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6 common graduate interview mishaps you MUST avoid

07 Mar 2012No Comments

There’s no better feeling than when you receive that phone call from your dream employer, inviting you to meet them for an interview. It means that you’re the catch on paper – they’ve reviewed your CV and you’ve already been recognized as a potential candidate for the role. Now it’s time for you to impress them with your professional and personable demeanor, and by expanding on the key achievements your CV highlights.

The last thing you want to do is fluff up your interview by making a little but costly mistake. There are common interview mistakes that many inexperienced graduates make, carrying out anyone of these is likely to hurt your chances of getting the job. Here are 6 mistakes and our advice on how to avoid them.

1. The dress code

It’s true what they say, most people will make their judgment of you within the first few seconds of meeting you, and therefore the first impressions you give off mean everything. An employer is no different and if in the first few seconds you’ve given off a negative vibe, you’ll be spending the rest of your interview convincing them of anything otherwise.

Following this, wearing wrinkled or stained clothing will not go unnoticed – even if the stain you have is small and in one place, it’ll destroy the entire look and if nothing else convinces onlookers that you lack attention to detail. If you do not take pride in your self and your appearance, your employer will assume that you may not take pride in the presentation of your work and how you present yourself as part of the company brand, this is never an idea you want to plant in your potential employers mind.

Though it may seem obvious to state, it’s commonly forgotten that the dress code for any job interview is always smart – regardless of whether the position you’re applying for is in the creative industry or in the financial, by dressing smartly you’re playing the safe game.

2. Preparation and anticipation

While you don’t want the answers to your interview questions to come across rehearsed and generic, you should always go over and study a list of prepared potential interview questions well ahead of your interview so that you come across confident and prepared. There are common questions that employers will ask graduates because your lack of work experience makes it difficult for employers to ask specific questions tailored to your work history. By drafting a few pre –prepared answers to these questions, you’re ensuring that you won’t be caught off guard and have to think on the spot.

It’s also important to know your CV thoroughly. You employer will expect you to expand on and explain the details that you’ve listed on your CV. This is your chance to sell yourself and your skills. Always try to use the following logical structure when answering questions in relation to your CV and limited work experience: What you did and your role in this, how you achieved this and why this achievement or skill was necessary for the overall role and how it will be beneficial to the job position you’re interviewing for.

3. Honesty is the best policy

Following on from the previous point, you should always be truthful in an interview about your previous work history and about anything you are asked about in an interview. You are being interviewed because the employer believes that you have the skills to carry out the job adequately, you need to go in and reassure them of this fact. Don’t try and over complicate matters by lying in an attempt to over sell yourself, it will only be a matter of time until the truth is exposed and your reputation tarnished.

4. Keep your eyes on the prize

Be attentive. If the employer can see that you’re not listening to what you’re being asked, you’re conveying to them that you’re not very interested in the role and in the questions being asked. If you’re not listening attentively to the interviewer, it shows that you will probably not be very good at following directions if hired for the role. Avoid this at all costs by engaging with the interviewer with eye contact, making sure you smile and look positive and nod to show the interviewer that you’re processing everything that you are being asked.

We all know what it’s like to be a young graduate, you’ve relied on your student loan for the past few years to see you though and now you’re in desperate need to start earning. Though your interviewer will probably appreciate this, don’t jump the gun regarding salary. If your interviewer asks you about it first then be sure to enter into negotiations based on your employment history and skills, but do not bring up the topic first, you need to introduce this factor at the right time – when the employer is certain they want you and only you for the job, else it could be the breaking factor between yourself and another equally competent applicant willing to work at the lower wage. If it looks to your employer that you’re only interested in money not in the role or being part of the company, it will most likely dampen your chances of getting hired for the position.

5. The gossip

In an attempt to bond with your employer, do not be tempted to talk badly about a former boss or place of employment. It will not go down well and could leave the interviewer questioning how you would talk about them to others if you were offered the role. Also, it’s highly unlikely that you know the interviewer very well, and if you’re looking for a job in the same industry as your previous role, it could very well be that your interviewer knows your previous employer, so it’s best to keep your personal business personal and keep all bridges un-burnt.

6. Punctuality

It’s very obvious to state that you should be on time for your interview, yes you should have the right directions and allow plenty of travel time, factoring in possible traffic delays, to get to your interview, but chances are you already know this. What most graduates don’t consider is that if, due to exceptional circumstances, you are going to be late, you can and you should call up the interviewer and let them know in advance so that they’re not wasting their time waiting for you to arrive.

Hopefully these tips will be very useful to you and will help you out in landing your graduate role. If you need some additional help or have anything to add to our list, leave a comment in the space below, alternatively tweet us @grad_central or post on our Facebook wall.

If you’re a graduate searching for your ideal graduate role, see all our West Midlands graduate vacancies here.

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Graduates and LinkedIn

30 Nov 2011No Comments

Most graduates do not appreciate the value of LinkedIn. The response I get from most graduates when I ask if they use it, is either they’ve never heard of it, or “ Isn’t it just Facebook, but for old people?”.

It isn’t.

LinkedIn is used by thousands of professionals for networking; it is more of a formal social networking site than Facebook and so should be approached in a different manner. LinkedIn is centered around users’ skills, experience and career progression. These elements make LinkedIn an extremely useful tool for any graduate on the hunt for a graduate job opportunity.

LinkedIn gives graduates the opportunity to directly sell themselves to employers they’d like to attract through demonstrating their capabilities via participation in group discussions and offering possible solutions to questions posted by members. By getting involved with discussions and asking for and giving opinions on relevant and contemporary issues, a graduate can build their credibility, expertise and ensure they get noticed. Considering that many executives, including those from all 2011 Fortune 500 companies are LinkedIn members, this social networking site should not be overlooked by both graduates and undergraduates alike.

Your LinkedIn profile should been seen as a real-time CV and so should always be kept up to date and relevant. It’s always important to keep in mind that the core principle LinkedIn is build upon is PROFESSIONAL networking, so when contributing to discussions, users should be aware that the tone and the language used must be professional; think carefully about spelling, grammar and content.

Being one of the first things a prospective employer will see on your profile, consider the image used for your profile picture. Would you prefer a potential employer to see you with a few friends after a few too many drinks, or in a professional looking environment? Your profile picture is likely to be one of the first impressions an employer will get of you, you want to be memorable, yet come across as a career minded, and respectable individual.

Graduates should also remember to personalise the URL for their profile page so that they can direct users to this page easily. Be it on a business card, twitter profile or in an email signature, a URL will be more impressive and easier to recall when customised.

In addition to the above points, taking advantage of the opportunity to display recommendations both from work and university colleagues is certain to strengthen a users profile.  So, where possible, for every position listed on your LinkedIn profile, request a recommendation from an appropriate connection.

The number of connections a graduate is likely to have won’t be particularly high, but that’s not a problem. It’s the quality of connections that matter rather than the quantity. Participating in groups is a great way to build online relationships with other users in your industry and it can be a great strategy to get yourself noticed by employers you want to attract – so make sure you do some research to see which groups they are active in, this should be visible on their profile page unless they’ve specified for them not to be. If you have in mind a particular company you want to work for then it’s recommended you follow their LinkedIn company page. This will put you in the know of any graduate job vacancies they’re like to have open, and the information you’ll have access to can give you great leverage to use in an interview.

From a LinkedIn company page a user can see all employees associated with the business, use this information to find out who the current employees have worked for previously.  Applying for jobs and internships at those firms can help you build up the work experience necessary to make a successful application to the agency of your choice, in the future.

These reasons are not the exclusive answers to why Graduates should be acquainted with LinkedIn but they certainly give an overview as to why it is imperative that they do. With the current situation of the job market being nothing short of dismal, graduates must do all they can to make themselves stand out as exceptional candidates for every graduate job vacancy posted.  Becoming an active member of the LinkedIn community in the industry of their interest is one way to establish themselves as one.

If you already have a profile on LinkedIn, it’s time to start building your presence! Join the Grad Central LinkedIn group and become part of our online community.

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Rosy Jones finishes her top tips for Graduate jobseekers..

22 Nov 2011No Comments

Always Always Always look at the company website before you start to complete any application form or CV.  Review the job they’re advertising and see which department it’s in (if you can)

(more…)

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Rosy Jones, FP Enterprises, gives her top tips for Graduates still looking for that crucial role..Pt1

14 Nov 2011No Comments

When you’re thinking of applying for your first job out of university, it’s pretty important that you represent yourself well.   Although companies are still hiring, they are looking for the best candidates that they can get, and at the moment it’s a buyers’ market.  So make sure you stand  out for all the right reasons. (more…)

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Why it’s great to start your career in Birmingham

21 Oct 2011No Comments

Results from a new major survey, Cushman & Wakefields European Cities Monitor (ECM) 2011, have revealed that Birmingham is still one of the best European cities for a business to locate to.

ECM, based on the views of more than 500 senior executives from the largest companies in Europe, positioned Birmingham as the 18th best European city in which to locate a business, and among the top 3 in Britain.

It’s no secret that Europe is currently facing many economic challenges; this news comes at a great time to demonstrate Birmingham’s growing role as a home to many of Europe’s leading corporations. Significant business expansion into the city include global investment bank, Deutsche Bank, opening its new offices in Birmingham city centre – a decision that has created over 500 jobs.

Another success for the West Midlands came earlier this year with Jaguar Land Rover’s announcement to build a new car production plant in the region. For Neil Rami, Chief Executive of Marketing Birmingham, this demonstrates “the confidence the private sector has in the city’s ability to deliver despite economically challenging times.”

The report also ranks the cities in terms of their ‘external transport links’. Birmingham improved by 4 places in this category, jumping from 10th to 6th place, undoubtedly due to the significant investment in redeveloping both New Street station and Birmingham Airport, making it easier for local commuters and foreign business people to travel in and out of the city.

With more graduates leaving universities each year, competition for graduate jobs is increasing. Business expansion into the region means more opportunities for graduates looking for jobs in the West Midlands and graduate jobs in Birmingham. If more multi national corporations follow the example set by Deutshe Bank and Jaguar Land Rover, graduates looking for entry points into large, well known businesses will no longer have to move to London to compete for a position, and more local talent will have these opportunities available to them.

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