Job interview tips: before, during and after

Before: research the role and the employer

Start with the job posting rather than the company’s homepage. National Careers Service advises reading it closely to identify “what skills and experience the employer is looking for”, and that list is effectively the interview agenda. Write each requirement on one line and note the example from your own work that proves it. Any requirement with no example next to it is where you will struggle, so deal with that gap first.

Then go to the employer. National Careers Service suggests you “do some research on the company’s website”; Harvard’s career services office adds reading the site and staying “current on industry news”, and using alumni or other contacts where you have them. You are looking for three or four facts you could not have guessed: how they describe their customers, what they shipped or announced recently, how the team you would join is structured, who their competitors are.

Reread your own application too. Interviewers quote from CVs, and being vague about something you wrote is a bad start. Finally, prepare “some examples from your past experience to refer to in the interview”, as National Careers Service puts it. Which examples depends on the role, and the interview questions hub shows which families to expect.

Before: practise out loud, not in your head

Answers that feel complete in your head run twice as long when spoken, and the gaps only appear when you hear them. Harvard’s career services office makes the point that “practice doesn’t imply that you are memorizing answers to questions”; the purpose is to test clarity and delivery, and it suggests rehearsing with other people, including friends, family or housemates.

Record one or two answers on your phone and listen back once. You are checking length, filler words and whether you reach a point. National Careers Service makes the same recommendation for phone interviews, where you should confirm that “your voice is clear” and that “you are speaking at the right pace”, and notes that “practising with a mock phone interview may help to calm your nerves”.

Rehearse the structure, not the script. A memorised answer is audible, and it collapses the moment the interviewer asks a follow-up. Knowing the three beats of a story is enough; the STAR method guide sets out a reliable shape for the example-based answers.

Logistics: remove the things that can go wrong

Confirm the format before anything else. National Careers Service advises checking whether it is in person, “a phone interview” or “a video interview”, who will be there, and that you have a contact number “in case you’re running late or having technical issues”. If you need an adjustment for a disability or a health condition, ask in advance; employers expect these requests.

For an in-person interview, “give yourself plenty of time to arrive”, aim to be there “5 to 10 minutes before” the start, and “turn off your phone so you’re not distracted”. Know the floor and the reception process, not just the postcode.

For video, test the setup the day before and then again early: National Careers Service suggests you “log in with at least half an hour to spare”, “test your microphone and make sure you know how to use the software”, use “a computer or laptop rather than a tablet or mobile phone”, and “position it so the camera is at eye level”. Find “a quiet space with no interruptions” with good natural light or a lamp. One neat trick from the same guidance: “split your screen and have your prompt cards on one half and the interview on the other”.

For a phone interview, have “a pen and paper or laptop to take notes”, your CV and application in front of you, a charged phone, and a room where nobody will walk in. On dress, the advice is simply to “wear smart clothes that look professional”; when in doubt, match the formality of the employer and go one step above it.

During: body language, voice and pace

The first thirty seconds set a tone that is hard to change later. Greet people by name, make eye contact, and sit down before you start unpacking anything. National Careers Service summarises the basics for video, and they transfer directly to a room: “sit up straight and have good body language”, “smile and look interested”, and “keep up good eye contact” by looking “at your camera rather than at the screen”.

Pace is the most common fixable problem. Nerves speed everyone up, so make a point of slowing the first answer. The same guidance says “do not talk too fast” and advises you to “pause at the end of a question so that you don’t talk over the interviewer”, which matters online where there is a short delay on the line. On the phone, where none of your expression carries, National Careers Service suggests you “try smiling while you talk”, because “it makes you sound friendly and upbeat”.

A short list of things that reliably cost candidates marks: talking over the panel, criticising a former employer, checking the time, filling silence with words when you have finished your point, and answering a question you were not asked. Silence after a complete answer is the interviewer’s cue to write, not yours to keep talking.

During: answer the question that was asked

Interviews reward specificity. Before you launch into an example, take a beat and pick deliberately: National Careers Service suggests you “think about your prepared examples and choose the best example to give” rather than starting with whichever comes to mind and hoping it fits.

If a question is unclear, say so. You can “ask the interviewer to repeat the question or explain further”, and it is also acceptable to “write down the question or refer to your notes if you need to”. Both read as careful rather than unprepared. The same applies when you do not know something: say what you do know, then how you would find the rest.

Keep answers roughly one to two minutes when an example is wanted, and shorter for factual questions. Finish on the outcome and stop, rather than trailing into qualifications. If the interviewer wants more, they will ask, and their follow-up is usually a good sign. Plan the material rather than the sentences, and use the interview questions hub to see which topics to have ready for your field.

Closing: your questions and the next step

Write your questions down beforehand. National Careers Service is explicit that “it’s important to write these down before the interview”, and describes the invitation to ask them as “a good chance to show your interest in the company and your enthusiasm for the job”. Two or three good ones are plenty, and crossing off anything already covered shows you were listening.

Ask about the work: what the first three months involve, how success is measured, how the team handles competing priorities, what changed in the department this year. Leave pay and holiday for the offer stage unless the interviewer raises them. The questions to ask the interviewer guide has a wider set, sorted by who you are speaking to.

Then close cleanly. Thank the interviewers for their time and ask about timing: National Careers Service suggests asking “when you’ll hear back from them”, and Harvard’s career services office puts it as “when might I expect to hear from you?”. That single question tells you when a follow-up is appropriate instead of guessing.

After: follow up and debrief yourself

Send a short thank-you note the same day or the next. Harvard’s career services office recommends sending it “within 24-48 hours”, and the useful version is not a formality: two or three sentences that reference something specific from the conversation and restate why you fit. The thank-you email guide has templates, and the follow-up email guide covers what to send when the date you were given passes with no news.

Then debrief while it is fresh. National Careers Service suggests writing down “2 or 3 things that you think went well” and “2 or 3 things that you think you could improve next time”. Note the exact questions you were asked, including the ones that caught you out, because the next employer in the same sector will probably ask them too.

If you are turned down, it is reasonable to “ask the interviewer for feedback on how it went and where you could have done better”. Not everyone replies, and the ones who do tend to be brief, but a single sentence about why someone else was stronger is worth more than another round of guessing.