Resources

Practice Interview Example

Choose roles and act out the following script. Depending on the size of the group, you might play multiple roles.

• Narrator

• Facilitator

• David (Interviewer)

• Jennifer (Job seeker)

• Group Member 1

• Group Member 2

• Group Member 3

Imagine you are looking in on a self-reliance group about to do the practice interview activity.

Facilitator: So to get started with our practice interviews, it looks like we need two volunteers—one will be the interviewer, and one will be the job seeker. Any volunteers?

David: I’ll try being the interviewer for this round.

Jennifer: I’ll be the job seeker. Might as well go first.

Facilitator: Great! Before you come up to the front, Jennifer, can you quickly tell us about the job you are interested in?

Jennifer: Sure. I am interested in a position as a teller at a local bank.

Facilitator: Thank you. Now, both of you please come up to the front to begin the practice interview. David, remember you have a script and sample questions to follow as the interviewer.

Continue to next page.

David (interviewer): Welcome, Jennifer. I am looking forward to visiting with you. Please, have a seat.

Jennifer (job seeker): Thank you.

David (interviewer): Jennifer, to begin, could you please tell me a little about yourself?

Jennifer (job seeker): I would be happy to. I have always enjoyed working with customers. I have over six years of customer service experience, including three with another financial institution. In each of my previous positions, I have quickly developed a reputation for dependability and accuracy. For example, at ABC Bank, I was asked to perform the daily audit after just one month on the job. In addition, I hold an associate’s degree in accounting studies. I am confident my experience and skills will be a good match for your needs.

David (interviewer): Thank you. Can you please tell me about a problem you solved?

Jennifer (job seeker): Yes. When I was a teller with ABC Bank, I was processing our nightly deposit, and it was short several thousand dollars. I counted it two more times to be certain. Our deposit had never been off by that much. I talked with the other tellers and followed our processes to verify their transactions. I was able to discover an error by one of the tellers. We worked together and quickly corrected the error. As a result, we had a balanced deposit and it was a learning opportunity for the teller. I believe my problem-solving skills will help this bank as well.

David (interviewer): Thank you. Can you tell me why you left your last position?

Continue to next page.

Jennifer (job seeker): Thank you for asking me. I enjoyed my time at ABC Bank and gained valuable experience there. I recently relocated to this area to further pursue my education. As a result, I had to leave my position. However, I was very pleased to find an opportunity where I could put my skills and experience to work again. I plan on being here for several years. Did that answer your question?

David (interviewer): Yes. Thank you. Jennifer, do you have any questions for me?

Jennifer (job seeker): I do. Can you tell me what a typical day is like in this position?

David (interviewer): Sure. The majority of your time will be spent interacting with our customers. We have several who come into the bank each day as well as those who use the drive-through. You will also help promote other financial products, like checking accounts or loans. You mentioned balancing deposits, which is another daily duty.

Jennifer (job seeker): Thank you. Working with customers was one of my favorite things about my previous position.

David (interviewer): Good. Do you have any other questions?

Jennifer (job seeker): No. Thank you for the opportunity to visit with you. I look forward to hearing from you.

David (interviewer): I enjoyed our visit as well. We will be in touch. Thank you.

Narrator: David and Jennifer breathe a sigh of relief and turn and smile to the rest of the group. The group claps for them.

Jennifer: Okay, everyone, how did I do?

Continue to next page.

Group Member 1: Jennifer, I thought you did so many things right. For example, when David asked you to tell him about yourself, you nailed it with a good Me in 30 Seconds. It was related to the job, not too long or too short, and you even slipped a short example in there to develop credibility. Nice job!

Jennifer: Wow, I guess I did do that! Thanks. What else?

Group Member 2: I liked that you used a power statement to answer David’s question about solving a problem. You shared an example of fixing a deposit. I do wonder if there are other examples of tougher problems you might have solved, though. Was the deposit a common problem?

Jennifer: You are right. It was definitely related to the bank’s needs, but deposit issues were common. I will work on a power statement related to a tougher problem, since I might see that question again. This is great. What other feedback do you have?

Group Member 3: Nice work on turning a negative to a positive on leaving your last job. I bet the employer would be worried about you sticking around for them too. You told them you planned on being there for several years. I think that helped them feel more comfortable.

Jennifer: Thank you.

David: I noticed something you might want to work on.

Jennifer: Oh, good. What was it?

Continue to next page.

David: At the end of the interview, when I asked if you had questions, your first question was great. However, I noticed you didn’t ask about how to follow up or about how or when the employer was going to make a decision. I remember that was some advice from closing the interview effectively—that we should try to figure out how we can follow up. It sort of puts some of this in our control, instead of just waiting to hear back.

Jennifer: You are right! I was so happy that I had remembered to ask any questions that I completely forgot that. I’ll have to keep practicing. Anything else?

Group Member 1: Don’t forget to send David a thank-you card right away!

Jennifer: Good idea. Okay, now it is my turn to be the interviewer, and I get to choose the next person. Olivia, would you like to come up next? I promise to be nice!

Back to page 134.

The Job Seeker

Pretend you are in an interview for the position in the job posting you brought with you today or a job you are interested in.

• Before you begin the interview, share with the group a brief description of the job.

• The interviewer will then welcome you and begin the interview.

• Answer the interviewer’s questions using your interview skills.

• Once your practice is done, ask for feedback from the group.

• After the feedback discussion, switch to the interviewer role and choose the next person to be interviewed.

For instructions on how to play the interviewer, go to page 144.

For instructions on how to play the feedback group, go to page 145.

Back to page 134.

The Interviewer

After the job seeker has described the job to the group, follow this script.

• Greet the interviewer, shake hands, and ask the job seeker to have a seat. Sit down. Thank him or her for coming to interview.

• Ask question 1: “Tell me a little about yourself.”

• Ask question 2: (Choose a question from the “Sample Interview Questions” list below.)

• Ask question 3: (Choose a question from the “Sample Interview Questions” list below.)

• Ask question 4: “Do you have any questions for me?” (You can make up answers to the job seeker’s questions.)

• Thank the job seeker for his or her time. Let the job seeker know you will get back to him or her with your decision.

Sample Interview Questions

• Tell me about a time you disagreed with a supervisor and how you handled it.

• Tell me about a difficult problem you solved.

• What are your strengths?

• What is your greatest professional achievement?

• Tell me about a failure you experienced at work and what you learned from it.

• What type of supervisor do you work best with?

• What do you expect from us as an employer for you to be successful?

• Why do you want this job?

• Why should we hire you?

• What qualifies you for this position?

• What is your greatest weakness?

• Why did you leave your last position? Or why are you considering leaving your current position?

For instructions on how to play the job seeker, go to page 143.

For instructions on how to play the feedback group, see the section below.

Back to page 134.

The Feedback Group

Your role is to provide feedback.

• Observe how the job seeker does. Watch for what he or she does well and what can be improved. The feedback prompts below will help you know what to watch for.

• At the end of the interview, the job seeker will ask for feedback. Share what you observed.

Feedback Prompts

• Did the person make a good first impression by shaking hands and greeting the interviewer?

• How was the job seeker’s body language throughout the interview?

• Did the job seeker use his or her Me in 30 Seconds? Was it relevant to the job? Was it too long or too short?

• Did the job seeker use power statements to answer the interview questions?

• Was there an opportunity to turn a negative into a positive? How did the job seeker do this?

• Did the job seeker ask questions at the end?

• Did the job seeker determine what the next steps were and how to follow up?

For instructions on how to play the job seeker, go to page 143.

For instructions on how to play the interviewer, go to page 144.

Back to page 134.

Practice Makes Perfect

Henry shares how practice helped him have great interviews.

“I went through five rounds of interviews to get my job. Each one was tough, but I was prepared. It would be easy to lose focus, or leave out important info about myself, but like I say, I prepared … I think I overprepared! Some of my interviews were by phone, others by video, and the final one was in person. To prepare for each interview, I practiced with others. I would give them questions I was anticipating an interviewer would ask and they would grill me to see how I would react. When it came to the actual interviews, I had practiced for nearly every question. It made a tremendous difference in my confidence. I used Me in 30 Seconds, power statements, and other skills, and I know that was what set me apart. The company knew I would do a good job for them because I could demonstrate my previous success, and I was good under pressure.

“One of the most important aspects of my preparation was prayer. I asked Heavenly Father to help me be prepared and calm. I did my part through practice, and I know He helped me because I showed faith. I know my success came because I put in the effort to practice and prepare for my interviews.”

Back to page 135.