SOME IMPORTANT TIPS AN INTERNSHIP INTERVIEW
After spending weeks looking for the right internship opportunity, applying for it and following up, you finally get an email from the employer showing interest in your application and wanting to have a ‘chat’. You do feel elated at first but then anxiety takes over the next second, worries about an interview begins to overtake your life! What would the recruiter ask, what is the standard answer to some of the regular questions, would it be a technical interview or an HR interview or a stress interview, what if I fail? All these questions disturb your peace of mind but don’t worry we have some tips for you that will keep you sane and help you to get that internship. While we know it’s natural and even good to feel a little nervous, it’s absolutely unnecessary to feel hyper and lose sleep over it. It’s easier said than done. These tips are not an absolute truth but may prove helpful in most of the situations. More importantly, think of internship interview as a perfect learning platform for your final placement interviews – even if you don’t ace this one, you are so much better prepared for the next one! 1.The interview is a conversation and not a test: More often than not, it’s the fear of failure that results in a poor interview because we think of the interview as a test where we have to prove ourselves in front of someone. But, in reality, it is and it should just be a normal conversation. Yes, the recruiter would like to assess your capabilities and see if youre a fit candidate for the role but it’s a golden opportunity for you also to find out more about the company, the work-culture and the exact nature of assignments that youll be asked to work on. Remember, a company is as desperate for a good candidate as a good candidate may be for that role.
- If the interview is a telephonic one and the call comes unscheduled and you are not prepared or are not in a quiet place where you can have a half decent conversation, it’s OK to request for a rescheduling of the conversation – even better, ask if you could call back the person on the number.
- “Tell me about yourself” this is one of the most asked questions in an interview. It is about YOU, don’t start with your family background, brothers, and sisters, town history etc. Try to paint a vivid picture of who you are, what you do and how the skills and experience that you have may be relevant to the role. Be precise build a good image by telling them your qualifications and past experiences.
- If you are asked to describe one particular project/assignment in detail, start with the overall objective of the project, the challenges involved, the outcome and most importantly your contribution in the whole process. If you have numbers to support the conversation that would be even better. For example, to say that a particular project in the area of “smart lighting” reduced power consumption by 20% is so much more powerful than saying that the project was appreciated by everyone. Always try to link what you learnt from the project to the internships ahead, your experiences during the project, etc. These could be soft skills or technical skills. The whole point of this is that you have a life experiences that would help you do better in the internship if given a chance.
- Avoid giving a global answer to questions like, why do you want to take up this particular internship – if you have done your research well about the company and the internship before applying, I am sure there are good reasons that you can list. Be specific and be relevant.
- Please feel free to ask if you have ANY questions about the internship or the company, as we have mentioned before it’s a two way conversation and not a one way test. Companies like candidates who are confident, curious and are not afraid to ask a question. Moreover it further highlights your interest and keenness in the internship.
- Never undersell yourself, when you are asked on how much stipend you expect, most of the candidates fumble giving answers such as they would be happy to work for any stipend that the company may decide to pay while reality may be otherwise. If you have a (realistic) figure in mind below which you would not be comfortable taking up that project, please let the recruiter know. Otherwise, you could leave the conversation open-ended with indicating a broad range of stipend that you have seen around you and expressing your willingness to be flexible within the range.