by Christine L. Rice

Created on: August 18, 2011

Being asked to come in for a job interview is an honor. It is your opportunity to represent yourself to a prospective employer. It is important to be aware of questions the interviewer is likely to ask, in order to be prepared to answer the questions during a time of stress. Ten of the most common interview questions are:

1. What can you tell me about yourself?

This is a question that requires a somewhat general answer. It is normally the first question asked in an interview because it opens the line of communication.

2. What experience do you have related to the position?

This question asks you to list your skills, and past and present job duties. It is best to keep your answer focused, using keywords that are somehow related to the position you are interviewing for.

3. What education do you have or wish to pursue?

Tell the interviewer several educational accomplishments, pursuits, and interests that you have. If possible, connect them to the position using similar keywords, or explicitly state how they are related.

4. What other personal and professional accomplishments do you have?

Here you can talk about more minor, but still important, achievements - such as promotions at work, helping others, or anything else you did that went above and beyond normal expectations.

5. What can you bring to the position if we hire you?

Your answer to this important question will tell the interviewer what you can do for the company, and your answer can make or break you. Think about the position itself - preferably done before the interview - and visualize how you would perform the job, then confidently state your answer.

6. What are your strengths?

Here the interviewer is interested in hearing adjectives that describe your personality. You can also state action verbs to show you are a go-getter and achiever. Try your best to relate it to the position.

7. What are your weaknesses?

The best way to answer this question is to state a challenge you have that you are overcoming or have recently overcome and explain how you've overcome it. The interviewer wants to learn how you handle negativity and setbacks because they are a part of life.

8. Give me an example of when you overcame an obstacle in your career.

Here you will give a challenge you had in the past and how you came out on top. It is best if the challenge was of medium intensity - not too difficult to explain, and not too simple that it will bore the interviewer.

9. How do you resolve conflicts in the workplace?

With this question, the interviewer wants to know how well you get along with others, how assertively you express your needs, and how much of a team player you are. Just be honest and tactful when you give an example - realistic or metaphorical - of a conflict that relates to the position and how you would, or did, handle it.

10. Why are you interested in working for us?

Doing previous research on the company is very helpful to answer this question. When researching, find out what the company does and its ethics. Tell the interviewer which aspects you share with the company.

Job interviews are tough. But being prepared, by knowing what questions will likely be asked, will help you perform better. You should also take preparation a step further by coming up with answers to the questions before the interview. This will lead you to having a successful interview.

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