The job interview is one step away from the ultimate goal— landing the job! Whether virtual or in-person, an interview is your opportunity to show why you’re not only qualified for this particular job, but a great fit for the company as a whole.
Using the STAR Method
Because so much of the interview is based on performance, consider brainstorming several experiences to have on-hand using the STAR method to quickly and succinctly describe your skills:
S - Situation
Briefly describe the context for your anecdote.
T - Task
What was your project? What was your end goal?
A - Approach
Focus your anecdote on the approach you took, skills you used, and the way that your work benefited the team or solved a problem.
R - Result
What happened? Did you reach your desired goal? If so, how did you contribute to the success of the task? If not, what did you learn, and how would you approach the task differently?
Think about all of the experiences you’ve had, in the classroom and outside of it, as you develop your STAR stories. If you feel stuck, schedule an appointment with your Career Coach for some brainstorming.
Situation
During my internship last summer, I was responsible for blogging on my organization's website.
Task
I set a goal with my supervisor to increase web traffic by at least 5% by the end of the summer.
Action
I noticed through research that website traffic increased when we highlighted the work of our youth volunteers. So, I designed a new blog campaign highlighting these volunteers.
Result
The short campaign increased traffic by 18% and continues to be an essential the organization's storytelling strategy.
Practice Your Interview Skills
Big Interview is a great tool that allows you to practice responding to common interview questions, simulating an interview. You can record yourself answering questions and review your responses to find ways to up your interview game. If you want more feedback, you can share your responses with a mentor (or your Career Coach!). Your initial interviews will very likely be over the phone or video, so Big Interview is a great way to get comfortable responding to questions virtually. Get started with this step-by-step tutorial.
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