Having made what preparations you can, nothing remains but to make as good an impression as possible on the day.
This is best achieved by the following:

• Dress appropriately. Extremes in fashion or very casual clothes should generally be avoided. Make sure your overall appearance is neat and clean-employers look at these details.
• Watch out for fidgetting, twitching and other nervous mannerisms.
• Be punctual. If unavoidably detained, ring and let the employer know and apologise.
• Smoke only if invited to do so.
• Bring a copy of your application to the interview and refer to it if necessary
• Listen carefully to what the interviewer asks and answer clearly and thoughtfully. Some questions may appear irrelevant yet reveal much about you as a person.
• Make sure you fully understand the question and query any point about which you may be doubtful.
• If you are being interviewed by a panel of two or more persons, try to respond to each person on an individual basis.
• Ask questions, as this is regarded as an important aspect of the interview by most employers.

Interviews come in a variety of formats. They may be one interviewer or a board. The interviewer may be a personnel or recruitment officer, or a specialist from the area where the vacancy has arisen. Your careers service, or Job Network Office may have videos on interviews showing some of the formats and giving advice on what interviewers expect. Some careers services are able to set up practice interview sessions.

There are basic facts about which you should usually inquire at an employment interview. You may, of course, decide to defer asking some of them until you are called back for a second interview or offered the job. Basic facts you will want to know include:

• Adequate information about the work you would be doing.
• Prospects and career development.
• Opportunities for further study, including on-the-job training and salary.
• Leave entitlements.
• Superannuation and other benefits.

However, make it clear that you are more interested in the actual work of the position than in the benefits it provides.

Tags: Jobs