Guide to Acing the Interview

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PURPOSE OF THE INTERVIEW(S)

What do employers (the interviewer) want to know?

Before the interview, an employer has already determined that you have met the qualifications (based on your

application materials) and has selected you from the pool of candidates to learn more about you. During the

interview, potential employers are trying to assess: Why should we hire you? Interviewers are looking for

someone who is qualified, communicates well (can speak articulately and clearly about their accomplishments),

is genuinely enthusiastic about the opportunity, and is a good “fit” (with the work culture).

What do you (the interviewee) want to know?

An interview is an opportunity for you to assess whether the position is a good fit for you - What does the work

involve? What is the work culture like? Does this position match your professional goals, values, skills, and

interests?

The key to successful interviewing is advance preparation and practice. You need to be able to discuss how your

skills and experience relate to the position and the value you can add.

PREPARING FOR A JOB INTERVIEW

Different types of interviews: There are different types of interviews. The preparation for all of them is similar

but if you can, you should find out the person(s) with whom you will be speaking. It may be helpful to know if

you are speaking with a Human Resources/Talent Acquisition Specialist (who may ask more general questions

about your qualifications) or a Hiring Manager (who may ask more technical/substantive questions).

Types of interviews include:

Standard Interviews

 Initial Screening (may be phone, skype or in person)

 Second or more/On-Site

Specialized Interviews

 Case Interviews

 Videoconference

 Group, Board or Panel

 All day on-site interviews with numerous individuals and groups

 Lunch

All interview preparation should include the following:

Do your research on company, field, and position. Learn about the company by reading news articles, websites,

and press releases. Consider reaching out to people you know who work or have worked at that company for an

inside perspective. You can also set up informational interviews with Harvard Chan alumni who have

connections to the company through Alumni Directory or LinkedIn. Having this background information will

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allow you to speak more intelligently about the company, frame your experiences through its lens, and

determine your fit. Additionally, be sure to stay current on industry news. Conduct a Google search on the

organization the day of the interview to learn of any new developments.

Know your resume. Review the resume you submitted as part of the application package and prepare to discuss

every aspect of your resume. Expect questions about your choice of activities, concentration, projects/thesis, or

professional experiences. Employers are interested in knowing how you’ve chosen to spend your time and

energy, and why. Help your interviewer get to know you. When answering “what and why” questions, expand

on your experiences and skills. Focus your responses on how they relate to the job for which you are

interviewing.

Practice answering interview questions. Prepare 2-3 examples to answer the same question themes (such as

leadership and teamwork) and practice answering these out loud. The goal of practicing how to respond to

interview questions is to help you assess if your explanations are clear and how well you connect your

experience to them. Use a strategy like the STAR format to structure your answers. Be sure to include specific

information/concrete examples about the experience. This will help you be more memorable to the interviewers

and will also serve to support your experience.

Situation: Give an example of a situation you were involved in that resulted in a positive outcome

Tasks: Describe what you had to accomplish

Actions: Talk about specific actions you took with strong action verbs. Mention tools and techniques and

clearly identify your contributions. This portion should take 60-70% of the answer.

Results: Discuss the results that followed

Our office offers InterviewStream service for students to practice interviews online (accessible through the

Career Advancement webpage, Career Resources, Interviewing). InterviewStream uses webcams to record you

answering interview questions and then allows you to playback your responses for self-evaluation. You can also

attend Interviewing workshops at Harvard Chan throughout the year. Lastly, career coaches can conduct mock

interviews during individual appointments.

Prepare questions to ask during the interview. These questions will help you obtain the information you need

to make an informed decision and show your interest in the company.

Below are some questions interviewers may ask and some ideas for questions you can ask at an interview:

General Questions

Note: When responding to each question, build a

subtle case for your ability to: solve problems, get

along well with diverse individuals, be successful,

and enjoy your work.

 Tell me about yourself.

 Why did you decide to go into the

________field?

 Why are you interested in this position?

 Why are you interested in this organization?

 What can you contribute to our organization?

 What are your greatest strengths?

 What are some of your weaknesses?

 What will be your greatest challenge in this

position?

 What do you know about our organization?

 What did you enjoy most/least about your last

position?

 What is your ultimate career goal?

 What other positions are you applying for?

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 What do you enjoy doing in your free time?

 What are your salary expectations? (Answer

this question by inquiring about the anticipated

salary range; do some homework so that if you

are pressed, you have a reasonable salary range

that is consistent with the market.)

 Tell me about an accomplishment of which you

are particularly proud.

 How would your past supervisor describe you?

 What skills do you have from your Harvard Chan

education that you can bring to this position?

 Tell me about any item on your resume/CV.

 How do you prefer to be supervised?

Behavior-Based or Situational Questions

These questions are asked to get a sense of how

you would react in specific scenario similar to one

that you might face when you are on the job.

Note: Prepare about five or six stories that you can

use during interviews that highlight prior successes

as well as challenges. Use the STAR method to

prepare: describe the Situation, describe the Task or

Action you took, and end with the Results (which

should always be positive (if there were challenges,

be prepared to discuss how you overcame the

challenges).

 Describe a time when you and your

professor/advisor/supervisor/co-worker had a

difference of opinion and how you handled the

situation.

 Describe the organizational system that you use

to juggle multiple work responsibilities at one

time.

 Describe a time when you were involved in a

project or research that was not going well and

tell me how you handled it and the outcome.

 Describe a time when you were put in a

questionable ethical position and how you

handled it.

 Tell me about a time when someone was critical

of your work and how you responded.

 Give me an example of a time when you failed

to meet a deadline and tell me why.

 Describe a time when you were working with a

team and tell me about your role in the group.

 Tell me about a time when you were working in

a team environment and one of your team

colleagues was not producing as expected. How

did you handle the situation?

 Describe a particular problem that you

encountered at work and how you went about

solving it.

Questions Students Have Reported Being Asked

 How do you explain what public health is

and why it matters?

 How do you envision contributing to our

team?

 How do we create positive change?

 How do the dimensions of your identity

shape your understanding of privilege and

oppression?

 How do you handle stress in a positive

manner?

 How would you interpret this graph?

 How would you use your skills to address

the dichotomy between public health &

individual health in high-risk populations?

 How would you apply what you’ve learned

to advance the mission of the organization?

 What are you afraid of?

 What are the things you can improve on?

 What is health equity?

 What is the hardest thing you’ve ever done

and how did you handle it?

 What are your strengths/weaknesses?

 What are you most proud of?

 When can you start?

 Describe a project that failed and why?

 When confronted with a new problem,

what do you do first?

 Why should I hire you? Why should we

select you?

 Why are people poor?

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 Why are you interested in working here?

 Where do you see yourself in 5 years? In 10

years? … geographically and professionally?

 Tell me about a significant management

challenge that you’ve encountered and how

you dealt with it.

 Tell me about yourself.

 Tell me, in your own words, your

understanding of this position.

 One of your co-workers posts something

you disagree with or are offended by on

Facebook. What do you do?

 Walk me through a particular project

management experience from beginning to

end.

 Describe yourself in 3 words.

Case Questions

Note: Listen carefully, show that you can think on

your feet, have excellent problem-solving skills, and

can speak in a quiet, engaging, and persuasive

manner.

Take notes when asked a case question and

summarize the question prior to beginning your

response. If necessary, ask questions to gain

additional information. While you will need to

process the solution to the question out loud, you

will want to filter what you say. The following will

give you an idea of the types of questions asked.

There is no way to anticipate questions, you can

only practice and prepare a methodology to

respond to the case question.

 What is the anticipated growth of cell phone

usage in the world during the next five years?

 How much ice cream is consumed in the United

States annually?

 How many individuals who are under 40 years

old participate in online social networking

communities in the United States?

 Do you think the IPhone will live up to its

anticipated success and why?

 Choose three mall stores that you think have a

strong future and tell me why?

 If you were the CEO of Dunkin Donuts, what

would you do to improve the company’s

economic future?

Additional case interview preparation:

Case Interview Secrets: A Former McKinsey

Interviewer Reveals How to Get Multiple Job Offers

in Consulting by Victor Cheng

Case In Point: Complete Case Interview Preparation

by Marc P. Cosentino and Joan Oleck

Crack the Case System: Complete Case Interview

Prep by David Ohrvall

Connect to the Harvard Graduate Consulting Club –

www.harvardgraduateconsultingclub.com – the

group offers case and interview preparation

assistance.

Questions for Teaching Positions

 What are your research interests?

 Why did you focus on this area of research?

 Describe your current research? Are you

planning any future changes in this research?

 Why are you interested in teaching?

 What will your next research project be?

 Why do you want to teach here?

 How will you engage the students in your

classes?

 Describe a course you taught and how you

evaluated your teaching and students’ learning.

 How would you teach __________ and which

texts might you require?

 Describe your philosophy of teaching.

 Give me an example of a time you were working

with a student who was not performing

adequately and how you handled the situation.

Willingness to Participate in the Department

 Can you tell us how you will be able to add

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value to our department?

 Which faculty committees are of greatest

interest to you and how will you contribute to

that committee?

 What institutional issues are of particular

interest to you?

 How would you see yourself contributing to the

mission of the college and to the campus

atmosphere?

Career and Personal Choices

 Where else are you interviewing?

 What are some of the non discipline-specific

books that you are reading?

 How would you describe the ideal working

environment?

 Can you describe the type of institution that will

best suit your personal and professional needs?

Questions You Can Ask During Interviews

Note: Never ask questions that reference salary or

benefits during a first interview.

 What skills/qualities do the most effective

people in the department/organization have?

 What do you hope the person you hire will

accomplish in the first year?

 How would you describe the work culture?

 What do you most enjoy about your job?

 What is the largest challenge facing the

department right now?

 Are there any anticipated major new

developments or changes that will impact this

position?

 What is your hiring timeframe for this position?

 Has there been much turnover in this

department and if so, why do you think that is?

 Can you describe the student body/patient

community/clients?

TIPS ON REDUCING STRESS ON YOUR INTERVIEW DAY

Plan your trip ahead of time.

 Confirm the location of the interview

 Map out the location, especially if you are in an unfamiliar city or area

 Determine commuting option and rehearse your travel to the interview location ahead of time

 Remember that traffic may delay your travel on the day of the interview

 Plan to arrive 10-15 minutes early so that you can relax and compose yourself. If you arrive earlier, wait and

review your notes.

Items to bring to the interview:

 Extra copies of your resume

 Pen and paper, notepad, or padfolio

 Writing samples, if appropriate for the industry

 List of references

 A bottle of water and light snack such as a granola bar

Don’t forget to…

 Be polite to everyone you speak with or meet to set up the interview, on the interview day and post-

interview

 Smile, make eye contact, shake hands

 Turn off your cell phone before the interview begins

 Show enthusiasm and excitement

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 Take a few minutes to reflect after the interview – write our your thoughts, feelings, and overall

impressions

DRESS CODE AND ETIQUETTE FOR INTERVIEWS

A professional appearance is essential on your interview day. Decide and plan what to wear in advance so that

you have an opportunity to test it out and make sure that everything fits well. Do some research on the dress

code of the employer. Even if professionals in the organization for which you are interviewing have a casual

dress code, you should err on the side of dressing in more formal/conservative attire for the interview. You

should dress the way you would if you were giving an important presentation or attending a business meeting at

the organization.

AFTER THE INTERVIEW

Follow up promptly with a brief thank-you note (e-mail is fine) that reiterates your interest in the job. Make sure

you have correct spellings of names and no typos in the thank you note.

Special tips: PREPARING FOR A PHONE INTERVIEW

Many companies rely on phone interviews as a screening mechanism to narrow down a list of candidates they

will bring in for an in-person interview. In other cases, companies use in-depth telephone interviews to minimize

the traveling expenses for the interviewer and/or the candidate. The questions and duration of this type of

phone interview is more similar to the in-person interview format. Below are some tips on how to prepare.

Prior to the interview:

- Prepare for a phone interview just as you would for an in-person interview: do background research and

practice answering typical behavioral interview questions

- Compile a list of your strengths and weaknesses. Have a “cheat sheet” of compelling story topics that

highlight your accomplishments.

- Prepare a short list of questions about the job and the organization

- Print a copy of your cover letter and resume or CV and have them in clear view for when you need them

to answer questions

- Find a quiet room without distractions. Close the door and place a note “Interview in progress – please

do not disturb”.

- Check that the phone is working well to ensure high phone call quality. Use a landline or make sure your

cellular service is strong at the location you are conducting the interview from.

- Have a pen and paper ready for note taking.

- Have a glass of water nearby.

During the interview:

- Do not smoke, chew gum, eat, or drink

- Speak slowly, enunciate clearly, and with adequate volume

- Use the interviewer’s title and last name (e.g. Ms. Hudson) unless the interviewer asks you to use a first

name.

- Do not interrupt the interviewer

- Take your time – it is acceptable to take a moment or two to collect your thoughts

- Give concise thoughtful answers – aim to tell a brief example/story of your experiences

Before you hang up:

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- Thank the interviewer for the opportunity

- Ask for contact information for follow-up questions

- Ask about the hiring timeline e.g. when are you looking to make a decision?

Updated June 2016