Sharpen your English job interview skills in a private, customized job interview preparation course.
You are unique! You have a unique job history, education and personality. In a good job interview, you share those qualities with the interviewer. But can you share – in English – who you really are and what you “bring to the table?” Why you are the right person to fill this particular job vacancy?
| Private or Group? | private |
| Level | intermediate and above |
| Trainer | native-speaker professional |
| Course duration | flexible |
| Day and time | flexible |
| Appointments | 3 ninety-minute sessions |
| Number of participants | 1 |
| Tests | Level test and idiom test included |
| Interactive video | recommended but not included |
| Course certificate | not applicable |
| Location | live online or in classroom |
Can you comfortably and intelligently answer these English job interview questions?
• Tell us about yourself
• Why are you the right person for this job?
• What are your professional strengths? Weaknesses?
• What is your leadership style at work?
• What kind of team player are you?
• Where do you see your career in 10 years?
• What do your colleagues say about you?
Research shows that communication skills and confidence are key factors in winning a new job.
Research shows that employers often choose confidence over competence, and communication over core professional skills. That means that your great education, high intelligence and solid work history may not be enough to win over your interviewer, because she is judging how well you will fit on her team. She already likes your CV, or you would not be there! Now she is trying to get a sense of your personality and communication style.
In your employment interview, listening is job #1!
The number one skill for an interviewee is not speaking, it’s listening. You must be a good listener in order to answer questions accurately. And that means being calm and attentive. And of course you have to have enough vocabulary, grammar and idiom to know exactly what is being said and asked. Only then can you give appropriate answers.
But what about speaking? How fluent are you? Can you find your words?
Your interviewer will observe your fluency. If you often pause to find the words you need to complete your sentences, your interviewer will know that your access to productive (spoken) English is not great. The interviewer will conclude that you will be the same with colleagues and clients. If you have spoken English fluency issues, you may want to consider a longer English course to really build your vocabulary and fluency.
Do you have the functional and social English you need for a good job interview?
Can you effectively “meet and greet,” describe, discuss, agree, disagree, ask smart questions and tell your career story – in English? Do you know how long to “hold the floor” (to speak?) Remember that a good job interview is a good conversation (with special rules and goals, of course.) So you may want to start with learning how to be a good conversationalist before you tackle the actual interview!
Read more about the “Fine Art of Conversation” here.
In the job interview, can you give examples (little stories) that bring your professional strengths to life?
In a job interview, it is not enough to say that you are a team player or that you are a good leader. You have to have an example ready to share. If you are not a natural storyteller and you don’t like to talk about yourself, you need to learn the skill of “business storytelling.”
Do you have a strong accent? Do people often ask you to repeat yourself?
If the answer is yes, you may want to get some accent reduction training. It is not fair, but people will judge you more negatively is your accent is strong, even if your grammar and fluency are perfect! You can read more about accent training here.
Are you unsure about your business English level?
Take our free English level test now.
Or try our free Business English test now. It is quite challenging!
Your English job interview preparation course can include
• Planning your answers to the most common interview questions
• Rehearsing / role playing those answers until they sound natural
• Small talk: social business English
• Timing and reciprocity
• Talking about yourself: what to say and what to leave out
• Lots of speaking practice (with corrections)
• Discussion: agreeing and disagreeing
• Diplomatic Language
• Body language
More career help for job seekers preparing for English language employment interviews
In addition to your teacher contact hours, we suggest online video Business English courses.
We can also assist with job solicitation letters, CV’s/resumes and letters of motivation. Would you like to work on your business English writing skills? Or do you need editing/translation services for professional profile content? Contact us about preparing for your upcoming English job interview.
Call The English Center +31 20 823 0569. We are happy to speak with you in English or Dutch. We specialize in focused business English for career minded people like you.
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