Introduction & Background Information

Online/recorded interviews are the way that employers can put a “face to the name” in the application process. The goal is to see how you react under timed situations with an assortment of different questions. Employers are gauging how you answer questions, are the examples and answers that you pick relevant to the position, and are you presenting yourself in a professional manner.

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Tips

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How to prepare for the interview?

• Research the company and position beforehand to ensure you adequately understand what assessors are looking for in potential candidates. Try and demonstrate you possess these qualities in your answers and provide examples as a way of illustrating your points.

• Dress for the event as if you were meeting the people face-to-face. Making an effort to show that you want the position here does come across.

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How to use the preparation time properly?

• Planning time is crucial. You are given a short time to think about your answer before recording. Have pens and papers handy; write down dot points of what you can talk about; run through how you can organise your answers logically.

 

How to handle question that catches you off guard?

• Thinking that there are questions that will catch you off guard isn’t the best way to approach the interview, instead try and cover a broad range of experience with your preparation. Online there are generic interview questions which you can answer and have in front of you throughout the recording. If you have covered enough questions there should’t be anything that catches you off guard.

• If you do have a panic about a question, try and take a couple of breaths. Even if you don’t have an answer directly from your university studies or work experience, think of experiences within your life that you can apply to the question.

 

How to handle the time limit given? (Especially for cases in which there is only 1 chance for recording and the time limit is unknown until receiving the question).

• The prospect of having only one chance to complete the question can be scary, but it can actually be a blessing in disguise. If you have multiple chances to complete the questions, you can overthink it greatly and become more nervous. Having one chance and minimal preparation time means you can give an honest and immediate answer, which tells the employers a lot about how you react to situations instead of a rehearsed answer.

• In terms of whether to be brief and complete the question or be detailed in your answer and run out of time, completing the question shows that you can time yourself correctly while answering the question to the best of your ability (as much as I hate to admit it timed presentations including your thesis prepare you for this pretty well).

• Stay calm during the recording, give specific examples of how you can demonstrate certain skills. Watch the time, don’t start on a new point when you are only left with a few seconds.

 

How to structure your answer? How to answer the question?

• You can’t guess what the questions will be. In the planning time, you can plan ahead for what answer you’ll give. Finish on a strong point and don’t finish with an “um... yeah, so that’s about it”.

• Try and construct answers like you are writing your resume. Effectively and concisely convey what you are trying to say. Setup the context of your answer and then proceed to talk about why it applies to their question.

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Conclusion

Online interviews can be a scary part of the application process, but with effective planning and preparation you can ace this stage and stand out above the competition.