Interview advice

Interviews are an opportunity for an employer to see if you are the right person for the job. It’s also an opportunity to make sure the company and the job are right for you. In order to make a good first impression, preparation is key!

You’ve been offered an interview! Congratulations!

Your next step is to ensure that you are well prepared for your interview. Being prepared will enable you to provide answers confidently and to demonstrate to the interviewer that you are interested in the role and have the knowledge you need to succeed.

Here are a few Health & Care Academy Tips to help you through.

To help make sure you’re prepared:

Make sure you know who to call in case you’re late for any reason.

Read the job description and person specification carefully. Be clear on the skills and qualities the employer is looking for as part of the role

Check the company website to find out more about its products or services and their plans for the future.

Go over your CV or application form and think about things the employer may ask you about.

Prepare some example answers that show you have the right skills, personal qualities and experience. Use the STAR method to create positive responses.

Practise your timings on presentations and keep a back-up copy just in case.

Ask someone you trust to help you practise answering questions.

Think of 2 or 3 questions of your own that you can ask at the end of your interview to show you’re enthusiastic about the job.

Pick out something suitable, smart and comfortable to wear to your interview.

Check what time you need to arrive for the interview and know the name of the person you need to see.

Make sure that you know how to get to where the interview is being held. Work out your public transport route or where you can park in advance and if there is time, practice the journey. Plan to arrive 5 to 10 minutes before the interview starts.

If you have a disability, you can ask for adjustments to be made to make the interview accessible for you.

You can get advice from Scope on how to ask for adjustments at an interview.

Arriving

Before you go into the interview:

  • Remember to turn your phone off.
  • Use breathing techniques to calm yourself if you are nervous– remember, a few nerves are normal.  See the advice here on how to stay calm: Staying Calm and Confident in Interviews – JobHelp
  • Smile and greet your interviewer with confidence.
  • Ask for some water if you need it.

The interview

In the interview, remember to:

  • Be polite and use the right language and tone for a formal situation.
  • Listen to the questions and think before you begin your answers.
  • Ask the interviewer to repeat or explain further if you do not understand a question.
  • Use the STAR method to answer questions about your skills and experience.
  • Be positive about your experiences. If you’ve faced difficult situations, talk about what you have learned from them.
  • Be honest and assertive.
  • Ask a couple of questions when you’re given the opportunity. Choose questions that make you sound keen. For example, “What opportunities are there for training with the company?” It’s best not to ask about pay or holidays at this stage.

At the end of the interview, thank the employer for their time. Tell them you’re looking forward to hearing from them.

After the interview

When you leave the interview, try to reflect on some of the harder questions you were asked – this can help you to prepare for future interviews.

Accepting a job

If you’re offered the job, let the company know in good time whether you want to accept the offer. You can also agree when you’ll start and find out what you’ll need to do on your first day.

Turning down a job

If you decide not to accept the job, turn it down but be polite. You may want to work for them in the future.

If you’re not successful

Get some interview practice. Ask friends, family, colleagues or a careers adviser to help.

If the employer does not offer you the job:

Try to be positive – this is a chance to learn from your experience and build your resilience.

Ask for feedback on your interview.

Think about the things that did not go so well and what you could do to improve next time.

Common Interview Questions

Employers use an interview to find out more about you and why you might want the role being offered. They are interested in why you might be the best person for the role and how your personality, skills and experience might fit in with their organisation.

How you answer questions during the interview will be key to them making a decision about whether or not they feel that you are a good fit for the role.

What you say in response to a question during an interview is important but it is also very important to remember to be confident and enthusiastic when you speak too.

You will never usually know what an interviewer might ask you during an interview but you can prepare yourself for the experience by knowing more about some of the common questions you may be asked and preparing positive responses for these.

Questions you may be asked could include:

  • Can you tell me a bit about yourself?
  • Why do you want to work here?
  • What do you consider are your strengths?
  • What do you find challenging?
  • How do you priorities your work?
  • How would you improve our product/service?
  • Tell me about your greatest achievement.
  • Can you give me an example of when you have had to cope with a difficult situation or person?
  • When have you taken responsibility?
  • What are your goals?
  • Do you have any questions for me?

Further information about the top 10 most common interview questions and how to answer them can be found here: How to answer common interview questions | National Careers Service.

What questions should I ask in an interview? – Alexis Roy

The STAR Method

The STAR method is a useful way of planning answers to interview questions to ensure that your responses demonstrate your skills and experience.

What is the Star Method?

STAR stands for:

  • Situation – The situation you had to deal with.
  • Task – The task you were given to do.
  • Action – The action you took.
  • Result – What happened as a result of your action. What did you learn from the experience?
Star Method Royalty-Free Images, Stock Photos & Pictures | Shutterstock

When to use the STAR Method

You can use the STAR Method when writing a CV, cover letter, application form, preparing for interview, in an interview and in a video interview.

How to use the STAR Method

Use the STAR Method to structure the responses that you provide to questions. When preparing for an interview, look at the job description or person specification that is provided and consider how you meet the skills and qualities required for the role.

When using the STAR Method, make sure you:

  • Give examples that relate to you – use your experiences, previous school, college or employment experiences or volunteering placements.
  • Keep your answers to an appropriate length – make sure you make your point.
  • Try and make your responses conversational rather than giving a prepared response which may seem rehearsed or robotic to the interviewer.
  • Expect some follow up questions once you have provided an example – make sure you are truthful in your responses.

The National Careers Service has some excellent example responses to STAR Method questioning and these can be found below:

Example 1 – leadership skills

Tell me about a time when you have shown leadership skills.

Situation – in my previous digital marketing job, the company wanted to get more people to sign up to a newsletter which was not receiving a lot of attention.

Task – my job was to find a way of getting more people to sign up.

Action – I organised a meeting with other members of the marketing team to come up with creative ideas, and I led the social media campaign to generate interest in the revamped newsletter.

Result – over a period of 3 months, there was an 25% increase in sign-ups to the newsletter and the approach I took was used by the management team in other departments.

Example 2 – teamwork

Tell me about a time you have worked as part of a team?

Situation – when I was at school, I was part of the netball team. We needed to raise funds to buy more equipment for the team.

Task – my job was to work with the rest of the team to set up a bake sale to raise money.

Action – I took the lead and found out who wanted to help with the bake sale. I then held a meeting so we could work out dates and what tasks each person would do. I made sure that we were all clear what our role was and everyone who wanted to, got a chance to get involved.

Result – the bake sale was a success due to the team all pulling together. We raised £200 and were able to buy new equipment for the netball team.

Example 3 – problem solving

Give me an example of when you faced a problem at work. How did you handle it?

Situation – I was working in a florist shop with the manager and we were arranging an order of flowers for 2 weddings. The manager, who had taken the order, had mixed up the customers’ addresses and the flowers were delivered to the wrong venues.

Task – I had to get the flowers to the right place and apologise to the customers.

Action – I told my boss that I would deal with the mistake, leaving her to take care of the shop. I spoke to both customers on the telephone to explain, and reassured them that we would put things right straight away. I drove to both venues, swapped the flowers in time and apologised in person. I gave both customers a voucher for a bouquet as compensation.

Result – The customers were grateful that we had acted quickly. Later on, they both came back to the shop to spend their vouchers and have since recommended us to their friends.

National Careers Service 2024:

The STAR method | National Careers Service (opens in new tab)

Practice for an Online Interview

The Greater Essex Careers Hub have prepared practice resources to support those preparing for an online interview process. The session focuses on a role in healthcare and is a real job role with questions asked by a real Essex employer. The employer follows each question with tips and advice on how to answer the questions well.

How to use this resource

Play the video, pause when instructed to make notes on the accompanying worksheet.

Download the worksheet Online interview practice – Worksheet

We recommend watching the full video first before answering the questions.

Health and Social Care: Online interview – Care UK

Other Helpful Interview Resources

Job Interview Tips! (10 Tips for passing any interview)

Top Interview Tips: Common Questions, Nonverbal Communication and More | Indeed:

Further Information and Support

Do you struggle with interviews and need support with a pending NHS or Social Care interview?

You are invited to attend a Health & Care Academy pre-interview support session with our Pre-Employment Coordinator.

Here we run, group or 1-2-1 sessions on Teams, which will further enhance your interview preparation.

We will cover interview response techniques, how to review your own skills, competencies, transferable skills and help you feel more confident and energised.

This service is open and inclusive to all. Please contact our Pre-Employment support team using [email protected] to gain support.

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