Articles From the Team
The Killer End Question….
We get asked by candidates a lot about interview preparation and if we have any tips or pointers.
An interview is the only opportunity for the firm to ascertain in a really short space of time if you’re the right candidate for them and will be a fit for the rest of the team and also possibly the only chance you will get to make your decision on if this is the right place for you. We always recommend you do your research about the firm and the team, do your due diligence on Linkedin etc. You also need to prepare for the question, “do you have any questions”? This is the likely question to follow at the end of an interview and its really important you do have something you feel is relevant to ask. Otherwise it may have been a great interview but then suddenly by not answering this last part correctly it’s implied you are not interested or not enthusiastic about the firm. http://careers.theguardian.com/questions-to-ask-at-interview
The reality is this is not the case and you are so focused on the main interview this is something you have failed to think of at the last minute.
This is when your homework comes into play as you can use it to show you have prepared and hopefully link some well thought out questions in at the end to impress. https://www.bcllegal.com/careers-advice/in-house/interview-tips-and-advice
You might ask: • I saw on your website you’ve recently opened an office in London, what further expansion plans does the firm have? • When l looked up the company on LinkedIn I learned that several people in the team have been here a number of years and also progressed within the firm. Could you tell me more about how they’ve been developed and supported by the firm? • What is the team structure? What are the personalities like in the team? • How would I be measured and appraised in the role? http://jobsearch.about.com/od/interviewquestionsanswers/a/interviewquest2.htm
The important thing to remember is never ask questions relating to hours/salary/benefits or training contracts/progression at first stage. Also its never a good idea to ask questions relating to how long you must work at the firm before asking for an internal move or applying for a training contract. These are very common mistakes which may cost you getting an offer.
Remember it’s a short period of time to make the best impression you can so don’t ask questions which are obvious or show lack of preparation.
For more information please contact Joanna Marklove or visit our website BCL Legal.