Job Interviewing Continues ... (With Interview Questions)

On Thursday, I went on another job interview. I am applying for everything I can, just to build my interview experience. This interview, in my opinion, was a little more difficult than the one I had in the previous week. The questions were more about my interaction with the patrons, not necessarily work relationship with supervisors.

Here are some sample questions from the interview:

What was the last nonfiction book you read?

Will you be able to hold up the library’s policy of a censorship free environment?

If a patron asks for controversial material that you are not comfortable with or disagree with, will you be able to help them?

How many times in the last year have you had to call out for work?

Will you be able to work around these ____ days and hours?

What sets you apart from other applicants that we might interview?

If a patron has a research paper on a certain topic that they are not excited about, how would you go about helping them?

How would you help a patron research the tea party movement?

I had to rate my skills on several software programs on a scale of 1 – 10 and explain why.

I know a lot of my peers are going out on interviews and several people have mentioned what are some key things I do that sets me apart from others.

1. Laughter. I am a firm believe that getting people to laugh with you will leave them with an overall positive impression of you.
2. Smile. Another key factor is having a warm smile. This aspect is important, not just for interviews, but for every day life.
3. Sell yourself! I try to be modest, but when I interview, I know that I have to be a salesperson and the product I am selling is me.
4. Be honest. If you lie in an interview and they end up hiring you, they are going to find out that you initially lied about your experience/knowledge.
5. Before hand I prepare a set of questions that I want to ask my interviewers if given the opportunity.
6. I also try to think about what questions they might ask me. If I know what department I am interviewing for, I will research all the books that I have read in this genre, along with the popular choices at this moment.

I hope this helps anyone who is applying for a job. I know that this time, especially with graduation looming, can be very frightful and scary, but the important things to remember are to keep applying and keep putting yourself out there! Also, network! Your colleagues have been in this position before. Talk with them about it. I have asked several of my co-workers, friends, and really anyone I can find about their job searching experience. Another key factor is to decide what you want! Think about the things that are a requirement for you to have in a job. Salary? Benefits? Location? Hours? It is important to know what you want.