How to Succeed at Interviews

　　The aim of a job interview is to establish whether you are likely to do well in a particular job in a specific organisation. This is not only a matter of having the necessary technical knowledge and skills. You must also have the motivation, the ability to adapt to new ways of working and to a new work environment, and the personality to do the job and fit into a new team. (example)____. These include getting on with people, oral and written communication, teamworking, problem solving and good time management.

　　Most people think that interviewers know what they are looking for and will recognise it when they see it. (8) ____. This applies to recruiters as much as anyone else. In fact a former head of selection at one big firm used to say that “some interviewers are so poor they would do better to rely on chance”.

　　In companies which recognise this, various methods are used to try to find the right person (9) ____. Research has shown that this approach is more reliable than the ordinary job interview, though not as effective as using personality tests or assessment centres.

　　In a structured interview the interviewer groups the qualities listed in the job specification under various headings. There are two well-established structures for this: the National Institute of Industrial Psychology’s Seven-Point Plan and the Five-Fold Grading System. Both these systems cover factors such as physical appearance, qualifications, general intelligence, motivation and previous experience.(10) ____.

　　However, they should not give equal weight to each one. Some factors are more important in one job than another. For example, physical appearance and manner will be more important in a sales position than in a researcher who works behind the scenes. It is also a fact that the impact the candidate makes in the first three of four minutes of an interview is of major importance.(11) ____.A decision not to hire is often made during those first few minutes.

　　It is not always possible to tell whether structured interview techniques are being used. If interviewers ask questions systematically, using some kind of checklist, and occasionally make a brief note, they probably are. On the other hand, if the interviewer goes through your application form to confirm what you have already said, or asks irrelevant questions, or jumps from one topic to another the interview is unlikely to be structured. Before you attend any interview, look again at the job description and the personal specification. (12) ____. If you already have a mental list of the key points that you need to mention, you are unlikely to waste time giving irrelevant information or to omit important points in your favour.

　　A Study them closely and assess what your interviewer will be looking for.

　　B However, people are actually not very good at assessing one another.

　　C A number of skills are common to most of these interviewing situations.

　　D Although a favourable impression may be reversed later in the interview, a negative impression is rarely changed.

　　E The most common is the structured interview.

　　F The effectiveness of the interviewer can be improved by training.

　　G For each of these areas the interviewers score candidates against how well they fit the job specification.

　　H The ability to cope with stress and get on with people is essential.

　　I But there are other personal skills that affect your success in a job.

　　答案：8.B 9.E 10.G 11.D 12.A