At the interview

•Make sure you arrive about ten minutes early

•Shake hands with interview panel members when you enter the room

•Make eye contact and establish rapport with the selection panel members

•Maintain good posture

•Remember to smile

 

Responding to questions

•Take time to answer the questions.  It is okay to pause for a moment to think about your response

•Respond to questions with enthusiasm

•You can take notes with you in case you need to prompt your memory, but don’t read them word for word

•Your responses should be “I” statements; avoid the use of “we”

•Avoid generic statements like I am a good team player and have excellent communication skills

•Demonstrate how you meet the criteria by providing multiple examples for each question

•Try to use different examples for each question if possible

•As with the key selection criteria, use the STAR format to respond to questions

 

Close of the interview

•Ask the panel some questions at the end of the interview.  At this stage avoid questions about salary.  Some example questions include:

-What challenges might I experience in this position?

-What would you like the new employee to bring to this position?

-What changes or improvements would you like to see in this position?

-How will you evaluate my performance in the first 3-6 months?

-What are the prospects for growth and advancement?

-How do you typically orient new people to the department and organisation?

-What do you see are the key focus areas for the department/organisation at this time?

•Thank the selection panel for their time at the end of the interview

 

After the interview

•Send the selection panel an email to thank them for their time

•Reflect on the interview and what you did well and what you could improve upon – write it down as this will help for your next interview

•Call the chair of the selection panel for feedback within about two weeks of the interview