The Basic Types of Interviews You May Encounter

You will need to be prepared for - or at least aware of - a few of the more common types of interviews you may face during your job search.

Here are but a few of them.

The standard question and answer interview.

In this context, the interviewer will have a list of prepared interview quesions intended to assess your ability to do the job. In this interview, usually all the candidates are asked the same questions and it is left to you to find or create opportunities to place emphasis on your particular qualifications, and set yourself apart from the crowd.

The resume verification interview.

In this case, your resume will be the focus of the entire discussion. Be prepared to clarify facts and statements on the resume, and give examples of situations you faced in a specific past job. Things like dates and duration of employment will be investigated, and you will probably be asked why you left former jobs, or what you liked and disliked most about past positions. This is an excellent opportunity to promote yourself, without the element of comparison to other candidates, but it can backfire if your resume is less than bullet proof.

The situational interview.

The most feared of all interview types. Here, the interviewer will create scenarios and ask you to describe how you would handle them. These theoretical situations can include anything from time management, client service, to conflict with coworkers, etc. You will have to describe real examples of specific situations, as well as respond to "what if" scenarios provided by the interviewer.

Here are some examples of possible situational interview questions you may need to be prepared to answer.

The informal interview.

Some interviewers prefer to go by feel, rather than conduct a structured discussion. In this case, you may find that the interview bears little relevance to the job or your ability to do it. It is then left solely up to you to plant pertinent information within the context of the conversation and try to keep the focus on track. Read this page on how navigating the informal interview to make sure you make the best of this situation and still get your message across.

The combination interview.

Regardless of how it start out, the interview direction can shift at any point. Your answer to a question may prompt the interviewer to ask you an unplanned situational question, so be prepared to adapt as you go.