10 Things Not to Do at a Graduate Job Interview
Graduate job hunting is hard. Making the transition from full-time education to full-time employment can be a difficult move to make and with competition for graduate jobs increasing, graduates you really cannot afford to fail at the job interview stage.
Monday 1st August, 2011: Leading graduate recruitment and careers advice website, Gradplus.com, highlights 10 things you should never do at a graduate job interview.
Nick Godwin from Gradplus.com explains;
“Graduate job interviews are proving increasingly important and could be the difference between landing your dream graduate opportunity, or not. We’ve put together these ten tips on what you should not do at a graduate job interview to try and help prospective graduates make it through the job interview stage and into full-time employment.”
“In addition, we’ve also put together a great competition looking for graduates to share with us their job interview tips for a chance to win an iPad 2 and specialist careers advice worth £1,000. All you have to do to enter is submit a short video clip or photograph and text sharing your tips on what NOT to do at a job interview. Our aim is to build up a great database of invaluable tips graduates can use when preparing for job interviews.”
To enter the competition visit: www.mygraduatejob.com now.
10 Things Not to Do at a Graduate Job Interview
Don't be late for the interview – this is a big no, no and something that you should avoid at all costs. It will put the interview off to a bad start and you are unlikely to be able to recover from there.
Don't show too much concern about rapid advancement. Graduate jobs are starting positions, often at the bottom of the chain of command within a company. It’s natural that you’ll want to progress, but the ability to knuckle down and do the job in hand will be important, too.
Don't over-emphasise money. We all want money, that’s why we go to work, but asking about money too much will not endear you to a prospective employee.
Don't show any reservations you may have about the role/company. You can always turn down second interviews and job offers after you have had time to appraise your concerns in the cold light of day.
Don't demonstrate low moral standards. So don’t share with a prospective future boss any embarrassing university tales of drunken nights out.
Don't leave your mobile phone on during the interview. Turn it off, don’t look at it during the interview: you can play around with it all day after the interview.
Don't say negative things about previous employers. If you say something bad about a past job it will immediately trigger something in the interviewers mind about your attitude to work: in a negative way. If you can’t think of anything positive to say, simply commenting that that role wasn’t quite right for you, or you are looking for a new challenge, is absolutely fine.
Don't show lack of career planning - no goals or purpose could convey the impression you're merely shopping around or only want the graduate job for a short time.
Don’t Be Someone Else. Everyone has a job interview persona, but it’s important not to over-do it and not reveal any of yourself to a future employer. After all this is the company – and the people – you could end up working with. Reveal your personality to them, albeit the professional and courteous part of it.
Don’t Be Afraid to Ask Questions. Many graduates forget that job interviews are a two way interview. They may be interviewing you for a job, but remember, you are interviewing them, too. So don’t be shy, ask them about the job, the company and the people you will be working with. Questions show that you have been listening and are interested in the role.
Nick Godwin is available for interview to discuss the graduate jobs market, as well as to offer graduates recruitment advice.
About Gradplus.com
Launched in 2004, the team at gradplus.com understand the recruitment process, the graduate marketplace and the needs of both graduates and recruiting companies from an internet job board. We have one very simple aim, to match up as many of the UK's graduate population to the most suitable graduate careers as possible.
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