in Business and I believe it will help me with my career. I’m pretty good with the computer, but I would like to have taken more computer classes. Because technology is growing so quickly, I think I would have benefited from having a deeper understanding in computers."

This answer demonstrates a good choice in the beginning. I included the portion about computers because they want to see something you would have done differently. And making the comment about computers shows the interviewer your understanding about technology to some degree. But don’t say this answer without first stating that you are pretty good with the computer.

4."What course did you like the most?"
"What was your favorite subject?"

When you answer this question, use a subject that helped you become a better person or a better worker. Although this question is asking for you opinion and there is no wrong answer, you should take advantage of this question by showing your strengths.

"I really enjoyed an English writing class I took. This class taught me to write more clearly and concisely."

"My favorite subject was Physics. It really helped my logic abilities and I use this knowledge to solve problems in a variety of ways."

"There was a speech class I took that I really enjoyed. It helped me to speak in groups better and I learned to speak professionally in front of an audience."

"My favorite subject was applied science. I really enjoyed learning different ways of applying science into ordinary things."

Long Answer

"I really enjoyed majoring in electrical engineering and it really helped me to prepare for my career, but the class I enjoyed the most is probably a couple of psychology classes I took. Although it didn’t help me in any technical way, I learned a little bit about human behavior and learned how the brain works. I started to understand the reasons for my strengths and weakness instead of just knowing them. Also, it helped me to understand people who are different than me."

This is a simple answer but a very good one. An engineer is mostly technical and they might lack skills in human interaction. So an engineer saying their favorite course was psychology demonstrates that this person has both technical skills and the ability to work with others better. It lists several good examples such as understanding both strengths and weakness along with understanding different people.

5."What course did you like the least?"
"What course did you struggle in the most?"

This is an easier answer because you don’t have to show off your strength here. All you have to do is make sure you don’t pick a subject that relates to your job. It is also safer to pick something that most people do not enjoy. Finally, picking something that you are not good at is acceptable if it is not a skill required on the job. My long example will be about a drama class.

"I didn’t enjoy history that much. It wasn’t that difficult, but it didn’t allow me to think creatively. Most of the classes I took were about memorizing dates and facts. So history is my least favorite subject."

"I struggled in a music class the most. I really enjoy listening to music so I tried to learn a little about it. But it was a disaster. My tone was off and I couldn’t tell if something was flat or not."

"My least favorite class was probably poetry. During that course I struggled writing a real poem. I realized I am not a poet."

"I disliked my geography class. It wasn’t difficult, but I simply didn’t find it very interesting."

Long Answer

"For me, I had a tough time in my drama class. I didn’t realize that I was a terrible actor. I didn’t think it would be that hard, but week after week, my instructor would point out problem after problem. He gave me a B, but I think it was because of my effort, not because of my abilities. I say this because when I saw myself on video, oh my gosh, it was terrible."

You are putting yourself down a lot here, but in this example it is actually good. Interviewers are worried that a person who can act well will be able to lie about many things during the interview. A person without acting skills will not be able to hide automatic body gestures that the interviewer is looking at. Also, this answer is good because it shows that this person never gives up and puts in a lot of effort.
6."How will your performance in your worst class affect your performance on this job?"
This question is another opportunity to show many good traits. You can display traits such as endurance, effort, and willingness to work on things you don’t like. This is very important because during your career, you will have to do many boring things. This long answer will display that you are a person that will do good at any task.

Short Answers

"No matter if I liked the class or not, I always tried my hardest. As a result, the lowest grade I ever received was a B. So I’m confident that I’ll be good at any task."

"I had one class where I really struggled. I asked more questions and studied more. As a result, I did very well. So even if I’m struggling, I feel I can find ways to do a good job by putting in more effort."

"My performance in my worst class will positively impact my performance on this job. I struggled with a logic class, but I studied harder, researched more information, and I never gave up."

"I remember I did terrible in my astrology class. I didn’t have much interest in the subject and I really didn’t know that I would struggle in it. I thought about just doing enough to make it through, but I decided that I was going to put some effort into it. I continually asked questions and studied more for this class than I did in others. I got a B for all my effort, but at least I didn’t give up and I kept pushing forward. So now I know that whether I like a project or not, I’ll do the best I can because it’s my responsibility."

This answer shows maturity and the interviewer should like it.
7."How would your best friend describe you?"

This answer can be short. Use key words that show how you are a good fit for this position. If it if a salesperson, mention things like, an easy person to talk, good personality, and dependable as the traits. But if it is for a manager position, then you can use different words like organized, helpful, considerate, and smart. So it all depends on the position. Most people will be honest and say what the best friend will actually say, but it is more effective to choose the words so it relates to the job. Here are some examples.

"Oh, let’s see… I think my best friend would describe me as honest, detailed, and very organized."

"I think my best friend would say that I’m very responsible. Whenever our group of friends had to coordinate an activity, they always relied on me."

"My best friend would probably say that I’m warm, friendly, and understanding."

It doesn’t have to be long, but don’t blurt out the answer without thinking. Then it makes it appear as you are thinking about it instead of saying an answer you already prepared.

Same thing here, but you can’t choose any words. You have to choose one that relates to school work. Select words that are general and that applies to most types of jobs.

"I think my professor would describe me as a great team member and consistent in my school work."

This is good because school has group projects. It shows team work experience and it also mentions consistency.

"My professor told me one time that I was like a fireball. I always had a good attitude that positively affected other students in group activities."

"My professor always told me that I was very creative. He liked my papers because it showed that I really thought about the problem and tackled it in a different way."

You can use more personal words here because your mother knows you in a different way.

"I think my mother would say I’m very friendly because I had a lot of friends and that I’m very focused because I always finish what I start."

This answer is showing two different types of characteristics. One is more personal and one is a good work trait. It also shows reasons by saying because… Overall, these types of questions are not that significant and a short answer that is good should be fine.

"Since I was the oldest out of three, I think my mother would describe me as responsible and someone who is looked to for answers."

"My mother told me I was always smart. When I was younger, she was surprised to see A’s in my report card. After awhile, she would be surprised when I didn’t receive an A."

In the United States the statistics for a person changing career paths is very high. It’s something like an average person will change careers five times. Changing jobs is one thing, but completely changing careers is a big move. So this question is not that significant. If everyone worked in the industry as their major, then this question is more important, but because everyone changes jobs frequently, it’s no big deal. You just have to use this opportunity to show them how much you like the current industry you are in.

"I majored in English because I liked to write. Because I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do, I majored in something I was very interested in. After working for a year on the marketing team, I realized that this is what I want to be doing."

"I majored in History, but during my senior year, I had an opportunity to work at an accounting firm. After seeing first hand at the work they were doing, I really wanted to become an accountant."

"I was planning on going to Dental School so I majored in Biology. After working with computers, I realized how interesting and challenging it was. So I studied computers on the side because I wanted a career working with computers."

"I enjoyed majoring in psychology, but I didn’t want to become a psychologist. I just found the subject to be very interesting. It also helped me to understand a wide variety of things. For my career, I wanted to be doing something I was good at and what I enjoyed doing. I had an opportunity to work at a smaller logistics company as an administrative assistant. During that time period they were short handed and I actually got to do some planning and organizing for one of the smaller clients. I didn’t lead anything, but I realized how much I enjoyed the work. Ever since then, I’ve been studying up on planning, logistics, and business."

This example does three things. It explains why this person is not going into a field related to their major, it is explaining why this person is going into logistics, and finally it is showing passion for the industry and a desire to learn. Since you are probably competing against people who majored in logistics, you need to make an impression with your answer. So you should definitely show enthusiasm here.
11."During college, how did you spend your summer vacations?"

The best answer is to have spent your summer productively such as working as an intern. Even if you did only one intern, the interviewer will like that. The worst answer is to say you didn’t do anything. Or say you worked in the supermarket to get some money so you can party at night. So think of something productive, and if you don’t have an intern experience, you can say that you spent your summer learning something new.

"My last two summers of college, I did an intern for a consulting firm. I gained experience working on office solutions for large companies."

"I have a strong interest in traveling, so I used my summer to travel. I went to Europe, Australia, Brazil, and China."

"Every summer, I took extra English classes. I also took some drawing classes because it’s one of my hobbies. So I spent my summers learning more things."

"My first two summers, I had to work to save money for tuition. But after saving enough money, I had a free summer. I actually ended up taking some computer classes to prepare myself for the business world. These days it’s a requirement to know computers, so I prepared for that."

Although I said don’t mention useless work, it is ok if it is for tuition. It shows financial responsibility. Finally, taking some computer classes for the summer is a great way to prepare for work life and it was a summer well spent. Make sure you have an answer that shows productivity.
12."What did you learn from your internship?"

If you worked as an intern, your resume will say it. Your resume should also include a list of what you learned during your internship. You can answer this question repeating what was on the resume, but using full sentence and with more enthusiasm.

"In my final summer vacation, I had the opportunity to work as an intern for a public accounting firm. It was only for 3 months, but I learned a lot about performing quarterly tax services for small and medium size companies. I also learned to deal with time pressure and learned how to prioritize work to be more efficient. It was a great experience that I know will help me when I start my career."

13."Did you do any internships?"

You should be asked this question if your resume doesn’t have any internship experience, or if they didn’t look at your resume. If you do have internship experience, then you can answer, that you do and say the same answer as the one provided with the question, what did you learn from your internship. But if you don’t, you can simply answer that you didn’t do any internship but give a good excuse.

"Yes. I did two internships. The first internship was for Johnson and Johnson. I worked in the distribution team, and my second internship was for Starbucks. At Starbucks, I had the opportunity to work on overseas venture."

"I did one internship for IBM. I was on the development team creating applications for business solutions."

"I love to travel and I realized that when I start my career, I won’t be able to travel for long durations. So I used my summers to travel a lot. I spent one summer in Europe for 2 months. I spent another summer traveling between China and some South East Asian countries, and finally, I took a road trip through the United States."

Traveling is not a bad answer. It is not as good as doing an internship, but definitely better than nothing. It is definitely not a wasted summer. Also, if the internship was useless and generic, then the interviewer will not remember this answer as a good answer. So it didn’t do any good. In this case, traveling could be better because the example I gave is significant and interesting. Something different always stands out more.

This is another type of question that has no wrong or right answer. That means you need to make your answer a little more creative so it stands out.

"I would love to learn more about auditing. As a tax accountant, I primarily work on tax. But I like all aspects of accounting and I think auditing would be very interesting."

"The next thing I want to learn is how to make web pages. I think this skill can be used anywhere. If I want a personal web site, I would make it myself. And if my group at work needed an internal web site to organize activities, I would be able to make one."

"I want to learn the different ways to market globally. In my marketing team, I learned everything about marketing on a local level, but I would really love to learn about marketing to different countries."

"I use the computer on a daily basis and know how to use everything I need to be good at my job. But sometimes something goes wrong with the computer for no reason at all. Because I’m not a computer engineer, I have no idea what’s going on. Basically, I have to wait for a technician to fix it. During these times, I want to kick the computer out of frustration. Mostly, it ends up being a problem I could have fixed if I new the details of how a computer works. So even though it’s not in my job description, I want to know how to fix computers at a basic level."

I heard from many people who don’t know computers that well that they get frustrated with them. So wanting to kick the computer is understandable and it is a little humorous. Wanting to learn a little more about the computer is always good and it would definitely help out with future work by not having to wait for a technician.

Work Related Interview Questions I

1."If you could start your career over again, what would you do differently?"

This depends on several factors. If your university major is different than your career choice, then you could answer that you would choose a different major to prepare you for your choice in career. Or if you started at a small company and didn’t have many opportunities, you can say that you would have started at a larger company. This is not a significant question so a regular answer should suffice.

"I started my career at a small company. I feel I would have benefited more if I started at a larger company. A large company usually provides training that I didn’t receive, so I would like to have started my career in a larger company."

"I didn’t know how much I liked working with computers until I finished college. If I had known earlier, I would have liked to have worked with computers earlier in my career."

Long Answer

"Well, I majored in chemistry and now I’m working in the marketing department for a telecommunications company. I had a lot to learn in the beginning, but I quickly learned what I needed to know to be an effective member of the marketing team. However, I always felt that if I majored in business or marketing, I would have started off with a better foundation. I’m great at what I do, but if I could start over again, I would probably choose to have majored in business administration."

This is an acceptable answer because the answer doesn’t display any problems in the work history. Many people change careers or go into a field that is unrelated to their major. This is common, so answering this question using this answer is common. If you don’t want to use this common answer, then thinking about a scenario early in your work career that you would have done differently might be more effective.

2."During your performance reviews, what criticism do you hear the most?"

This question is primarily for people with work experience. If you are fresh out of college, then you will not be asked this question. The answer to this question should not disclose any real faults. Instead, try to think of something that doesn’t sound too bad. Here is what I hear at my reviews and this is how I would answer this question.

"I heard that I need to be proactive. I always perform at an exceptional level, but I didn’t volunteer for additional work. I wasn’t accustomed to it so I’m glad that I received this criticism. I now practice keeping an eye out for additional projects I can take on."

"During my review, my manager told me to voice my opinions more frequently. He always liked my suggestions when I told him, but in group meetings, I usually let my manager speak. Now, I feel more confident that I can suggest my ideas in groups."

"My manager told me that I should send more updates. He told me I did my projects well, and that I was never late, but he would like more updates so he can report to his manager."

"I actually like to receive criticism because it gives me information on how to improve. But the most common criticism I hear is hard to correct because I disagree with the comment. I’m told that I should be more visible. I’m told that I do great work and I do a lot of extra work, but in a large organization, it’s important to visibly stand out. I’m not a person who likes to be secluded in the office. I like to go out and collaborate, I like to work with people, and I email my co-workers with valuable information that will help with their job, so I can’t say I agree, but I always try to be more visible."

This criticism is actually a common comment used by managers if they can’t give you a good review score but have nothing bad to say about you. In large organizations, you are measured against your peers. That means if you do well, you might get a bad review score because everyone did better. Likewise, if you are just mediocre and everyone else is terrible, you will get a good review score. Because of this system, I’m regularly told to be more visible. So when I answer this question, I make sure to back up my disagreement with examples of being visible.

3."Tell me about your last three positions?"

This type of question is generally asked by lazy interviewers who want to hear you talk for a while. A better question would be to separate the three positions and ask them one by one. But some people will ask this question, so you should definitely prepare for it. You can use this as your advantage. If you don’t have many good things to say about your second position, you can briefly comment on it and spend more time talking about the other two positions. I’ll give an example in the long answer, but here are some short answers first.

"I’ve only had one position. In my last position, I worked as a marketing analyst for South American markets. I worked closely with partners in Chile and Argentina."

"I’ve only held two different positions. In my first job, I was a lab manager for ABC Software company. I monitored 50 computers and performed diagnostics regularly. In my last position, I was a network engineer fixing network problems and trouble shooting bottlenecks."

"I worked as a translator for the King County court house. Afterwards, I worked as a translator for hospitals. My last position was translating help documents for a software company."

"The first position I held was working at Radio Shack as a salesman. I learned a great deal about retail stores, about sales and working with customers, and became more independent. I thought I learned a great deal and enjoyed my work, but I wanted to experience different types of work. So I started working for Verizon. I had an office job and did a variety of different tasks such as planning, data entry, and organizing projects. I learned a little about the office setting, but I wanted to get back into sales. So I was given an opportunity to sell cell phones for Verizon at a retail store. I used my past sales experience and worked hard becoming one of the top sales person three years in a row. I’ve been there ever since."

I haven’t worked at three different positions, so I just made one up. The question is pretty general, so the answer is pretty general. It does emphasize sales skill and coming back to the type of work that this person enjoys. But you should think of something that is related to the position you are interviewing for. Only thing you should be concerned about it clearly explaining your past three positions, what you learned there, and if you did something notable, include that as well.

4."Tell me about your last position? What did you do and how did you do it? Include the people you worked for and the people you worked with."

This question is a little better than asking about the last three positions. It is more direct and focuses on getting more information about the last position. You might not get this question with so much detail. It might just be, "Tell me about your last position." But you can use the other questions as a guide when answering this question. You should mention what you did, how you did it, how you work in a team, what you learned, how well you did your job, etc.