Job Interview - Advice Please!

Joe Barraclough

I have a job interview on Tuseday for an admin/accounts assistant role, i haven't got any work experience, anyone got any tips for the interview?

Any help would be greatly appreciated

*Jo

Hi,

By not having any work experience do you mean with accounts or that you have never had a job before?

Try and think of previous experience that you can relate to accounts/admin role. E.g. if you have previously worked at mcdonalds you might have till experience which demonstrates your mathmatical skills (giving change and taking money),your honesty (you worked in a position of trust handling money) & your skills using technology. You may have made up the chicken burgers following set company guidelines and instructions. You may of had to wear a uniform and maintain a neat appearance which shows you ensure you are dressed appropriately for the situation. Can you tell my daughters first job was at Macdonalds lol.

Try and turn any experience whether at clubs or school/college or work into positive skills that you have.

Im sure other people will have other suggestions.

Best of luck with the interview.

Jo

totleyblade

I'd agree with Jo about racking your brains to think of any 'life' experiences. If not directly involved with accounts, examples which particularly reflect a positive outlook would be useful.
I assume they have seen your CV and would already realise that you haven't any experience?
I wouldn't think they would waste their time at an interview if this were to rule you out altogether.
Don't forget, you would arrive fresh and without any bad habits if they are looking to train someone in their procedures etc from scratch.
Be positive, do your homework and research the company and bring it up in the interview, and don't be afraid to ask questions.

StuartW

To these great tips I'd add:

- Project confidence - you'll be nervous, that's natural. But smile when you meet the interviewer, and look them in the eye when you shake hands. It really does make a difference when it comes to making a first impression!

- I'd echo demonstrating your life experience and making them see that you have held responsibilities before, and that you've done so in a trustworthy and reliable manner. Maybe you've only ever done a paper round, but if you never missed a day of getting up at 6am and your float always balanced, that shows that you took the responsibility seriously.

- Have a set of short stories/anecdotes that you can bring out in response to questions like "Have you ever been faced with a decision when you weren't sure what the right thing to do was?"; or "How do you manage when you have more work than you can manage?" Think about these kinds of questions now, write down your anecdotes and then write them down again, in a shortened form, on another sheet of paper. This is how you learn other things, like formulae and so on - and it works in this instance too.

Here are a couple of useful articles on what kind of job interview questions you might get:

http://www.jobinterviewquestions.org/questions/interview-questions.asp

http://jobsearch.about.com/od/interviewquestionsanswers/a/interviewquest.htm

- Don't be afraid to ask a question or two at the end. It might be to ask how long the interviewer has worked at the firm; or something more general such as asking what tips they would give to someone at your point in your career journey. Asking questions shows you're interested and engaged in the conversation you're having - and while you're be answering most of the questions, the best interviews tend to be ones that have a little back and forth.

- Dress well, clip and clean your fingernails, make sure you're on time and ensure you're able to demonstrate that you've researched the firm - and maybe even the interviewer (they may have a profile on LinkedIn you can snoop at to see their career history).

- Finally - get your preparation done before the night before the interview, and spend the evening doing something enjoyable and relaxing so you'll be more likely to sleep well. Watch a film, read a book, go for a run - whatever it is that helps you unwind.

Best of luck - let us know how you get on!