Competency-based questionsMany interviews these days use competency-based questions to gain examples of your working life and the style you work in. For example you may be asked:

Tell me about a time when you used your skills to overcome a problem at work. If you can’t think of examples from your working life most employers will accept examples from the rest of your life. Be careful to bring it back around to your own skills and how these would help you in the role you’re interviewing for.

Why do you want to work for our organisation? This is the time to let your research shine – tell the interviewer (or interviewers) what you know about the organisation and the role and explain how this is a good fit with what you enjoy and what you have done in the past. If you have any gaps in the match-up, this is your moment to explain how you’ll overcome them such as “I’ve never worked in journalism before, but I love writing and I’m an absolute newshound, so I think I’ll really enjoy it and pick it up quickly.”

What are your strengths? Most employers will ask this, so be prepared to explain not just why you’re good, but why you’re uniquely good and what makes you stand out from other candidates applying for the same job.

What are your weaknesses? For goodness sake don’t say you’re unpunctual, addicted to Facebook, have anger management issues or pinch office supplies! Make sure your ‘weakness’ is something with a correspondingly positive spin – such as being a perfectionist, being very independent or being so darn enthusiastic that you take on too many projects.

Questions to ask your interviewersMost interviewers, towards the end of the interview, will ask if you have any questions for them. A few incisive questions can demonstrate knowledge and enthusiasm like nothing else – but if you find yourself drawing a blank (or if it’s difficult to research the organisation) then here are a few questions to cover most bases:

Could you describe a typical day in the role? This question will open up a fuller view of the organisation’s way or working and crucially what you’ll be doing in your day-to-day role. From the answers your interviewers give you, you will probably be able to ask more detailed questions and gain a deeper understanding of the role.

How does this role fit in with the rest of the team? The answer to this question will give you some more insight into who you will be reporting to, who you will be managing and how the role fits in elsewhere. Most companies have slightly different job titles to describe similar roles so you can’t beat a simple explanation of where you’d stand in a certain role.

How would you describe the organisation’s working style? This is important to find out whether you’re a good match with your prospective employer and it’s also a chance to demonstrate that you’d fit in. If you like what you hear, let them know by saying something like ‘that sounds great’ or ‘oh, my last place did something a bit like that, I really enjoyed it.’

Do you think that I can do the job? This is a slightly scary one, but it’s a good way to tackle and iron out any doubts your interviewers may have. If they say something like ‘we like your CV, but we’re not sure you’ve got enough experience in coding’ – this is your moment to explain that you do. For example, it could be that you haven’t been coding for very long, but you’ve been doing it every day at work recently, or you’ve just started a course to brush up your skills. It’s better to take the plunge now, when you’re still there and able to tell them more, than leave the room with your interviewers harbouring some doubts.

InterviewInterviews can be one of the most nerve-wracking experiences of job-hunting but if you cover the basics, you can be sure you show the best side of yourself.You should prepare thoroughly so you can stroll into a question-and-answer situation knowing full well the ins and outs of the company you want to work for . Memorising some statistics in regards to its operations is bound to go down well.

Most interviewers will have a printed out your CV, but just in case you should always bring along a copy. Also, where appropriate, you should bring along examples of your work to demonstrate your skills.

Do your researchThough you should always do this when applying for the job in the first place, it’s almost impossible to do too much research on an organisation when you have an interview. See what you can find out from their website, any news articles and a Wikipedia page if there is one. Find out what skills and methods the organisation uses. Finding out who their clients are can be a huge help too. Find out when they were founded, what their goals and measures of success are, what their turnover is and figure out (as best you can) where your role will fit into all of this.

The research not only means you can demonstrate that you know about the company and are enthusiastic to work for them – it also means you can tailor your answers and responses to questions into areas you already know they are interested in.

Dress to impressThis doesn’t mean you should necessarily be power-dressing for every interview – if it’s a job in a daycare centre then turning up in a three-piece suit would probably not be appropriate to the role.

What you should do is make sure you always look neat and presentable. It’s often a good idea to cover any tattoos you can, don’t have many piercings on show and don’t wear excessive amounts of jewellery. However, if you’re going for a job at a tattoo parlour: the opposite may be advisable.

What’s important is that you do your research on the company and dress appropriately for it. A new IT startup company will have a very different attitude to presentation to an investment bank. If you’re going through a recruiter it would be a good idea to ask them if there is a dress code and what they recommend.

Arrive on time, or early

Arriving late doesn’t make a good impression on a prospective employer. Plan your journey and aim to arrive ten minutes early so that you have a buffer zone if something unexpected comes up. If you are delayed and know you are going to be late, be sure you call ahead to apologise and let them know.

Make a note of the name and position of the person you will be meeting and always be polite and friendly to everyone you meet. Greet people with a firm handshake and a smile. If you have more than one interviewer be sure to speak to all of them equally.