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Job Interviews

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killa_cam
Posts: 13143 - Karma: 15
Anybody got any good tips about job interviewing. I've had a 5 job interviews in the past 6 weeks or so, and no offers yet. I nailed one interview but ranked second. I am pretty knowledgeable in the technical aspects of this stuff, but I always hate the more personal questions.

What do you guys have as far as input towards questions like:

Tell me about yourself. (possibly the worst interview question)
What is your biggest weakness?
Why are you the right one for this job?

Thanks!
May 7 2007 5:39PM
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Capt.Flannel
Posts: 10928 - Karma: 36
My interview today consisted of:

So, do you play golf? - yep
Any good? - Nope
Enjoy it though? - yes sir
Good, you've got the job.


but for real, just seem intelligent, act interested, don't look at their boobs and be honest with the questions. It's easy to rehearse what you're going to say for the 'tell us about yourself' or 'why do you want to work here' but I've found that true sincerity in conversation works best.
May 7 2007 5:41PM
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Skipig25
Posts: 10729 - Karma: 256
ooh, I had a job interview and the guy that was interviewing me had his right arm amputated at the elbow.

well I didn't know that beforehand, and I went to shake his hand. ooh, awkward. he said that's okay tho, it happens a lot
May 7 2007 5:42PM
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killabees
Posts: 8558 - Karma: 494

god your lucky

May 7 2007 6:05PM
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UNREAL
Posts: 3989 - Karma: 23
word
May 7 2007 6:06PM
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DDrem.
Posts: 3552 - Karma: 24
tell them you have almost 3600 posts on NS
May 7 2007 6:07PM
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killabees
Posts: 8558 - Karma: 494

thats what i say when i meet a lady

May 7 2007 6:09PM
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killa_cam
Posts: 13143 - Karma: 15
Yeah, I'm gonna wear a dark blue suit to my next one.

It's on Wednesday for Canada Revenue Agency in Ottawa.

So far I've done a shitload of research into the technologies and concepts that I think are important. It's somewhat hard to get the most important aspects out of the 2.5 page job description however.
May 7 2007 6:40PM
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dman1260
Posts: 899 - Karma: 13
if the ask what your biggest weakness is, tell them that you are too much of a perfectionist.  It works wonders.  Tell them at times it causes you to stress, but it also allows you to perform excellent work and create an excellent product.  They eat that stuff up like crazy.  Also search the internet for some tips, there are a lot of good webpages out there. 
May 7 2007 6:43PM
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killa_cam
Posts: 13143 - Karma: 15
bump
May 7 2007 10:27PM
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smuggsVT
Posts: 2145 - Karma: 19
dont try to act fake, tell them what they want to hear though
May 7 2007 10:50PM
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Mat.
Posts: 7167 - Karma: 94
when they ask you those personal questions like tell us about yourself, they dont want to hear about your personal life like "i like hockey" or some shit. they want to know about your work experience/professional life and how you can relate it to the type of job your applying for.

so even if you've had no real experience in the that work area just talk about your course and shit youve done and enjoyed blah blah blah.
May 7 2007 11:33PM
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keystoner1
Posts: 2143 - Karma: 11
sounds liek my kidn of interview
May 7 2007 11:34PM
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killa_cam
Posts: 13143 - Karma: 15
bump
May 8 2007 9:30AM
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*steph*
Posts: 729 - Karma: 45
Can you give a little bit more background about yourself and what type of jobs you are interviewing for? I can definitely tell that you are putting effort into this and really care about finding a good job, but knowing more about you and what you're hoping to do might help us give some more specific advice.

I'll try to help based on what's been said so far though...

Tell me about yourself. (possibly the worst interview question)
Don't be too intimidated by this question. Look at it as an opportunity to share your passions, past experiences, and aspirations with the interviewer. The interviewer is trying to get to know you personally, possibly on a different level from what you express through your ability to answer technical questions.

What is your biggest weakness?
Be honest with this answer, but turn it around and use it in a positive context. Talk about how you are genuinely working to improve in the area where your weakness lies, and talk about what how you are making progress.

Why are you the right one for this job?
Talk about your strengths, but not just ones that may be common to other candidate. Show where you are unique and talk about areas where you believe you could really excel.


Hope that all helps!
May 8 2007 11:26AM
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Gnarzecki
Posts: 182 - Karma: 10
i have alot of trouble with the boob part. even if its a guy.
May 8 2007 11:34AM
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BeerGoggles
Posts: 712 - Karma: 11
actualy a lot of them do wanna know random stuff like that. they(I would assume) have your CV right in front of them and can see where you worked. Theyll also normaly just simply ask questions relating to your past job experience. I agree tell me about yourself is one of the harder ones, I usualy that about my education a bit. When its appropriate I mention some sports I was in that demanded a lot of discipline/work ethic.
Say sometimes they may ask something like give an example of a tough situation you worked through and managed to achieve success. I normaly just bring up of how I used to swim everymorning at 6am before school, but at the end of the season became provincial champion. You can use work examples too, its just hard to think on the spot sometimes.
May 8 2007 11:37AM
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tattooed-n-evil
Posts: 246 - Karma: 19
arrive early, being punctual is huge.  It was mentioned before about dressing up for the job, totaly true.  You only get one first impression, make it a good one.  Make sure you have a good handshake, not something super weak, shake their hand right away and then again before you leave.  This may sound stupid but bring your own pen with you, people look stupid asking for a pen to fill shit out.  Above all try to avoid slang words/phrases
May 8 2007 4:25PM
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killa_cam
Posts: 13143 - Karma: 15
Thanks for the replies
bump

My technical skills related to jobs include materials testing and design, computer use and programming, calculus/algebra/statistics, thermodynamics and project management skills.

The jobs I have been mainly applying to are related to project management, like one was for risk analysis on marine power systems. In general I'm trying to get a job in manufacturing, research or project management this summer.

The next interview is have is for communications management and technology (ie web) at the Canada Revenue Agency.

Good idea on bringing a pen.
May 9 2007 12:00AM
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Bardolph
Posts: 719 - Karma: 11
You should look nice like in a shit and tie and not like you just got off the mountain. Thats what i did and i got the job
May 9 2007 10:31AM
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parkchilla
Posts: 445 - Karma: 12
walk in like you own the place, dont worry to much about the right words to say, its all about the body language
May 9 2007 1:07PM
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