The end of the school year is approaching us fast which means lots of interviews for jobs and internships. Interviewing during normal times can be stressful enough. That’s why we wanted to give some helpful advice. Below we give a few tips on interviewing and a few more on doing it remotely.

Prepare

• Make sure you do your research on the company. Looking at their website is good, but finding recent news articles, blog posts and client work is better and will allow you to converse with an interviewer about what is happening in the organization.
  
• Reach out to employees. People generally want to help young students who are looking to start out at a brand. Connect with employees on LinkedIn and ask to do an informational interview or just message them any questions you have.
  
• Get used to talking about yourself. This is something a lot of people struggle with so have a friend or family member go through your resume and ask questions to let you practice.
  

Virtual tip: Find the best spot in your house for doing the interview with a strong Internet connection and clean background. Tell everyone in your house when the interview is going to be so they can plan to be doing quieter activities. 

Be Professional

• Dress well in business casual attire. Do not wear flashy jewelry or anything that will draw the interviewer’s attention away from focusing on your skills and experience. 
  
• If the interview is in person, print out and bring copies of your resume. Even if you have already submitted your resume to them, bring an extra. 
  
• Be polite and professional with everyone you interact with in the office. The front desk people will tell the interviewer if you were rude or on your phone the entire time. Do not let your behavior outside of the interview ruin your chances at a job. 
  

Virtual tip: While you should always be on the earlier side of on time for an interview, this is especially important for a remote interview. Make sure all of your technology is working by getting on the platform around 10 minutes early and checking that there are no problems with your connection, video or audio.

Questions

There are two types of questions in an interview: the ones they ask you and the ones you ask them. Obviously, the interview will start with your answers. A lot of the questions interviewers ask are pretty standard, so prepare good answers to the following and any other common ones you can think of:

• Describe yourself.
  
• How do you work in a team?
  
• What is a time you overcame a conflict with a team member?
  
• What are you most proud of?
  
• Industry specific questions
  

Then there is the point of the interview where the person you are talking with you asks, “Do you have any questions for me?” Always say yes and ask a question. This shows that you were engaged in the interview and put prior thought into the process before showing up. Some example questions you could ask are:

• What is the office culture here like?
  
• If I were hired, what would a normal day in the position look like?
  
• What is your favorite part of working here?
  

These tips are the basics to succeeding in an interview and we hope that no matter what role or position you are prepping for, this will help guide you throughout the process. Good luck and happy interviewing.