The New York Times recently posted an article offering tips on how to do well during an online job interview. A lot of useful tips are shared in the article but one in particular caught our attention.
The article recounts the experience of Emily Chang, which is excepted below.
Each Experience Helps Prepare You for the Next
Emily Chang, a recent graduate of Duke University, interviewed with 10 companies by phone or video before recently accepting an offer to work as a researcher for Rubius Therapeutics, a cell therapy biotechnology company in Cambridge, Mass. She said she was nervous when she began interviewing and after each interview would “think of something that could have been done better and file it away for the next time.”
Emily's experience of improving progressively after each interview is not unique. Frequently, candidates will find that the more they interview, generally the more comfortable and confident they are, which helps lead to better results.
This particular insight is useful in at least two ways. First, if you are interviewing with a number of firms, all things equal, it it a good suggestion to interview with the firms that you are really interested in later in your recruiting process that way you can improve based on your earlier interview experiences. Of course, you may not have control over scheduling, but if you can shape your interview schedule a bit, this is something to consider.
Second, is just the general importance of interview practice, which everyone knows, but most don't actually do anything about. Find friends or classmates to interview with or use an interview platform like Sherpa Careers to gain interview practice repetitions. In our experience, people perform well in interviews because they have prepared and they have practiced, which everyone can do if they are disciplined and motivated.