Future You podcast transcript

Secrets of a great job interview

Posted
October, 2019

This is a transcript of Episode 4: Secrets of a great job interview, from Future You - the careers podcast from Prospects

Contributors

Host: Dan Mason

Guests:

  • Amy Ward, DHL
  • Amy Carpenter, University of Suffolk
  • Yohanna Wilson, White & Case.

Episode transcript

Dan Mason: Hello, and welcome to episode four of Future You, the podcast from graduate careers experts Prospects. My name is Dan Mason and this week we're talking about job interviews. Now, I know a lot of you dread the job interview, it can be the trickiest stage of the application process, especially at graduate level, when you can be faced with so many different formats of interview, whether it's over the telephone, a video interview, a face-to-face interview. And lots of different types of interview as well. So there's competency-based, strengths-based, value-based - what do all of these mean, it can be quite daunting and quite tricky to just remember what's expected of you in all these different types of interview.

So we're going to get some great insight today from employers, from DHL, and also the law firm White & Case, as well as our regular guest, careers adviser Amy Carpenter, and they're going to give you some fantastic advice on what to expect from these interviews, how you should approach them, how you should plan in advance, what to do on the day itself, and also some things to avoid as well. So that hopefully next time you've got an interview lined up, you'll feel really confident that you'll go in there and impress.

Before we get started, the usual reminders, you can get in touch with us by email, podcast@prospects.ac.uk, or on Twitter @prospects if you have any questions about graduate careers, or comments on the show. You can listen to all the previous episodes of Future You on the website prospects.ac.uk/podcasts, or by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, in Spotify, or wherever you like to listen to podcasts. That's enough preamble. Let's get into the advice on graduate job interviews, starting with my chat with Amy Ward from DHL.

I'm joined now by Amy Ward, graduate talent manager at DHL. Welcome, Amy.

Amy Ward: Hello.

Dan Mason: Could you just start by telling us a bit about DHL and the opportunities that are available for graduates there?

Amy Ward: Yes, no problem. So DHL is obviously one of the biggest supply chain logistics organisations across the globe. We now have over half a million people worldwide and we're now in 220 different countries so we really are a global organisation with lots of opportunities available for graduates. So we have a number of different programme streams here at DHL Supply Chain, including our operational programmes, which is our future leaders programme. And then we also have our functional programmes including things like HR, finance, IT management and project management.

Dan Mason: Ok, so just before we get into the detail of the actual interviews that you do, could you just give us an overview of the application process in fall and what stages applicants have to go through?

Amy Ward: Yeah, sure. So we have four stages to our recruitment process. Our first stage is an application form. But this is very much just about gathering personal details, qualifications, no specific questions on the application form, it really is just that data gathering piece. So if you meet the minimum requirements on our application, we do take you straight through to what we call our Online Strengths Journey. So this is a fictitious scenario, which is unfolding via a series of videos. It's all DHL, so it's our colleagues popping up on the screen. It's a real life scenario that graduates could expect if they were to join our business. And graduates will be expected to rank order lots of selection responses, and analyse and interpret information.

If graduates are successful on our Online Strengths Journey, they then get processed into a job simulation. So this is new for DHL. So we've created an activity where candidates have to complete several different tasks all relating to a realistic scenario based on the role that they've applied for. So they'll be presented with a range of materials to help them answer questions. But really, it's to get them to experience what would a day of the life of if you were in that specific position.

Once you pass the online test, you're then invited to one of our Experience Days. These are what we call our assessment centres. The reason why we call them Experience Days is we absolutely believe that these are a two way process. It's not just about us deciding if the candidates are right for our programmes, it's also a really good opportunity for candidates to think, is DHL the business for them? So we take our candidates on site tours, they get to network with members of our UK and Ireland board, but then obviously they go through group activities, presentation activities, and then a face-to-face interview.

Dan Mason: So you mentioned there that you use face-to-face interviews at the Experience Day. Why do you choose to use that interview format in particular?

Amy Ward: So at DHL, we decided to use a behavioural interviewing approach. So we ask candidates lots of open-ended questions to really understand what they've done in the past and how they've gone about roles and experiences. The reason why we do it face to face is not only do we want to understand their capability, we want to see their engagement throughout the interview as well, as we find that this really helps to understand people's strengths, and what energises them, what do they find enthusiastic because we can immediately see that through their facial expressions and their body language, as well as the type of answers that they're providing.

We ask a series of questions to assess our candidates specifically mapped against our DHL leadership attributes. And these attributes are attributes that we use worldwide across the entirety of the business all across the globe. This is the first time again that we've used this type of interview format. So we're really excited to see how it goes. But we really want our candidates to not only give really good examples in their responses, but also to really take the opportunity to demonstrate the strengths that they have.

Dan Mason: Ok, and what kinds of questions can applicants expect when they when they attend this interview?

Amy Ward: So the type of questions they can expect is very much around what have they done in the past in a particular situation? But also questions around how would they act in a particular scenario? And like I mentioned that all assessed against our leadership attributes, so we have one for each of the attributes, as well as asking questions about their motivation for applying. Why do they want to work in our industry, as well as why do they want to work for our business?

Dan Mason: And so what are you actually looking for in the interview from applicants that at this stage?

Amy Ward: So we're looking for candidates who can demonstrate our DHL Supply Chain essentials, which are 'passion', 'right first time' and 'can do'. So really, our business depends on us having highly engaged employees who have a can do attitude, a passion for our business, and the skills to get things done right the first time. So we want to look for people who share our values, who also have a good fit for our culture, but also it's really important for us to find someone who strikes right balance between having respect but being results orientated, as that is the values of our business. Most technical skills we believe can be learnt and taught. Therefore, really what makes a difference for our people is that they do have that passion, they can take the initiative to work with our customers, and they can drive change.

Dan Mason: So what would be your top three tips for graduates who really want to impressively interview?

Amy Ward: I think my first top tip is for graduates to really listen to the question carefully before they start answering the question, really to make sure their answer is relevant. And by using lots of examples as well to answer that question. I think really important for us, as I've mentioned before, is to have really positive body language. So open body language, smiling, being enthusiastic and both their verbal and non-verbal interaction with the assessors. And finally, for me, it's demonstrate that they've done more than just research by looking at our website. We want to see that they've got a real passion for our industry. So where else have they seen us, what else if they read about us, and for them to really shine in the interview, they need to state where they've been looking as well.

Dan Mason: And on the flip side of that, then, what would you say are the things to avoid things that maybe put off the interviewer?

Amy Ward: I think the biggest thing is when graduates start to waffle, where they're not clear and concise, I know we're all really keen to showcase the strengths that we have and the examples that we have. But really being concise and clear is a really good technique to have within our business. So that's something we want to see at the interview stage. Graduates should avoid not being honest. Us as assessors can tell perhaps when graduates are over-emphasising things, or perhaps might be talking about examples which they weren't doing those actions, which leads me on to my next point, which is, don't use the word 'we', we want to hear the word 'I'. So we want to know what those graduates have done in the situations. What actions have they taken, what are their strengths, not about the people in the group will work around them.

Dan Mason: So a lot of graduates often sail through the other aspects of application processes, but really struggle or get nervous at the actual interview. Do you have any specific advice for those kinds of graduates who really find it difficult at this stage to when they go into the interview room?

Amy Ward: Yes, I think first of all, I believe nerves are a good thing. and nerves show that you care, nerves show that you're invested and nerves show that you really do want this opportunity. So I just advise to use that nervousness actually as a positive energy when you enter the room. The more you practice, and that's often, you know, a piece of advice everyone will give you. But really, if you practice, practice, practice, those nerves should go down as well because you feel more prepared. If you practice out loud in a safe space with someone who you trust will actually give you really useful developmental feedback and won't just tell you that you're great every time, is really useful.

But also I find if you record yourself and watch it back, is a really useful exercise to do as well. You don't look at your own body language and you don't see your own facial expressions in your day-to-day life. So if you can record then watch yourself back, you can see how much you make an eye contact. Are you fidgeting? Are you saying, 'ummm, like, ummm' a lot as you're talking, those type of things you won't notice until you do record yourself and look back at it. And you can't start making the steps to change things without learning what you're doing wrong first. I think also just take a deep breath. Have a glass of water with you. Make sure you're composed before you start answering each question. Just take your time, it's not a race. And if you don't understand the question that's been asked of you simply ask the assessor to repeat it, or just take a couple of moments to think about the example. It's better for you to take your time and give a true reflection of your ability rather than rushing through because you feel like you're wasting someone's time or that you feel like you're not prepared enough.

A useful method we always encourage candidates use as well is something called the STAR method. So the STAR method is a really structured way to enable you to listen to the question, really make something meaningful of your answer and to make sure you have complete rounded responses. So when you are answering your question, and when you do have an example, think of the situation or a task that you were involved in. So that's the S and the T. Next is the A, which stands for action. What is the action that you took? And again, this is where you say 'I' rather than 'we'. And finally, the R of the star, and this is what most candidates forget to do is talk about the results. So by you taking that action, and that task in that particular situation, what was the positive result that came from that? What did you achieve? And why was that a good example for you to use in relation to the question that's been asked of you.

Dan Mason: Ok Amy, that's all great advice. Thanks very much for joining us today.

Amy Ward: Thank you very much.

Dan Mason: I'm joined again now by Amy Carpenter, employability and progression adviser at the University of Suffolk. Welcome back.

Amy Carpenter: Hi there.

Dan Mason: So today we're talking about job interviews, graduate job interviews, could you just give us a quick run through of the different types of interview that graduates might face when they're applying for jobs and how these differ and how they should approach them.

Amy Carpenter: So it could depend on what the organisation is looking for and what they're wanting to test you on, and also actually the stage of interview and what point in the interview process or the application process that you're in. So at the basic level, if you're applying perhaps for a graduate scheme, you might have it the first round is actually an interview where there's no one at the other end and you record a video into your computer through your webcam, and then they might give you a phone call or do a Skype interview and then you might have a group interview or an assessment centre - so it'll be activities and group-based things, perhaps one-to-one interviews, and then obviously, yeah, your traditional one-to-one or one-to-many interview with panels, it could be anything from a couple of people, I've known people to have five, six people on their panels as well. So it can really vary depending on what the organisation is looking for and what they're wanting to ask you.

And then, in those interviews, the types of questions that they ask you could be things like there's competency-based interviews, where they're actually looking to see demonstration of what skills you've got, and how you would perhaps apply them into their workplace. Your strengths-based interview, so that's what it says on the tin. What are your strengths, and what do you actually enjoy about your work as well. You might get values-based questions as well. So they're actually looking to see how your values might fit in with the organisational values. So that's where you really definitely want to make sure that you've done your research before you go into the interview to make sure that you actually know what the values of that company are. So you can consider how you might answer that and how your experiences and your own values match them. And you might have technical interviews as well. So perhaps particularly if you're going into IT roles, for example, whether they will test your abilities to actually do some of the work. And I know this definitely happens with things like, for example, the Tesco graduate scheme, if you're applying for the IT strand there, they will get you to do activities. So yeah, they just wanted to see, not only to say what you can do but also actually demonstrate it as well.

Dan Mason: Ok, could you just go into a little more detail about video interviews because I know they're becoming much more popular with graduate employers, the different, the two different types of video interview as you mentioned, it could be a pre-recorded or live interview and how they differ and how to go about preparing for that?

Amy Carpenter: Yeah, so with the pre-recorded interview, I know quite a few graduate employers in particular have moved towards this, where they'll ask you perhaps three, four or five questions, they'll give you a certain time to answer them. They normally let you have a practice run beforehand, so you can just get your webcam set up, make sure that what's behind you is appropriate and that your dressed appropriate as well. So obviously dressed in you smart attire. I've spoken to graduate schemes and graduate recruiters who fed back that they've had interviews that they've watched where there's been pets walk along in the background and the cat has walked across the laptop, which has been very distracting for both the student applying for the job and for them.

So just, you know, think about what other distractions could happen, keeping your door shut so your cat can't get into the room. And with that, as well, actually at our university where I work, within our platform that we've got we allow students to access for interview hints and tips, there is actually a tool in there where you can record yourself in a practice environment. So if you have got one of these coming up, have a look online as well, but have a look and see what your university offers as well. Because if you have got a website that gives you lots of information, hints and tips on interviews, see if it's got a mock interview section where you can practice recording yourself.

The other one is the Skype-based typically. So they'll set up a live Skype chat with you and ask the questions there and then on the spot as if you were face to face, but obviously, could be hundred, thousands of miles apart. And again, it's just thinking about what is in the background, what noises might they hear, what might be distracting for yourself as well. And making sure things that your connection as strong as well, test that beforehand, test your microphone so that you're not trying to do it as you're doing the interview as well. And it's just important to think about the fact that you perhaps, because you're not face to face with someone, you can't necessarily build the rapport that you might do, this is a little bit harder with body language. So just think about how you're sitting and making sure you're looking at the camera and maybe not looking off something out the window as well.

Dan Mason: And then speaking more generally again, what would you be your key tips for preparing for a job interview? So you know, you've got got the interview lined up. What should you be doing in the week before the, you know, the few days before to prepare for that?

Amy Carpenter: Most importantly, I think, research the organisation find out what are their values, what's their mission statement, are they in the news recently, have they had something exciting happen - expansion plans, have they been in the news for any other reasons? Particularly, I always, when I work with NHS students, I always say have a look and see what the hospital specialisms are, is the ward that you want to work on going to have certain technologies and you could apply that in any business, you know, is there certain types of things that are doing, certain clients that they've got, that you might have knowledge about? And then you can think about whether it's appropriate to bring them in to any of your interview answers during your interview.

And also thinking about what evidence and examples you're going to bring to the interview as well. So obviously, you've written an application where you had to give evidence and examples of your skills. And you've obviously done that really well to get to that point of the process. But now you need to actually communicate it verbally with them. And you're going to need to bring some other things to the table as well. So it doesn't hurt to do a bit of planning against the job description, the advert, again, the values of the organisation, what are their strategic priorities? And just think about what examples have you got from your last few years of your degree or from your work experience or hobbies, whatever it is, that you can use to help inform the answers that you give.

Dan Mason: And so then once you've done that preparation, you know, you feel like you're ready to go, it's the day of the interview, how can you really impress the employer on the day when you're in the room?

Amy Carpenter: I think it's be confident in yourself, and don't be afraid to take a very slight pause before you answer a question. So I know often people feel like they even a one second pause is perhaps too long, but it's absolutely fine if they ask you the question to just take one or two seconds to just compose yourself, compose your answer, take a breath, and then start speaking and think about your body language as well. Personally, I wave my hands around a lot, particularly if I ever have to stand in front of a class or a group of people. And I always laugh that I can't sit on my hands, because then I wouldn't be sitting upright. So I have to sort of hold my hands below the table, and maybe just sort of do something, I don't know, you know, if it helps, but just try and think about what your mannerisms are.

And if you are like me, and wave your hands around a lot, that'd be very distracting in an interview. So consider your posture and your body language. But again, you don't want to cross your arms and that could come off as quite a closed body language. You want to make sure that you're sitting there with a fairly open stance, you're maintaining eye contact with the interview panel. And don't be afraid to ask them if you're not sure, to repeat the question as well, that if there's sometimes a question might have two parts to it and then you think I've answered part of it. But did I answer the other part? Ask them to repeat it. That's absolutely fine.

Dan Mason: Brilliant. So chances are most graduates, unless they do brilliantly and get the job at the first attempt, you're going to have to do more than one of these interviews. How can you, if you've had maybe a disappointing interview, or maybe even if you felt it went really well, but then you didn't get the job, how can you learn from the interviews that you do then in order to do better next time?

Amy Carpenter: Yeah, so if you always ask for feedback from the interview panel, or from the contact you've got an HR, they should be happy to give you feedback. So it's always really good to ask for that just to see where perhaps the areas for improvement or perhaps the areas of development that they identified that you needed and sometimes it can be just that you didn't perhaps have as much experience as another person so if that's what the feedback is, perhaps you've got a window of opportunity to go and do, is it perhaps volunteering or something like that to help boost that experience ready for the next application and the next interview as well.

And I think it's just important to spend a little bit of time thinking back on what happened in the interview, try and do it a couple of days afterwards, perhaps even just before you get a response of whether you've been successful or not, because it's fresh in your mind. And you can just think about actually, was it body language? Was it the answers? Did you talk too fast? Or did you not give enough evidence? Did you not structure your answers as strongly as perhaps you could have done? So yeah, I think that's the best things that you can do, really.

And if you know, particularly for us, as careers advisers in our university we'll run mock interviews with students and graduates. So you know, find out whether your career service does that as well. Could you do it through Skype, if you've returned home or university is the other side of the country. Could you do it through Skype or on the phone or if you're close by then go and see them face to face because we are very happy to do that score as careers advisers, we can make it as scary or intimidating as you want, or as not. So yeah, it's up to you. You tell us what, how we can help you. And then we can give you feedback as well.

Dan Mason: That's great. Thanks very much, Amy.

Amy Carpenter: Thank you.

Dan Mason: And we'll speak to you again next time.

Amy Carpenter: See you soon.

Dan Mason: Thanks as always to Amy. Now it's time to hear from another employer. I spoke to you Yohanna Wilson, graduate resourcing and development adviser at the law firm White & Case, over Skype, about their interview process for vacation schemes and going on to trainee positions. In particular, we talk about video interviews.

As Amy was saying just a bit earlier, lots of graduate employers are using these now in their application processes, so this is definitely worth a listen whatever type of career you're interested in, not just future lawyers. Because video interviews are something that you're probably going to have to face. I started by asking Yohanna, as we do with all the employers that we speak to, to just give us an overview of what they do at White & Case and what opportunities they have for graduates there.

Yohanna Wilson: White & Case is a global law firm and a lot of the work we do is cross border and international. So it's a great opportunity for students who are kind of interested in, I guess, a career that has that international outlook and international reach and working with people from lots of different countries and across lots of different borders as well. In terms of opportunities, we have, we recruit 50 trainees per year and we have 75 vacation scheme students that we take for winter, spring and summer programmes. And it's a really good opportunity, a vacation scheme, to come and find out what White & Case is really all about. Students who take part in our vacation schemes are allocated real trainee work, so it's a good opportunity to really come and test out whether you could see yourself working here long term and to kind of really find out the realities of the trainee as well.

Dan Mason: Ok and when a student or a recent graduate is applying to White & Case, could you tell us what the different stages are of the application process and where the different types of interviews fit into that process?

Yohanna Wilson: Yeah, absolutely. So in order to apply for a vacation scheme at White & Case, the first stage is an online application form, which includes a covering letter. The second stage is a video interview assessment. The following stage after that is a face-to-face interview with a member of the graduate recruitment team, and one of our senior associates and in that interview we'll also ask you to complete a short written exercise as well. That is the final stage in our process before we make vacation scheme offers. When you're on vacation scheme with White & Case we do assess candidates throughout the two weeks they're here with us. And there is a final partner interview that takes place at the end of that vacation scheme to be interviewed for a training contract position with the firm.

Dan Mason: Ok, so in that process then you're using both video and face-to-face interviews. Could we start with video interviews, why do you use video interviews? And also what's the sort of the structure of those interviews? How do they work?

Yohanna Wilson: So the reason we introduced video interviews was because we felt like we needed a stage in between kind of doing an application form and then for people to come in to meet with us face to face. So I know lots of other firms use kind of psychometric tests or kind of verbal reasoning tests. But the reason we decided to go with a video assessment was so that students can, or applicants can bring their applications to life a little bit more, and kind of showcase who they are, and talk to us why they're interested in kind of the opportunities that White & Case has to offer. So I know that for some, some people find them a little bit…

Dan Mason: They can be quite daunting, can't they, video interviews?

Yohanna Wilson: Yeah, I think daunting, but also maybe not that you don't have the same level of interaction as you would do in a face-to-face interview, but I think I believe that this is a really good way for candidates to really showcase themselves and for them to kind of put themselves forward in the best light.

Dan Mason: Yes. And so just to clarify, because there are different types of video interviews that different employers use, are these candidates pre-recording themselves talking and doing a video like that, or is it a live interview situation over video?

Yohanna Wilson: So we have the pre-recorded answers. Here at White & Case we are students to answer three questions that are randomly selected from the bank of questions. And those questions will be a motivational question, a competency-based question, and then a commercial question as well. So they can expect one question for each of those kinds of strands. When a student is invited to attend a video assessment, they are sent a link and once they receive that link, they'll also go through the relevant processes and be able to watch a number of videos, given some hints and tips as to how they can prepare, and obviously deliver the best interview possible.

They also get a practice question that they can use to kind of test their background, test how they come across, which they can play back and they can do use that as many times as they would like to before they actually hit the live button and get ready to get started with the three questions that will be asking them. But they'll have kind of a trainee, one of our trainees come up on screen to ask them the question for the video interview, and then they'll have kind of 15 seconds to prepare, and then 30 seconds, and then 90 seconds to answer that video interview question. I know, sometimes 30 seconds doesn't sound or 15 seconds sorry, doesn't sound like much time to prepare. But actually, if you were in a normal interview setting, then actually 15 seconds is quite a long time to be able to answer, or be asked a question and be able to answer.

Dan Mason: And so what can applicants do that will really impress in this kind of video interview? What are the key, what would your key advice beyond on how to really make a mark in this context?

Yohanna Wilson: Yeah, absolutely. So, I will prepare, I would advise applicants to prepare as they would do for any face-to-face interview. So make sure you've kind of done your research on the firm. Make sure you've kind of done the key preparation that you need to do for any kind of face-to-face interview, make sure kind of you look professional, because that that's equally important when you're doing these interviews. Make sure kind of the area that you're recording your video interview is tidy, and also really well-lit so that we can see you. We always advise students to try and look into the camera where possible. And like I said, I know it can be a little bit daunting, but trying to keep eye contact would be great. And just making sure they kind of speak loudly and clearly throughout so that the person who's reviewing the interview, can hear what you're saying. And then I think finally it's just about kind of relaxing and being yourself. That's the great benefit of these video interviews, we get to see a bit of someone's personality kind of come through. So it's great when people can kind of relax a little bit more and can bring their personality through. We're not looking for kind of TV presenters or anything like that. It's just a lot of the time we're looking at the quality and the content of your answers.

Dan Mason: So you do find that great applicants do tend to shine in this in this format?

Yohanna Wilson: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah.

Dan Mason: Ok. Well, moving on to the next stage was a face to face interview, which also includes an assessment of some sort as well. Yeah. Could you tell us a little bit more about the format of that interview?

Yohanna Wilson: Yeah, of course, once an applicant has successfully passed the video assessment, we invite them to a face-to-face interview. And so that's a really great way for people to kind of have the opportunity to come into the office and to meet with a member of the graduate resourcing team, and to meet with one of our senior associates as well. In that interview, we kind of go through an applicant, we'll talk to the applicant about kind of why they're interested in White & Case, what are their motivations for wanting to become a trainee solicitor, and talk through some of their experiences. We'll also ask some competency questions, and also some kind of commercial questions as well. And it's just an opportunity for us to kind of get to know the applicant a little bit more.

But also it's their chance to kind of find out more about White & Case. This interview is very much a two-way process. Our interviews, I guess, we want to get the best out of the candidates that are attending. So we try and make people feel as relaxed as possible. But yeah, we also encourage candidates to ask any questions at the end. And after the interview, we arrange for them to be taken on an office tour by one of our trainees. So again, they get another opportunity to meet someone from the firm who's actually doing their training contract and they can spend 15 or 20 minutes with our trainees finding out a little bit more about the firm as well.

Dan Mason: So the face-to-face interview still really has lots of additional value then doesn't it? Because, you know, we've seen the rise of video interviews, and that's become an important stage. But the face-to-face interviews is still important.

Yohanna Wilson: Yeah, absolutely. I think from lots of feedback that we kind of received from students from around campus is as much as kind of technology, building technology into some of our processes is great. But we realise and understand that if you're going to pick somewhere where you plan to spend a long, like building your career, then you actually need to come and meet the people that are working there to be able to make a decision. And so although we do have video assessment, we still think it's really important for people to come and interview face to face with us.

Dan Mason: Yeah, and did you say there's an assessment at the face to face interview as well, a written test?

Yohanna Wilson: We also ask candidate's as part of the process to complete a written assessment just to assess kind of their written skills and things like that. So yeah.

Dan Mason: And what would your key advice be for candidate coming to a face to face interview?

Yohanna Wilson: I think my top tip would be to be yourself. I think White & Case doesn't have kind of a set mould of the type of person that that they're looking to recruit, they want to hire the, we want to hire the best candidate for the job. So I think being yourself is really key in this interview so that we can really get to know you. I think where we're such a global firm, it's a real advantage for people to bring different things to the table. So I think that's one thing that we definitely encourage. I think making sure that you've done your research on the firm, making sure that you've read through your application form.

I know that some candidates when they apply to White & Case they may mention a particular deal that's of interest to them in their application form. And just making sure that they've kind of gone back and done some updated reading up on that. I think also, my advice would be to make sure people are dressed smartly again. That's another thing that goes a long way and professionally, and my other top tip is kind of approach your interview with real enthusiasm. And just being engaged throughout the process and making sure you've got some questions at the end to ask the recruiter.

Dan Mason: Ok, fantastic. Yohanna, thanks very much for joining us.

Yohanna Wilson: Ok, thank you.

Dan Mason: And that's everything for this episode. Thanks once again to Yohanna, Amy and Amy for their fantastic advice on graduate job interviews. As ever I hope that's been really helpful to you. And if you do have an interview coming up, I really recommend you also head over to the Prospects website Prospects.ac.uk and go through the Interview tips section, it's in the Careers advice on the main menu, then interview tips. And there's loads of really great stuff on all the different types of interview that you might face. You can read through example interview questions and answers as well. And there are also some ideas for questions that you might want to ask the employer at the end of the interview. The Prospects website is also the place to go to search for graduate jobs. As I said earlier, do get in touch by email podcast@prospects.ac.uk or on Twitter @prospects. Subscribe to Future You in your favourite podcast app or listen at prospects.ac.uk/podcasts. Thanks very much for listening and I'll speak to you next time.

Transcript ends.

Note on transcripts

These transcripts are produced using a combination of automated software and human transcribers, and may contain errors. The audio version is definitive and should be checked before quoting.

How would you rate this page?

On a scale where 1 is dislike and 5 is like

success feedback

Thank you for rating the page