A game of two halves: A strong interviewee has both a good level of experience/qualifications and skills/confidence.
Having strength in one area but not the other can create mixed results – sometime you may have a successful interview, but others times you will miss out.
To become more successful you must improve upon your interview skills area of development.
Prior to the job interview, you can:
- Become a volunteer to gain new experiences and skills
- Join a team/project such as the duke of Edenborough award, sports club, computer club, or gain a significant role in school/college IE student ambassador or prefect to improve key skills that employers require: teamwork, communication, reliability, problem-solving, and being a quick learner
- Improve communication and confidence by attending debating groups, public speaking workshops, theatre groups, and/or public-facing voluntary work or work experience
- Qualification predicted grades can be improved by practicing past exam papers, thinking about how you learn best and creating a revision plan based on this, and using vision techniques such as memory techniques:
- Rhyming – make songs or rhymes of the subject “leaves of three, let it be” (taught to teach children not to touch ivy leaves)
- Que cards – cards with words or sentences to help remind you of a longer paragraph.
- Visualisations – linking images and pictures to words and data.
During the job interview.
- Focus the interview answers on your strengths – your academic achievements, research skills to pass exams, work experience, leadership roles in team achievements, or teamwork shown by the clubs you are involved in, and your work ethic highlighted by being a volunteer, mentor, or school prefect.
- Be enthusiastic – at this stage in your career employers are looking for potential, skills, and work ethic more than direct experiences
- Give detailed interview answers, don’t just answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’ – use the SAP method (Situation, Actions, Positive Outcome). Talk about the situation, the actions you took, and the positive outcome:
- “At school, I was asked to work on a team project. The goal of the project was to X. My part in the team was Y. To complete the project we first shared different ideas and picked the best idea to work on. I was responsible for X, I did this by Y. We finished the project on time and gained (positive feedback IE a good grade, feedback from the teacher, etc)”
Improve your Teenager Job Interview Skills
- Keep answers positive, if an interviewer asks about your area of development focus on your successes and strengths
- Avoid disclosing weaknesses – don’t tell an employer that you don’t have a skill/experience unless they specifically ask you
- Hard interview questions increase the number of filler words ‘urms, arghs’ To reduce filler words pause more, talk slower, and if needed take sips of water between interview questions as this breaks the filler word cycle and allows you to form a good interview answer
- Stop using slang words, abbreviations, or one-word answers as these make you sound unprofessional
- Remember, at this stage in your career, the interviewer is looking at potential; be enthusiastic, smile, and give as many real-life examples using the SAP method
What not to do:
- Don’t repeat the same example for each interview question. This is why having a mix of work experience, voluntary work, qualifications, and being part of a project IE being head prefect, or being a scout, helps because you can use a mixture of examples that will highlight your skills and qualities
- Don’t say anything negative. If you don’t think you have a certain skill (IE if the employer ask for an example of good communication skills) think about which past experience used that key skill the most (communicating during a sporting event, acting in a school performance, debate clubs, etc) and talk about that example
- Don’t be generic. The more detailed the interview answer the better. If asked for an example of being organised, do not just say a generic statement like:
- ‘I was organised when studying for my exams’
- Instead, give lots of detail:
- ‘I took an organised approach to pass my example. First I planned out my studies by creating a study plan. This was a colour-coded plan that included research, study groups, and time prioritised for essay writing. I also had key points in my year where I would check in with my teacher to ensure that I was on track to gain a good grade. One of the key things that resulted in a good grade was looking at how I learned best and using this learning style to improve my studies. This resulted in a X grade’.
Building on your communication
- The power of voice – change volume, tonality and be emotive throughout the interview answers
- Gesture, have good eye contact, and sit up straight
- Be enthusiastic and ask questions
Common asked teenager interview questions:
Tell me about yourself and a little bit about what you have achieved at school/college?
Talk about your current situation: ‘I have just left high school and I wanted to apply for a part-time job while I complete my A-Levels in 6th form. In school I (add a skill-related task; was a prefect, was in a sports club, achieved the best mark in Maths)
Discuss hobbies and interests: ‘In my spare time I enjoy spending time by (hobby) which helped me develop my (name skills) by (explain how the hobby improved your skill)
Explain future career goal: ‘Long term I want a career as (career goal) because (give reason)’
What do you know about the job role and the day-to-day duties?
‘I have researched this role and understand the various job duties. The main focus of the role is (add duty: serving customers, administration, etc). This includes (breaking down the main duty into smaller tasks: for serving customers, this would be: asking for orders, double checking the order, and taking payment)These duties require (list skills: listening skills, communication skills, and an eye for detail).’
What skills do you have that are relevant to this position?
‘In high school, I was an active part in (describe clubs, projects, roles, or events) to help me develop my skill set. My key skills include (list skills) which are all relevant to this role. My key strength is (add strength) an example of using this is when I (describe situation) (state actions taken) (explain positive outcome)’
This role requires excellent communication skills, do you have an example of communicating with others?
‘Yes, one example is when I (describe situation) (state actions taken) (explain positive outcome). I believe that communication is a very important skill, that includes being a good listener as well as a good speaker.’
How would you fit in with the team?
‘I have always got on well with others. I am a hard worker, reliable, and a good communicator, and I think this is why I would fit in well with the team. I have worked in teams before, an example would be when I (describe situation) (state actions took) (explain positive outcome)’
How would you have trouble balancing work and studying at the same time?
‘No, I don’t think I would. Being a good timekeeper is key to balancing work and study. Because I have my college timetable in advance I know when I have availability to work. I also have quitter times during the year when the college is closed which means I will have more availability to work. I am also very flexible and if you need someone to cover a shift and I am free, I would be happy to step in.’
(for PT jobs) What hours can you work? (for FT jobs) Can you work overtime if needed?
‘I like to be as flexible as I can be, so if you need me to work overtime and I’m not in college that day I would be able to work. Currently, my college timetable is (state days/hours) which means I’m available for work during (state days/hours)’
Do you have a recent example of being reliable?
‘Yes, of course, I have been a part of a (club, group, project) for X (number of months/years). This required me to be reliable, a good timekeeper, and to be self-motivated. As part of this (club, group, project) I had to be (explain how you were required to be at a certain place(s) at a certain time(s)). I managed this by putting events on my calendar, having phone alerts, and generally by being well organised’
What do you prefer, doing things your own way or following orders?
‘I can work in both ways. When I was in high school I was given a task that required me to follow orders (explain the task) (describe actions you took) (and give a positive outcome). An example of working on my own was when I (describe situation) (state actions took) (explain positive outcome)’
Do you have any questions for us?
‘What training is available for new staff members?’
‘How would you describe the culture of the company?’
‘Why do you like working here?’
