Archive for the ‘CV & Interview Tips’ category

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How to write a stand out CV with little to no experience – guest blog

August 23rd, 2011

Guest Post written by Sachin Shah, Director of International at www.SimplyHired.co.uk

Recent graduates are often faced with this problem: you need experience to get a job, but you need a job to get experience. Getting your CV to stand out from the hundreds of other graduates is challenging with little to no work experience under your belt. To compete, you’ll need to show a future employer what you have that the others don’t.

You may have more experience than you think. Making a list of everything you have done and what you learnt from each activity is an excellent way to remind yourself about the amount of transferable skills you have. Your CV needs to be professional as a graduate, but coursework, volunteer opportunities, summer jobs and even involvement in extra-curricular activities can show what skills you already hold; even singing in your university choir can give you some great transferable skills. Here are four ways to identify your transferable skills and build out your CV!

1. Coursework

If you took part in research as part of your degree at university and it‘s relevant to the job you’re looking for, include this on your CV. You may not have hands on experience, but your research will show that you have background knowledge that other applicants may not.

2. Summer Jobs

Summer jobs of any sort will have transferable skills. You may not think that your brief summer job at the local restaurant will help you when you start your job search.  However, when you work in a restaurant you will learn great customer service skills; working as waiting or bar staff is all about making the customer happy. Many roles involve you dealing with clients who will want the same treatment as someone eating at a restaurant – great service and meeting their demands!

3. Volunteering

It is very attractive to potential employers to see that you’re the type of person who is interested in contributing to the greater good. Volunteering will teach you skills such as team work and allow you to get a sense of work place environments. Having different volunteering initiatives on your CV also shows that you are proactive and aren’t treating graduation as a long-term holiday.

4. Extra-Curriculars

Extra-curricular activities are a confusing area when it comes to your CV. Graduates may not think it, but even being in a choir or a member of a sports team are great activities to include when job hunting for the first time. They show you have commitment; creativity and that you can work well with a team. These are great transferable skills and including these experiences on your CV will show a prospective employer that you have great background knowledge and specific skills, even if you’ve never spent time working in an office.

For more job search tips and advice, visit blog.SimplyHired.co.uk and begin your job search on www.SimplyHired.co.uk.

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Don’t overlook skills from a temporary job

August 12th, 2011

If you have you graduated this summer and are currently updating your CV then make sure you don’t discount any work experience you have already accrued. This may be a summer or weekend job that has nothing to do with your degree or field of interest, but you will have  gained important skills that are transferable to positions within your chosen career path.

You may have taken temporary work simply in order to fund your studies or while you look for your first graduate internship or job, but don’t overlook the invaluable skills it will have taught you. In almost all positions you will be required to work in teams, communicate with others and use your initiative to solve problems. Employers regard these soft skills very highly. It also proves to future employers that you have the motivation to find a job during your holidays as well as a strong work ethic. If you have maintained a job during your studies then this shows that you have great time-management and organisational skills.

When updating your CV, writing cover letters, and preparing for interviews don’t overlook the experience you picked up through your part-time job.  You need to think about how the skills you have learnt can be transferred to the role you are applying for. You should then use examples of when you have put these skills into practice in your cover letter or at an interview: e.g. “I showed initiative when developing a process to streamline customer ordering process, which increased the restaurants overall efficiency.”

If you have spent summers working in a restaurant then you will have learnt great customer service skills as this role is all about making the customer happy. In many roles this skill is invaluable as you may have clients or managers requiring great service and meeting their demands.

You may have spent every Saturday since your were 16 working in a clothes shop or supermarket which means you are sitting on a wealth of experience. Working within retail helps you develop some impressive traits: not only unbelievable customer service and team work but handling stock and dealing with money on a daily basis. When applying for a job in areas such as merchandising, buying, selling and even marketing then employers will be happy to see retail work on your CV as it will prove that you have certain brand awareness.

Perhaps you spend your summers volunteering, which can provide some amazing skills. For example if you are working with children you will be able to prove your leadership skills by taking charge of groups of kids. You will have to use initiative and creativity to keep them excited and engaged, and this will help you in the future when you need to produce exciting ideas for projects at work. By volunteering you will also prove to a potential employer  that you are happy to help others in your own time.

Therefore don’t neglect the skills you have gained from a temporary job. Any experience is good experience even if you don’t think it is relevant to your chosen career path. Employers think very highly of soft skills but make sure you tailor the experience to the job you are applying for.

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A simple redesign of your CV – guest blog

July 14th, 2011

Written by Bill Post, Small Business Research Analyst.

Ever read a huge stack of CVs? Believe me, it’s difficult. When vetting candidates with similar interests, backgrounds and qualifications, the information often starts to run together. Particularly in this difficult job market, when CVs are pouring in to employers in record numbers, many recruiters are having difficulty distinguishing among a pool of really well qualified applicants. Therefore, any internship or job seekers who haven’t spent a great deal of time working on the content and the look of their CVs are making a terrible mistake. Because your CV is your chance to make a good first impression with a prospective employer, if your CV doesn’t put your best foot forward, chances are you won’t make the cut. But you don’t have to be a design expert or a graphic artist to churn out a first class CV. Some very simple design techniques can enhance the quality of most any CV.

Selecting the Paper

Although some employers now accept CVs electronically, others will expect a hard copy. For those that you mail out, selecting the paper on which to print your information is actually a bigger decision than one might expect. What should be an easy choice can get complicated because of the multitude of options available. Job applicants today have an enormous selection of available paper styles to choose from – from numerous interesting colours to subtle marbleized background effects and the like. If you want to be taken seriously, keep it simple. Opt for good quality paper in conservative colours (think white, ivory), often marketed as “CV paper.”

Page Limit

I can’t count the number of times I’ve seen recent college graduates with CVS consisting of 2, 3 and even 4 pages. While a lengthy curriculum vitae may be appropriate for an academic with numerous prestigious publications under his belt, most people should keep their CVs to one single page. The reason is twofold. First, most employers receive many applications, and carefully reviewing CVs from numerous candidates takes time. Busy professionals don’t have time to read about the organisations you were a member of in school or what all of your interests are. Second, on a related note, confining your CV to a single page will help you focus on what’s really important.

Eliminating Clutter

Ok, so you’ve accepted the single-page rule discussed above. What’s next? The most common mistake made after CV writers accept this one-page advice is to retain most, if not all, of the content from their longer CV simply by reducing fonts and margins to make all the information fit on one page. Huge mistake! Again, recruiters are busy and shouldn’t have to pull out a magnifying glass to try to make sense out of the information you’ve provided. The goal is to make your CV attractive and easy to read. Cramming tons of information on the page will create a huge obstacle in efforts to achieve that objective. After all, you don’t want to give them every detail of your life upfront. Providing them with just a few details about the important aspects of your education and professional background is ideal to make an employer want to meet you and set up an interview to learn more.

Utilising White Space

Most job seekers overlook the aesthetic appeal that including some simple white space can add to a CV. Because most applicants are so focused on content, they lose sight of the fact that, for better or for worse, as in life, sometimes appearance does matter when it comes to applying for jobs. The tips provided above concerning the elimination of clutter are a good first step. However, make sure that the margins you’ve selected look appropriate. And make sure there is adequate space between each entry in the CV to enhance the visual appeal. Capitalising on white space is one of the easiest, but most commonly neglected, strategies in creating a stellar CV.

Typeface

Your computer’s default font is not necessary the most attractive typeface available. While restraint is important in selecting your CV’s typeface, as with selecting the quality and colour of paper, rest assured that the employers you contact will be overloaded with CVs printed in Times New Roman. To be fair, Times New Roman is perfectly fine and is easy to read, but any opportunity you can find to make your CV stand out in a positive way is important. Consider using Georgia font or Book Antiqua, which are not drastically different from the traditional Times New Roman, but those fonts do have a little more personality. On the other hand, using fancy or overly complicated typefaces will make your CV stand out for the wrong reasons.

Using Bolds, Italics and All Caps

Using the bold, italics and ALL CAPS features of your word processing system can be a good way to help employers easily skim your CV. Although the goal is to have a recruiter read everything you give them, they’ll appreciate it if you help them breeze through an initial review of your CV by using these kinds of stylistic devices. For example, displaying section titles, such as “Education” and “Professional Experience,” in all capital letters is a common approach. And writing the names of the schools you attended and the names of past employers in bold will help that information stand out. Also, italicising certain items, such as the degrees you’ve earned and the positions held with past employers, as long as done consistently, can aid in a quick review of a CV. However, job applicants beware: overuse of these features can make an otherwise impressive CV look amateurish.

Bill Post, Small Business Research Analyst, has been providing research on issues of concern to small businesses for 123Print.com Business Cards for three years. Prior to his involvement with 123Print, Bill was a small business owner himself, providing marketing and branding services to other small businesses in the Washington, DC metro area. Before working with 123Print on Business Card Templates, Bill spent several years after receiving his degree in the fast-paced corporate world. It was there that Bill not only honed the skills he uses to help small businesses get ahead, but it is also where he realised that he’d rather help the little guy prosper than make huge corporations money.

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Part one: how employable are you? – guest blog

June 2nd, 2011

This is part one of a two part blog post by Janet Davies, editor of mygraduatecareer.com and myexecutivecareer.com.

According to a recent survey conducted by the CBI and National Union of Students, more than half of students want their university to provide more help for them to understand employability skills. And that shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone; fees are high and the job market is tough. But what does employability really mean, how can you improve yours and demonstrate it in your CV and at interview?

What is employability?
Employability is essentially the combination of skills, qualifications, knowledge, experience, contacts and personal characteristics that make you attractive enough to organisations for them to want to hire you! It’s the ‘career catnip’ that everyone strives to achieve, not just as a graduate but throughout their lifetime. Simply having a good degree isn’t enough. What constitutes employability at any given time, or in any given circumstance, is constantly changing. Before the advent of computing technology, being able to write code, build a website or use Microsoft Word wouldn’t have appeared on anyone’s list of desirable skills. Today, computer literacy is a given for almost all jobs – particularly if you’re a graduate. Who knows what tomorrow’s hot skill will be? That’s what can make staying on top of your employability so tricky and why you need to take every opportunity for personal development you can get your hands on! That said, there are some key areas that will come up time and time again during the selection process. Make sure that you have a plan to demonstrate that you meet or exceed these requirements if you want a shot at the best opportunities. Being under-employed, i.e. doing a boring, dead-end job as a grad is almost worse than being unemployed (except there is at least some cash involved!), so here’s your starter for ten.

Team-working: Almost all jobs require the ability to work constructively with others and most graduates aspire to management or leadership positions sooner or later in their career. Having the aptitude to get things done with and through others comes high on the ‘employability checklist’ for most graduate recruiters. Hiring managers usually want people they can rely on to create a positive team ethos, not high maintenance, lazy, maverick divas. You will definitely be asked to provide examples of how you’ve already demonstrated that you can work in, or lead, a team – assessment centres usually have a group exercise element to put that to the test. Have you taken part in team sports? Have you been involved in a team challenge for a charity or volunteering project? Have you worked well with a lab partner or a project partner throughout your degree? Would your friends and colleagues say that you’re good at contributing to discussions, able to handle responsibility, respectful and considerate of others, able to negotiate with or influence others? Make sure that you can reference as many examples of team working as possible because using the same one several times on one application form will not impress selectors.

Communication skills: Good team work usually means being effective at communication too. Being able to produce clear, structured written work such as reports and presentations (the meat and drink of organisational life) should be something that has been tested and achieved during your undergraduate years. However, many employers complain that candidates cannot spell, have a poor command of grammar and are unable to express themselves in writing or orally. Part of the ‘weapons of mass rejection’ strategy of many big employers is to introduce verbal reasoning and literacy tests early in the selection process – if you can’t communicate your suitability for the job in question, they won’t be confident that you can communicate to a high enough standard with clients and colleagues. Not everyone can speak completely confidently and calmly at interviews. Recruiters expect a little nervousness at interviews, however, they will need to decide if you are temporarily tongue tied or simply unable to express yourself in any situation.

Problem solving: Organisations are constantly faced with challenges: Where is the best place to source or spend their money? Which customers, products or services will be most profitable? How will new legislation, supplies of resources, climate change, competitors or Governments affect their ability to survive and prosper? Recruiters need to identify those candidates who can help their organisations solve their problems, not create or ignore them. How will you show them that you have experience of problem solving and have demonstrated an ability to think creatively? Are you motivated to find effective solutions? Can you think logically and strategically? Do you see the big picture and ask the right questions? Your degree subject may give you an edge here if you have studied science, maths (or perhaps you’ve won a prestigious prize), but everyone must be prepared to provide examples that will set them apart from the crowd.

Numeracy: Some roles require much greater levels of numeracy than others, however, a certain level of competence is essential for pretty much all true graduate-level roles today. Careers in accounting, market and scientific research, asset and investment management, engineering and so forth all require above average qualifications because the ability to manipulate and interpret numbers is the essence of such roles. However, most managerial or professional roles will also require the ability to manage or set a budget, interpret sales figures or the key performance indicator reports that affect a particular functional role – customer traffic on a website, employee turnover statistics, conversions of sales calls to orders and so on. Numeracy tests are used early in the application processes for most big company roles today and can cause less confident candidates a great deal of anxiety. Many of the tests are far more complex and challenging than is strictly necessary and even experienced hires will sometimes be asked to take quite tough tests. Be that as it may, you need to be prepared – take as many practice tests as possible beforehand.

Make sure you check back again later this week for the second part of ‘How employable are you?’ for further advice on how to improve your employability skills and demonstrate them on your CV to help you get that graduate internship or job. In part two find advice on IT literacy, self-management, commercial awareness and work experience.

If you would be interested in writing for our blog please email us – marketing@inspiringinterns.com

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Part two: how employable are you? – guest blog

May 31st, 2011

By Janet Davies, editor of mygraduatecareer.com and myexecutivecareer.com.

Part two discusses further advice on how to improve your employability skills to boost your chances in a tough graduate job market.

IT literacy: It hardly needs to be said that being able to use some kind of word processing or spreadsheet programme and the internet is a given these days. However, if you have expert knowledge of particular programming languages or techniques, specialist software packages and skills in forms of media that are important to the role that you applying for, make sure that these are clearly outlined in your application.

Self-management: Management structures in most organisations are pretty lean these days – employers are looking for people who can manage their time and priorities effectively, who can take as well as give direction and feedback and who don’t need micro-managing. Being late for your interview, admitting that you hardly ever turned up for lectures or handed in coursework on time, or not being able to manage an assessment centre exercise designed to test your organisational skills, will all serve to undermine your perceived ability to manage yourself. When employers are handing out salaries, they expect to get an effective return on that investment so remember to make a good impression right from the beginning of the selection process. Besides, you’ll probably have to work quite long hours – being badly organised at work and taking longer than necessary to complete a task means less time for you to socialise and actually have a life as well!

Commercial awareness: Employers want to know that you are genuinely interested in their sector, the challenges it faces and the culture and customer ethos they need to adopt to achieve their objectives. If, for example, you are applying to work in management consultancy, they will expect that you understand current affairs, that you’ve bothered to read the customer publications on their website and done some background research. If you want to go into the Civil Service, interviewers may quite rightfully expect you to have an appreciation of who the leading figures in the Government of the day are, what the impact of the budget deficit is on public services and current affairs. Make some time to keep up with the outside world not just what is going on Facebook or YouTube.

Additional skills: Can you speak another language? Can you drive? Do you have any other skill, experience, achievement or contacts that will give you the edge when recruiters are sifting through hundreds of CVs?  Use them wisely – every little detail could mean the difference between you being at the top or the bottom of the recruiter’s list.

Your disposition: Employers like enthusiastic, motivated, driven, dedicated applicants who  know how to show initiative and may be capable of becoming the future leaders and wealth creators in their organisations. It’s the ‘X Factor’ that makes one candidate a winner and another an also-ran. They want to like you and they spend a lot of effort in their employer brand and values work to make sure you’ll like them. That’s the personal part for which there is no test, no exam and no guarantee. Still, it’s not all one way. Learn to smile at interviews but also trust your instincts – if you don’t like anyone you meet during the interview process and you don’t get a good vibe about the place, be very careful before you agree to work there!

Work experience: If you haven’t so much as served a pint in a bar or had some basic experience of work, you are at a serious disadvantage in the selection process. If you’ve had an internship or a work experience placement, you’ll have serious advantage. Internships and part-time jobs aren’t always easy to come by, but get some experience you must. Inspiring Interns can help you do just that!

If you would be interested in writing for our blog please email us – marketing@inspiringinterns.com

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The weirdest job interview answers

April 12th, 2011

Back in January, you may have read ‘The weirdest job interview questions’.  Inevitably, this was to form part of a two-part (mini) blog series, to be completed once we had come across some weird interview answers.  Enter an article in the Evening Standard last week.  Whilst the following are questions you may expect to hear in an interview, the answers are clearly not what the interviewer was expecting…

When asked what animal you would be, the candidate responded:

“A squirrel.”

When asked why do you want to work for us, the candidate responded:
“I don’t think I want to work for you any more.”

When asked what your main weakness is, the candidate responded:

“I am allergic to peanuts.”

When asked to describe yourself in three words, the candidate responded:

“Tall, dark and handsome.”

When asked what further questions you had, the candidate responded:

“Can you book me a taxi?”

When asked what your hobbies and interests are, the candidate responded:

“Pubs, Marlboro Lights and red wine.”

Clearly it would have been difficult for the interviewer not to start laughing but the answers given above are demonstrative of what exactly not to do in an interview when asked a general question.  There is no such thing as a perfect interview, as it is a two way process, but it doesn’t help to try and develop answers.  An interview is trying to probe gaps in your CV and find out as much about you as they can.  Answer honestly but be positive and be sure to develop your answers beyond the mundane.  Turn weaknesses into positives by stating that you have overcome them.  Yes, you might be allergic to peanuts, but it is unlikely the interviewer cares, or that your internship would involve eating them…

Be prepared to ask relevant questions. If you feel all your questions have been answered by the interviewer, or by the research you did on the company beforehand, then take the opportunity to show your enthusiasm and interest. There may be aspects of the internship that you would like to discuss or you may wish to ask general questions about the working culture.  If the interview asks a personal question, feel free to explain that you would rather not answer that particular question.  Likewise, it is probably not wise to ask if your interviewer is single, for example…

And if you were wondering, I’d be a shark.

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The Weirdest Job Interview Questions

January 17th, 2011

Have you ever wondered why a manhole cover is round? Or how you weigh an elephant without scales? Apparently the answer to these questions could get you a job for a multi-national company, including IBM and Microsoft.  These odd interview questions are among many used by companies in 2010 according to Glassdoor.  The career advice company has recently published their list of the top 25, off-the-wall interview questions of last year. The list was compiled from a variety of companies and analyst firms such as Facebook, Apple, Goldman Sachs, Google and IBM. The information was collected from thousands of oddball interview questions which job seekers sent to the publication. Stealing the top spot on the list was an interview question asked by investment bank, Goldman Sachs, If you were shrunk to a size of a pencil and put in a blender, how would you get out?

The Glassdoor list also includes:

  • If you could be any superhero, who would it be? Asked at At&T.
  • How are M&M’s made? Asked by US Bank
  • How many basketballs can you fit in this room? Asked by Google
  • Rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 10 how weird are you? Asked by Capital One
  • What would you do if you inherited a pizzeria from your uncle? Asked by Volkswagen

So why are these unconventional questions cropping up in interviews?

Surely employers would rather hear about a candidate relevant past experience than hear a lengthy explanation as to why the potential employee would rather be Wolverine than Spiderman.

However, the answer the candidate gives to such questions will arguably give the interviewer an insight into their way of thinking.  It could tell them whether they will be a good fit for the company.  These unusual questions are designed to challenge potential employees to think creatively and logically; many of these questions are asked in situations where the applicant is applying for a position that requires analytical thinking.

Also, the eccentric questions are specifically tailored to particular companies’ needs. For example, Amazon.com asked a potential candidate, If you had 5,623 participants in a tournament, how many games would need to be played to determine the winner? This type of question reflects the online retailer’s need for people who are aware of ranking and ordering systems.

So if you do have an interview coming up, be aware these oddball questions could be virtually anything.  When you are heading to interview make sure you are open-minded and prepared for anything! The key in responding is not to let it fluster you. There is rarely a wrong answer to these offbeat questions so just be yourself and give an honest response. If you can turn your answer into something job-related, that’s a bonus!

Have you ever been asked any strange interview questions? Share them with us and also how you answered them!

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Internship Live Chat

December 13th, 2010

This morning we at Inspiring Interns opened up our online live chat facility “ to great success!  Below is the transcript for those of you who missed out.  We will be hosting similar sessions in the near future so keep an eye on our Facebook and Twitter accounts for further updates.

  • Alfred Smith Hi there, I’m looking for a sales and marketing internship and just came across your website. What kind of companies do you tend to work with?

12:05 PM 13/12/10

  • shmule hello there Inspiring….

12:07 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Alfred, we work with lots of different companies. Many of our clients are exciting young SMEs, which we think gives you great hands on experience, but we also work with bigger companies too.

12:07 PM 13/12/10

  • shmule are you able to do an internship for just 1 month as i dont think i can afford 3 months unpaid?

12:07 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Shmule, most of our internships are 3 months, however we do have some shorter term ones. Also, some of our internships are paid, and all of them are with a view to permanent employment.

12:09 PM 13/12/10

  • Ravi hi

12:10 PM 13/12/10

  • shmule OK then, that’s a help! thanks

12:11 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Ravi, how can we help?

12:12 PM 13/12/10

  • Ravi do you have any internships in IT? Support/development/consultancy? thanks

12:13 PM 13/12/10

  • Diane How does this internship work? You just apply with a CV and wait for an interview? Do we have to pay some sort of money once if you got an internship set up?

12:14 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Ravi, we have lots of IT internships available, particularly support and development. You can see all of these opportunities our vacancies page.

12:17 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hello Diane, yes if you send in your CV (specifying what job or sector interests you) we will try and match you with any suitable vacancies. If we have something that matches your profile we will invite you into our office for a preliminary meeting and then send you out to companies.

12:19 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Also, our service is completely free for candidates – we won’t ask you for a penny.

12:20 PM 13/12/10

  • Ravi Thanks – I will send you my CV for consideration shortly

12:21 PM 13/12/10

  • Ravi should i include a cover letter?

12:22 PM 13/12/10

  • Catherine What is your success rate for interns getting jobs at the end of placements?

12:24 PM 13/12/10

  • Diane Oh thank you . Also how is the interview like? what question would they generally ask? What sort of qualification you need to apply for the work experience role? Do u need a min. 2:1?

12:24 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Great, thanks Ravi. A full cover letter isn’t necessary, but a quick note explaining what sort of areas you are interested in is useful.

12:25 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Catherine, around 65% of our interns become permanent employees at the company where they did a placement. If you factor in people who go on to get permanent jobs elsewhere after their internship, around 93% of our interns have paid jobs within a month of doing an Inspiring Internship.

12:27 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Diane, lots of questions! Deep breath…

12:27 PM 13/12/10

  • Diane Sorry…

12:28 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns No problem at all, we love the questions! Answers coming shortly…

12:28 PM 13/12/10

  • Catherine Thanks! What would be your top tip for making a CV stand out?

12:29 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns The interview here is quite relaxed, we just want to get to know you better and establish what sort of roles might suit you. We also give you the chance to film a video CV, which helps you impress potential employers.

12:30 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns We don’t look for specific qualifications, but generally our employers are looking for people with degrees. We don’t have a minimum requirement, sometimes someone with a 2.2 will be better for a particular internship than someone with a 2.1

12:31 PM 13/12/10

  • James Have you got any tips for prospective employees when they attend an interview?

12:31 PM 13/12/10

  • James An interview with a company besides yourselves* as part of an internship

12:32 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Catherine – first and foremost check and double check for any spelling mistakes or similar. Otherwise don’t try and make it too flashy, keep it neat with a simple font and well-formatted. Also bullet-points and short paragraphs are far more likely to be read than long chunks of text.

12:33 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi James, like with a CV always remember the simple things first and foremost – punctuality, politeness, appearance.

12:35 PM 13/12/10

  • Shelo Hey Catherine I’m a recent graduate in the web design field also in in for some top tips to I

12:35 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns At an interview you should also always ensure you know your CV inside out, and know how the experience you have will be useful for the role you are applying for

12:36 PM 13/12/10

  • Kat Hey, I’m a Canadian full time 3rd year Bachelor of Commerce student, specializing in Marketing and currently living in Norway. Just wondering if you accept applications from international students? I found you guys through Twitter

12:37 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns At an interview you should also always ensure you know your CV inside out, and know how the experience you have will be useful for the role you are applying for

12:36 PM 13/12/10

  • Kat Hey, I’m a Canadian full time 3rd year Bachelor of Commerce student, specializing in Marketing and currently living in Norway. Just wondering if you accept applications from international students? I found you guys through Twitter

12:37 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Shelo, if you are a designer your CV should be something of an advert for your skills – a word doc won’t get you very far if you are applying for design roles.

12:38 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Kat, pleased to hear you tracked us down on Twitter! We welcome applications from international students, so feel free to send in your CV!

12:39 PM 13/12/10

  • Kat Thanks, good to know. Are your current vacancies for an immediate start date? I’m looking for summer placements and can’t seem to find the start dates on your postings.

12:41 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Kat, yes the vast majority of our placements are for immediate starts. You can still send in your CV, saying you are interested in summer placements, and we will keep you on file until we start receiving summer internship roles.

12:43 PM 13/12/10

  • Kat Great! Last question–is there any support in place either from you or the employer in terms of finding accommodation, getting work permits, etc.? I’m actually visiting London this week for my first time

12:46 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Unfortunately we’re not experts on work permits or accommodation, all we can do is try and point you in the right direction. But we’ll do our best to help!

12:48 PM 13/12/10

  • Kat Alrighty, thanks for your help!

12:50 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns No problem at all Kat!

12:51 PM 13/12/10

  • Jill Hi Inspiring, I graduated this year but I’m currently doing a job I don’t enjoy. Do you think that doing an internship is a good way of initiating a career change? Or should I stick out this this job?

1:02 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Afternoon Jill! Sorry to hear you’re not enjoying your job. If you are set on changing jobs an internship can be a great bridge to a new career path. You need to think seriously about what you want from your work, and if sticking out your current role might provide you with this.

1:05 PM 13/12/10

  • Alfred Smith Okay so if I do get an internship…are my expenses paid?

1:06 PM 13/12/10

  • Sam Hi there, I’ve got a general question about the internships advertised on your site. Do you take them down once the positions are filled? I’ve noticed some vacancies are a few months old and was wondering whether it would still be worth applying. Thanks.

1:07 PM 13/12/10

  • Guest Hi, i am at an internship I don’t enjoy should I stick it out or find another?

1:07 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi again Alfred – yes all of our internships cover your lunch and travel expenses as a minimum, and some are paid positions.

1:07 PM 13/12/10

  • Stacey Hi! How can a candidate with a 2.2 degree prove themselves to be worthy of a position against their competitors with a better degree? Thanks

1:08 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Sam, yes we do take filled roles down. If they are still there they will still be open, so apply away!

1:08 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi guest – the great thing about an internship is you are under no obligation to stay if you’re not enjoying it (unlike say a first job). So if you don’t feel you are getting enough out of your internship it might be time to look for another.

1:10 PM 13/12/10

  • Guest Would a string of internships look bad on my CV? i feel if i leave it will look like I’m not committed

1:11 PM 13/12/10

  • Guest Would a string of internships look bad on my CV? i feel if i leave it will look like I’m not committed

1:11 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hello Stacey! If you have a 2.2 the key is to focus on all the things you have to offer an employer beyond your degree. You might have some relevant experience, or used your time at university to do extra-curricular activities that stand you in good stead for your first job.

1:12 PM 13/12/10

  • Stacey thanks very much!

1:13 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Guest – inevitably if you have done 4 or 5 placements you might get questions about your commitment, but I wouldn’t worry if you’ve left one with good reason. But make sure you take the time to ensure your next position is the right fit for you.

1:13 PM 13/12/10

  • Guest Thanks. Also if i was put through for an internship at your site how long will it take to hear if i was successful for an interview?

1:14 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns If you apply for one of our internships and are successful in reaching the next stage you will hear from us within five working days. Unfortunately because of the volume of applications we can’t reply to every unsuccessful application.

1:15 PM 13/12/10

  • Sam How does the process work? Do you decide to put us forward for interview, or do you pass our CVs on to the employer who then decides? Thanks.

1:17 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Sam, if we think you’ll be a good fit for one of our internships we’ll give you a ring and invite you into our office for a meeting. There we’ll discuss your interests and offer you the chance to film a video CV. After that we’ll send you forward to the employer

1:19 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Thanks very much for all the questions so far, keep them coming! Just over half an hour left…

1:24 PM 13/12/10

  • Sam Sounds great! So how long does the whole process take, from our application until potentially meeting the employer?

1:26 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Depending on how busy we are and how busy you are, it could be as little as two or three days. On average I would say 7-10 days.

1:28 PM 13/12/10

  • Seamus Hi Inspiring. If I send my CV in today how long should I expect to wait before hearing from you?

1:34 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi Seamus – thanks very much for sending in your CV! If we have any suitable roles for you we will be in touch within 5 working days. If we don’t have anything at the moment we will keep your CV on file in case anything comes up in the future.

1:36 PM 13/12/10

  • Karl Hi there just saw this on Facebook. I was just wondering – will I get training during my internship?

1:46 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi there Karl – yes the point of an internship is to develop your skills so your employer will provide you with mentoring and training. All good internships should do this.

1:48 PM 13/12/10

  • Guest If we didn’t hear back after applying for an internship and want to apply again with an updated CV, is this ok? Would my CV get considered again?

1:54 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Hi guest, yes do send an updated CV in. We’ll have another look and if we have anything suitable we’ll be in touch!

1:56 PM 13/12/10

  • Guest what about if we’re looking at a specific position that we’ve already applied for? it’s okay to apply again?

1:58 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Yes do apply again, but if you were unsuccessful first time perhaps write a quick cover note explaining why you feel you are better suited now.

2:01 PM 13/12/10

  • Inspiring Interns Right thanks to everyone for taking part, hope it’s been useful! The transcript will appear on our blog later today. Bye!

2:06 PM 13/12/10

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Posted in CV & Interview Tips, CV & Interview Tips

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Unspoken communication: don’t let your body betray you.

November 22nd, 2010

Your meticulously honed and polished C.V. has finally landed you that all important interview. As D-Day approaches, you spend yet more time reading about the company, researching the optimal answers to typical interview questions, and generally preparing yourself for the appointment.

There is, however, one crucial aspect of the interview that, while easily overlooked, is potentially the most important of all: your body language. How you carry yourself can subconsciously convey far more information than both your C.V. and all your well rehearsed replies.

By following another batch of Inspiring Top Tips, we can help you to spot these hidden tells and address them so that you can excel in your interview.

Eye contact;


-among the most important communicative behaviours, and yet surprisingly tricky execute effectively. Little or no eye contact will hinder the development of a rapport with the interviewer and make you look untrustworthy, or as even as if you’re purposely avoiding the truth. You will also not be able to see the interviewer or gauge their expressions and responses to your statements, again hindering a dynamic conversation.

At the same time, too much eye contact can appear invasive or confrontational, and so you should avoid relentlessly staring into theirs. As with everything in life, a healthy balance between the two extremes should be sought.

Posture;

Like eye contact, a dodgy posture can also make you appear untrustworthy. Hunched shoulders and drooping head can exude the impression that you have something to hide or that you otherwise lack self confidence; while a straight back and open shoulders, with your head held high will go a long way towards making you look more approachable, more confident and more honest.

Voice;

Aside from conveying your chosen message, your voice will tell your interviewer a lot more about you that you may realise.

Rapid-fire talking can make the speaker appear desperate or over excited, while speaking too slowly or quietly may do the opposite; making you appear lazy or uninterested in the interviewer. Aim for a consistent pace of speech, and avoid too many over enthused alterations in the pitch or inflection of your voice.

If possible, give answers directly; while if you’re hesitant, pause for a moment.
Limbs;

Crossed arms and legs are indications of defensiveness and may impair the development of a relationship with the interviewer. Similarly, knuckles facing your subject can suggest aggression. Aim to keep your arms uncrossed, and try to show more palm than fist- much like the welcoming posture shown in many conventional representations of Jesus. Again, be careful not to overdo it as this will likely make you appear a bit strange.

Miscellaneous;

Other things to be aware of include; not intruding on their personal space- keep a respectful distance; smiling after you make eye contact with them; and not fidgeting or excessively repositioning yourself.

Armed with the knowledge of how to avoid these simple communicative pitfalls, you’ll be much more likely to forge more meaningful a personal dialogue with the interviewer and therefore far more likely to leave the good impression necessary to secure the job.

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Posted in CV & Interview Tips, CV & Interview Tips

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