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Interview Questions

Interviewing

Guidelines

By the time job applicants reach the selection interview, they have been screened and meet or exceed the minimum requirements for the position. The purpose of the selection interview should be to collect additional information on the applicant's job-related knowledge, skills, and abilities which should be helpful in selecting the individual most likely to succeed on the job.

Interviewing candidates for a job vacancy is one of the most important roles performed by supervisors. Properly conducted interviews can insure that we select the candidate who can best fulfill the responsibilities of a position. This guide is designed to provide some of the essential elements of successful interviewing for supervisors at Illinois State University.

Planning

The goal of the interview is to gain the information needed to assess which candidate best meets the requirements of a position. By planning ahead and having a list of standard interview questions for each candidate you will insure that: you obtain critical job-related information, each candidate is treated fairly and that unconscious biases are minimized. The cardinal rule in designing interviewing questions is to only request information that is job-related.

The selection interview should be structured. If you follow a general, standard outline of pertinent job-related questions you will generate the information necessary to make the selection decision.

Preparation

1. Review the job description and the educational/experimental requirements for the job.
2. Identify the specific knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform the duties and responsibilities of the position.
3. Write questions that will elicit responses relating to the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for success.
4. Review the resume and application, noting areas to explore further.

Format

1. Establish Rapport. Your first role is that of host. A warm greeting and a suitable introduction will help establish rapport and help create a pleasant atmosphere. A friendly exchange of comments creates an atmosphere that allows communication to develop more freely and rapidly than it would otherwise.
2. Explain purpose, set agenda. This will help put the applicant at ease by letting them know what is about to occur. It also puts you in control of the interview.
3. Gather information. Here is where the skills of listening, probing, reflecting, summarizing and evaluating come into play. The keys to effective interviewing are careful listening combined with good use of questions.
4. Describe the job and the department. A detailed description of specific duties should probably be saved until this stage of the interview. By describing the job in detail before this stage, you may inadvertently be coaching the applicant on how he or she could present his/her capabilities.
5. Answer questions and allow the applicant to add information This stage lets the applicant gain the information they need about the position and the department.
6. Conclude the interview. Simply thanking the applicant for their time and outlining what will happen next is an honest and comfortable way to end the interview. Give the applicant a date by which you plan to have completed your process and make a decision on the successful candidate.