English Interview

How to Answer Basic Interview Questions and Answers:

Traditional interview questions are questions that focus on your skills and value. These
kinds of questions are usually very descriptive. It gives the interviewer an idea of who you are,
and how you fit into the role and company at large.

Top 10 Common Interview Questions and Answers

1. Tell me about yourself

2. What do you consider to be your strength?
3. Can you tell us about your weakness?
4. Why are you leaving your current job? [For Job Interviews]
5. Why should we hire you? [or accept you in our University?]
6. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
7. Have you ever been forced to resign? [or leave a University?]
8. What do you like the least about your current job? [For Job Interviews]
9. How would your boss describe you? [or Professor]
10. Give me an example of an important goal which you had set in the past and tell me about
how you reached it.

“Tell me about yourself?”

These statements will guide your response to the question;

• Talk about who you are professionally. [Who you are]

• Highlight your competencies. [Competence and Highlights / What you can do]
• Talk about why you are here.

Do not say; “I am <your name>, I am from .., I attended ..”

“What are your strengths?”

To answer this question effectively, you will have to follow some of this formula;

• Assess your hard skills. [e.g; Problem Solving, Foreign language skills, Computer skills,
Academic Qualification]
• Assess your transferable skills. [e.g; Communication Skills, Leadership, Time management,
Adaptability]
• Assess your personal traits. [e.g; be Patient, Loyalty, Kindness, Self-control]
“Can tell us about your weaknesses?”
These statements will guide you to answer this question well;

•Be self-aware [Recognize your real weakness.] **Be careful when choosing a weakness so
that it does not affect you getting in.
• Be truthful [Talk about a real weakness.]
•Self-improvement/recovery: [State the effort that you are putting in to manage the weakness
that you stated.]

“Why should we hire you?” [or accept you in our University?]

Prove to the recruiter that;

a. You can perform the task excellently.

b. You will perfectly fit into the position and be a great addition to the team.
c. You possess the right skills and experiences that make you stand out from other candidates.
d. Hiring you will add a great deal of value to the company/university.

“Where do you see yourself in 5 years?”

Employers ask this question for two reasons;

a. The employer wants to know how long you plan to stay in the position.
b. The employer wants to know if your vision aligns with that of the company.

When recruiters ask “where do you see yourself in 5 years” they simply want to know your
career goals within the position.

Start with; “In 5 years, I would like to ..”

Preparations you should make before attempting to answer the question:

a. Know the long term goals that can grow from the position.
b. Do a good research on the company/university and the position to know; the career
path for the position, research if there are development opportunities, if there are interesting
projects that you would love to be a part of, and finally if you share the same values with the
organization.
“Have you ever been forced to resign?” [leave a University]
You should focus on:

• Tell the recruiter about what you have learned from the situation, and how the
experience has molded you into a better person.
• Show that you have made an effort to address the action that contributed to you
being fired.
• Always let the interviewer know that you have eliminated any action that may make
you face the same situation with a new employer.

Start with; “I was forced to resign/leave because ..”

“How would your last boss describe you?” [or Professor]

When employers/recruiters ask this question, they simply want to know what your strengths
and weaknesses are.

You should focus on;

a. Relate your answers to why you think you are a good fit for the position.
b. Don’t forget to state how you enjoyed working with your boss.

Start with; “My last boss would say that ..” / “My last boss would see me as ..”

“Give me an example of an important goal which you had set in the

past and tell me about your success in reaching it”

The STAR method;

Situation: You should start by describing the situation that you were or the task that you
needed to complete. You must describe a specific situation or event.
Task: Describe the goal that you were looking forward to achieving
Action: Describe the specific action that you took to address the situation. You are also
explaining the actions you took to reach your goals.
Result: You must be able to give the result of your actions using specific details. The
result is going to be an important part of your response because the interviewer asked about a
time that you achieved success.