Top 10 Most Common Job Interview Questions and Answers

Are you ready to pass your next job interview? It is always important to be ready to answer effectively to the most common questions employers typically ask. Since these questions are so common, hiring managers will expect you to be able to answer them gently and without hesitation. So here are some most common job interview questions and answers.

You don’t have to memorize your answers. But you have to think about what you are going to say so as not to be left out. Your answers will be stronger if you prepare in advance. Know what to expect during the interview and have an idea of ​​what you want to focus on.

1.”Tell me a little about yourself.”

If you’re the interviewer, there are a lot of things you should already know: the candidate’s resume and cover letter should tell you a lot, and LinkedIn and Twitter and Facebook and Google can tell you more.

The purpose of an interview is to determine if the candidate will be exceptional in the job, and that means assessing the skills and attitude required for that job. Should she be an empathetic leader? Learn about it. Does it need to make your business public? Learn about it.

If you are the candidate, explain why you accepted certain jobs. Explain why you left. Explain why you chose a certain school. Share why you decided to go to graduate school. Discuss why you took a year off to backpack across Europe and what you gained from this experience.

When answering this question, connect the dots on your CV so that the interviewer not only understands what you did, but also why.

Answer Sample:-

As an emergency nurse, I find that the best way to relax when I am not working is to relax outside, in the rain or in the sun. I have always been a passionate hiker, nature photographer and trout fisherman, and one of my favorite activities is volunteering with the US Forest Service and with local habitat restoration groups. Salmon. I also lead group hikes on part of Mt. The most difficult trails in Baker. This is where the skills I developed during my initial training as a military nurse are sometimes useful. My current personal goal is to climb Mt. Rainier next summer. Being outside never fails to renew my spirit so that I can be the best nurse possible in the ER.

2.”What are your biggest weaknesses?”

Each candidate knows how to answer this question: you just have to choose a theoretical weakness and magically transform this flaw into a disguised force!

A better approach is to choose a real weakness, but the one you are working on improving. Share what you are doing to overcome this weakness. No one is perfect, but showing that you are ready to honestly assess yourself and then look for ways to improve yourself is very close.

Answer Sample:-

My biggest weakness was procrastination. Friends who knew my style of work teased me saying, “Panic precipitates performance.” At university, I was the person who pulled the sleepless nights to finish their essay just before the deadline. It’s not as irresponsible as it sounds – from the moment I’m assigned to a project, I think about it. Most of my first and second drafts are mentally composed, so it’s just a matter of writing the final draft. And, since I have an excellent command of grammar, I don’t need to spend a lot of time proofreading or revising.

However, after landing my first job as a content writer, it became clear that if this process worked for me (I never ran out of time), it made my editor extremely nervous. So I learned to set myself “early” deadlines, at least 24 hours before the deadline, so that my projects always arrive with a lot of time.

3.”What are your greatest strengths?”

I don’t know why the interviewers ask this question; your resume and experience should highlight your strengths.

Even so, if asked, provide a precise and precise answer. Be clear and specific. If you are a great problem solver, don’t just say this: provide some examples, relevant to the opening, that prove you are a great problem solver. If you are an emotionally intelligent leader, don’t just say that: provide a few examples that prove you know how to answer the question not asked.

In short, don’t just pretend to have certain attributes – prove that you have those attributes.

Answer Sample:-

As a IT specialist, my greatest strength is my intellectual curiosity. I like to research the latest technological trends so that our critical IT systems remain uncompromising. Not only did I do this by reading the latest issues of cybersecurity journals, I also convinced my employer to fund my participation in quarterly IT conferences. This allowed me to build a network of peer resources – many of which are industry leaders – on which I can use strategies when new threats arise on our systems.

4.”Why should we hire you? “

The moment you enter the room for a job interview, the hiring manager assesses one thing: are you the best person for the job? And at some point in the interview, you can expect to be asked directly, “Why should we hire you?”

Obviously, you can’t answer, “Because I need a job.” Granted, this is a tricky question, says Los Angeles head coach Libby Gill, “but you have to be successful.”

Basically, your answer must demonstrate that you are the solution to the employer’s problem (a vacant position on their team), and no other candidate could do the job better than you.

Answer Sample:-

Reply “Why should we hire you?” summing up your experiences: “With five years of work experience in the financial industry and my proven experience of saving money in the business, I could make a big difference in your business.

I am well versed in providing world-class customer service to a high-end clientele, and I pride myself on my ability to quickly resolve issues so that our clients value their time with us.

5.”Why do you want to quit (or quit) your current job?”

What they want to know: The interviewer wants to know why you want to work for them. When asked why you are moving away from your current position, stay true to the facts, be direct and focus your response on the future, especially if your departure was not in the best of circumstances.

Answer Sample:-

I was fortunate to be hired by ABC Company right out of college. They taught me a lot about digital marketing, and it was exciting to work as a contributor to their creative teams. However, I am ready for the next step. I have always been a leader – I was a captain of the college crew, a vice-president of the student body, and I was a team leader for most of our projects during the year 2019. And I think I’m ready to go into management, but ABC Company already has very talented managers in place, and they won’t be leaving such a good employer anytime soon. I took additional management training courses during my stay there, and I know I can start working as the next digital marketing manager.

6.”Where do you see yourself in 5 years”

The answers to this question go in two basic ways. The candidates try to show their incredible ambition by providing an extremely optimistic answer: “I want your job!” Or they struggle to point out their humility (because that is what they think you want) by providing a mild , self-deprecating response: “There are numerous talented people here. I just want to do a great job and see where my talents take me away. ”

In both cases, you learn nothing, except the ability of the candidates to sell themselves.

For investigators, here is a better question: “Which business would you like to start?”

This question applies to any organization, because every employee in every company must have an entrepreneurial spirit.

Answer Sample:-

Already described above.

7.” What are your salary expectations? “

What they need to understand : The hiring manager wants to know what you expect to earn. It sounds like a simple question, but your answer may be out of the competition if you overpay. If you underestimate yourself, you can be traded with a lower offer.

Answer Sample:-

Talking about salary can be difficult in an interview, so frame the response to “What salary are you looking for?” Like this:

I am looking for a salary between $ 60,000 and $ 70,000 per year. However, I am flexible and would be willing to speak in more detail about the salary if I were offered the job. More than anything, I am really invested in this profession and I would like to work with this company.

You should use the interview to talk about your qualifications for the job, and if you are the best person for the job, an employer should be more than willing to give you a fair salary. Good luck in dealing with the question “What salary are you looking for?”

8.”Why do you want this job? “

What they want to know: This question gives you an opportunity to show the interviewer what you know about the job and the business. So take the time to do some in-depth research on the business, its products, its services, its culture and its mission. Be specific about what makes you suitable for this position and mention the aspects of the business and position that interest you most.

Answer Sample:-

“I saw an article in Business Week about your new CEO John Jacobs and the company’s renewed interest in technological innovation.

I consider myself an innovator and would love to work for an organization that leads the future of the industry. “

9.”How do you manage stress and pressure? “

What they want to know: what do you do when things aren’t going well at work? How do you handle difficult situations? The employer wants to know how you manage stress at work. Avoid pretending that you are never or rarely stressed. Rather, formulate your answer in a way that recognizes stress at work and explains how you overcame it. Or even used it to your advantage.

Answer Sample:-

Stress is very important to me. With stress, I do the best job I can. The proper way to deal with stress is to make sure I have the right balance between good stress and bad stress. I need good stress to remain motivated and productive.

10″Describe a difficult work situation or project and the way you overcame it.”

What they want to know: The interviewer wants to know how you react to a difficult decision. As with the stress issue, be prepared to share an example of what you did in a difficult situation. It is important to share the details to make the story believable and engaging.

Answer Sample:-

“During a summer session, I had a student writing rude and offensive notes on student papers during the peer grading work. I organized a meeting with the student and invited my director to participate as a witness. I calmly but firmly informed the student that the types of comments she was making were not helpful. that they were actually harmful. From there, the three of us had a fruitful discussion about the types of comments that work best on student articles. In the end, the scholar walked away with a solid understanding of the way to provide constructive, non-offensive feedback to other students. “