Top Tips - A guide to Interview Success

**Research the Organisation** - Find out about the company. Where are they? What do they do? How many people do they employ? Who are their competitors? This sort of information is usually readily available on websites, in the press or in company literature/accounts.

**Know the Job Specification** - What are they looking for in terms of skills, qualifications, experience and personality?

**Research Yourself** - You should be the world’s expert on you. Match your skills, qualifications, experience and personality to that of the job specification and try to think of examples that illustrate these. Think about what you could bring to the role and what you could offer the company.

**Be early** - aim to be ten minutes early. Know where you are going, and plan the route, find out bus and train times in advance.

**Dress appropriately** - play it safe, conservative dress (generally a suit) will usually be appropriate for most situations. What you wear can also be dependant on the type of company or interview you are attending, so make sure you know what is expected.

**Confident and polite** - confidence can play a big part in your success, so remember, you are interviewing the company as well. Always give a firm hand shake, keep good eye contact and smile.

Be honest and relevant - stick to the facts. Be clear and concise and only answer the question being asked. It is easy to get carried away and tell the interviewer everything about you, but if it’s not relevant, it probably won’t impress.

**Be enthusiastic** - enthusiasm can go a long way. You may not have all of the skills or experience they are looking for but if you show you are keen this will go in your favour and will make you stand out from the crowd.

**Personality** - Changing your personality for the interview is really another form of lying. You may get the job and find out you hate it because your real personality doesn’t fit in with that of your colleagues. You can never be 100% sure of the type of personality an employer is looking for, so play it safe. Be yourself.

**After the interview** - It is always a good idea at the end of your interview to ask one of the following questions.
How suitable do you think I would be for this position?
Do you have any reservations about me?
These will establish whether the interviewer has any doubts about your personality, skills or ability. Something you said earlier in the interview may have come out wrong. This gives you the opportunity to re-explain and redeem yourself.