Felix-ITs
GUIDE TO THE MOST COMMON
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
Tell me about yourself?
Here you are definitely not going to tell the interviewer about your favourite dish,
movie or actor! The interviewer asks this question to analyse how confident you are
and how you present yourself. The best way to answer this common interview
question is to tell the hiring manager about your education and family background.
However, this should not look like your life’s story and you should quickly concentrate
on sharing a bit about your strengths that build the platform for further discussion
about your suitability for the job opening. Focus more on talking about your
achievements and learning keep it short
(Answer: Start with Name, then background, degree, course, experience )
Walk me through your resume.
Like “Tell me about you,” this question is a common interview opener. Your answer
should group your qualifications by your past jobs and tell your career story. You
might choose to tell this story chronologically. Highlight your most relevant
experiences and accomplishments for this job and wrap up by talking about the
future
What are your strengths?
Here’s an opening to talk about something that makes you great—and a great fit for
this role. This is one of the most important fresher interview questions as the
employer analysis your strengths for the job role and tries to understand the
challenges you might face in the new job role. Pick one or a few (depending on the
question) specific qualities that are relevant to and illustrate them with examples.
Answer: Example – Quick learner, Team Player, disciplined; Can be beneficial for me
as I would lead a team of people in your company potentially (Search their meanings
and be ready with suitable answer beforehand)
What are your weaknesses?
It becomes critical when you have to share your weaknesses, that too, with your
hiring manager. However, it is never recommended to say that you do not have any
weakness as it makes you look arrogant. Always elaborate your strengths and
weaknesses with some quick examples. For example, maybe you’ve never been
strong at public speaking, but you’ve recently volunteered to run meetings to help
you get more comfortable when addressing a crowd.
(Answer: Example: Time-management; I have overcome it by scheduling my day or
making to-do list for the day (be ready with one or two answers, whichever suits you)
Never mention any negative weakness about yourself
Tell me about a time you demonstrated leadership skills
Think about a time when you headed up a project, took the initiative to propose an
alternate process, or helped motivate your team to get something done.
What makes you unique?
The key is to keep your answer relevant to the role you’re applying to Focus on one or
two things and don’t forget to back up whatever you say with evidence.
(Answer: Example- ability to face challenges, any tangible qualities)
How do you plan to achieve your career goals?
Having a plan for how you’ll achieve your goals demonstrates your self-motivation
as well as organizational and time management skills. To craft your answer, make
sure you focus on one or two goals in detail, explain why the goals are meaningful,
communicate what milestones are coming up, highlight past successes, and
connect back to this job. In short term goal, you can say you want to upgrade your
skills. In long term, you may say that you want to become a team manager.
(Answer (long term): Become a team leader/ manager )
(short term): Learn / Master some skill (be ready with one or two
answers, whichever suits you)
Where do you see yourself 5 years from now?
As a first job interview, answering this interview question becomes difficult at times.
Of course, at this stage, we are more concerned about our first year of the job and
planning about 5 years seems daunting to many freshers. Don’t worry, here’s how
you can ace this fresher interview question. The idea of asking this question is to
check two things mainly. Firstly, your willingness to stay longer with the company,
and secondly, how well planned you are about your career goals. Never give an
impression that you want this job just to gain experience and then you wish for
something bigger in near future
What motivates you?
Consider that the interviewer wants to make sure you’re excited about this role at
this company, and that you’ll be motivated to succeed if they pick you. Pick one
thing, make sure it’s relevant to the role and company you’re interviewing for, and try
to weave in a story to help illustrate your point.
How do you prioritize your work?
Your interviewers want to know that you can manage your time, exercise judgement,
communicate, and shift gears when needed. Start by talking about whatever system
you’ve found works for you to plan your day or week, whether it’s a to-do list app you
swear by or a color-coded spread sheet
What do you like to do outside of work?
Interviewers will sometimes ask about your hobbies or interests outside of work in
order to get to know you a little better—to find out what you’re passionate about and
devote time to during your off-hours.
How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations?
Talk about your go-to strategies for dealing with stress (whether it’s meditating for 10
minutes every day or making sure you go for a run or keeping a super-detailed to-
do list) and how you communicate and otherwise proactively try to mitigate
pressure
What are you looking for in a new position?
Hint: Ideally the same things that this position has to offer. Be specific
Why we should hire you?
With this tricky interview question and answer, the employer wants to see your ability
to pitch your skills and convincing power. Moreover, this interview question is an
opportunity to show the interviewer your willingness for the job. The best way to
answer this fresher interview question is to talk about your skills and strengths that
match the job role. You can even share some more examples of how you managed
a few projects or important assignments in your college that reflect your strengths.
What do you know about our company?
It is one of the most important interview questions that is usually asked by a hiring
manager in the beginning of the conversation to understand how much you are
aware about the organization where you wish to work. Therefore, the best way to ace
this interview question is to do a proper research about the company, read online
about company’s latest updates, understand its business, and above all, read
thoroughly the job description
What are your salary expectations?
As a fresh graduate, talking about your first salary is exciting, but a difficult job. The
best way common interview question is to do some research in advance so that you
can confidently take a reasonable range. In case you still do not have any idea
about a reasonable salary for the job role, you can simply answer to accept the
package as per industry standards. This leaves much scope for the negotiation at
the time of final offer letter.
Do you have any questions for us?
Most of the job interviews close at this basic interview question where the interviewer
leaves scope for you to clear your doubts. Moreover, asking questions show that you
are a confident and focused person who wants clarity for his/her job. Many fresh
graduates hesitate to ask questions from the interviewer, but it is always
recommended to ask some relevant questions. Prepare a list of questions in
advance that can help you get familiarize with the job role. Ask intelligent questions
that show your curiosity to know more about the company, its policies, people, any
specific skill you need to acquire for the given role, etc. Avoid asking irrelevant
questions such as the duration of lunch hours, how often the company organizes
parties, or how soon you will be promoted to the next level!