Smashing The Degree Apprenticeship Interview
Let’s imagine you have completed the initial stage of an application process, and you succeeded! After this point, you will partake in at least one interview. In this article in my “Journey To Becoming A Degree Apprentice” series, I will be answering these questions you may have:
🤔 What are the different formats of an interview that I may experience?
🤔 What tips do you have for digital interviews?
🤔 What tips do you have for face-to-face interviews?
🤔 What tips do you have for interviews in general?
🤔 What are the Different Formats of an Interview That I May Experience?
Interviews come in a few different formats, including:
· 🤝 Face-To-Face
· 📞 Telephone
· 💻 Video Conferencing Platforms, such as Zoom
· ⏺ Digital Interview
You may be wondering what I mean by a digital interview, especially given I mentioned video conferencing platforms! What I mean by a digital interview is one where you can complete it in your own time before a deadline, and there’s not a person on the other side asking you the questions. Instead, the questions are shown on the screen, you have some time to prepare, and then you have some time to answer the question.
I personally have completed two types of interviews: face-to-face and digital. I have tips for these specific types, but some of the tips I provide could also be applied to interviews in general. I got some of these tips from the code camp I went to, so thank you Kainos!
🤔 What Tips Do You Have for Digital Interviews?
· 💪 Practice!!!
When I gave a description of what a digital interview is above, you may have thought it sounded a little odd! When you think of an interview, perhaps you typically think of arranging a date and time for an interview and someone being on the other side asking you questions when you’re doing it! Before you do the actual interview, I definitely recommend finding some practice digital interviews online and/or making use of the ones the company may send to you to get a feel for what they’re like. That will help you to feel like you haven’t been thrown into the deep end when you do it! It would also be worth finding some examples of interview questions before you do a digital interview so you would have an idea on how to answer them if they came up — in fact that could apply for any type of interview!
· ⏳ Keep an Eye on the Time
Bear in mind that your answers will have a time limit in the digital interview, so keep an eye on the time when you’re answering a question or completing a task, such as a mock telephone call or email. Don’t try to make too many points, otherwise you risk being cut off as you’re giving an answer (I made this mistake!). Prioritise the points you want to make, it’s more important that you have some good points opposed to loads of points — quality over quantity. Be careful not to rush though, make sure that you’ve read the information and understood it properly, meaning you can answer the question or complete the task to the best of your ability.
🤔 What Tips Do You Have for Face-To-Face Interviews?
💭Let’s imagine you’re going for a face-to-face interview💭
· 👨💼👩💼Talk to the Receptionist!
You are at the workplace and you go into the building. The building is likely to have a receptionist! You would obviously have to say who you are, what you’re there for and who you will be seeing. While you’re in reception, talk to the receptionist if they’re not busy. It will help you to settle more when you’re in there because it takes your mind off the interview a bit, and the receptionist may mention that you spoke to them before the interview and made a good impression! It might also be worth striking a conversation with the interviewer too to demonstrate some confidence!
· 🥤 Ask for Water!
When you’re in reception or at the start of the interview, ask for water. I found this to be a good tip to have because when I was asked a question and I wasn’t sure how to answer straight away, taking a sip of water from the glass helped me to have a little time to think of my answer, and it didn’t feel awkward, unlike if I sat in silence or umming and arring, so I felt a bit more comfortable.
By taking a sip of water, it also helped to slow me down and prevent me from rushing the answers — there is really no need to rush!
Also, remember the fact you’ll be doing a lot of talking in the interview, so it is important to stay hydrated!
· 🧍♂️🧍♀️ Consider Body Language
When you’re in the interview, consider your body language. Make sure it is open, no folded arms, and smile! Look keen about doing the degree apprenticeship (which I hope you do naturally anyway!). Employers will be looking for someone who is enthusiastic and willing to learn, it’s not about being a genius. If you’re willing to learn, you will learn, and you will need positive energy when you interact with people.
🤔 What Tips Do You Have for Interviews in General?
· 👔 Dress Appropriately
Make sure you dress appropriately for the interview. The company may give you a dress code, so stick to this if they do! If they don’t, either have a look at their social media or website to get an idea of what their dress code is or ask the interviewer/employer yourself. It may be worth getting a second opinion to double check you would be making a good impression.
· 🔍 Research
Do some research before the interview. It is common for the question “what do you know about us” to come up in some form, especially at the start. If you can’t answer that question, that isn’t going to set you up very well, you don’t have much time to change your first impression! By having an understanding of the employer, it shows that you are making the effort, and it also helps you to get an idea of if the employer and apprenticeship is right for you too!
· 📒 Take A Notebook!
Have a notebook with you when you are at the interview. Note the questions you wish to ask, and definitely think of some questions because an interview isn’t just about the employer getting to know you, it’s about you getting to know them too! Having a notebook with you will give you somewhere to make notes during the interview and especially when you ask them questions, demonstrating your keenness for the apprenticeship! If you have any projects that you wish to share with the employer, take a laptop with you or put the projects online.
· 📄 Know Your CV
Make sure you know your CV and have it with you when you are doing the interview. The interviewer may refer to it or ask questions about it, so make sure you are aware of what you have put on there and you would be able to talk about it (hence why I said in my previous article about only putting your strongest skills on there!).
· 🌟 Follow STAR
When you give answers, structure them using STAR — situation, task, action, and result. For the situation, give some context of the scenario, and then move onto what needed to be done for the task. Then talk about the what you did, followed by the result of this action. As part of the result, talk about what you learnt. It doesn’t matter if something didn’t go to plan, admit that it didn’t and talk about what you would do differently in future. Keeping to this structure can help you stick to the point and not waffle 🧇!
· ❓ When You’re Unsure of an Answer…
If you don’t know how to answer a question or complete a task, ask if they can repeat the question again. There’s nothing wrong with that. If you are still unsure, it’s better that you are honest and say so opposed to trying to bluff it. If you try to bluff it, the employer will probably notice, and it will be clear that you don’t know what you’re talking about. Remember that companies value honesty, and it’s okay not to know something! When you are in the workplace, there will be things you don’t know, and then you’ll have to research and find the answer. Don’t feel that you have to know EVERYTHING already!
· 👐 BE YOURSELF
As cliché as this will sound, the final piece of advice I would give to someone who is about to do an interview is to just BE YOURSELF. It’s completely understandable if you are nervous about doing an interview, I certainly was! You’re applying to do a degree apprenticeship, so they’re not going to expect you to know everything, they’re more so looking to see if you are the right person in terms of 💫PERSONALITY 💫 and they will help to get you the skills you need.
One Final Note…
I hope this article has helped you if you are doing an interview for a degree apprenticeship soon, a lot of these tips could also be applied to an interview for any kind of job! Feel free to leave any questions or thoughts in the comments below. If you are an apprentice or employer, I would really appreciate it if you could leave any advice regarding this topic too!
