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20 tips for mastering an internship

interview
The rush for coveted summer internships is on. I've been sensing some interview angst on
Twitter lately, so I thought I'd try to give you a sense of what to expect and how you can best
prepare for your internship interview.

I've interviewed dozens of interns and taught college students competing for internships, so
this advice represents the cumulative knowledge I've gained on the subject by being an active
participant in the process.

Here's my best advice for interns:

1. Customize your résumé for each interview: Change your résumé's objective and
wording to conform with the job description. Don't make up stuff or lie, just tailor your
words accordingly.

2. Save your résumé with your full name in the title before sending it to the company.
Don't send a document that says, “Résumé.” That's only helpful for finding it on your
computer, not to the person who's receiving 10 résumés per week.

3. In addition to e-mailing your résumé to the appropriate person, mail your résumé
with a cover letter to the hiring manager. An e-mailed résumé is easy to ignore. A
beautifully written letter with a real signature on nice paper is hard to throw away. It's
important that you send the letter and résumé to the person who's involved in the hiring
process.

4. Always mail your cover letter and résumé to the HR department of the company as
well. Be sure to have someone you trust proofread both the résumé and cover letter.

5. After you've sent your résumé, wait at least a week before calling or e-mailing the
company. Don't ask whether they've received it; do ask about the timeframe for potential
interviews. Be ready with your elevator speech (see below).

6. Prepare an elevator speech. An elevator speech is a short statement that encompasses

who you are and what your goals are for this internship. Be ready to give this little speech on
a moment's notice.

7. For goodness sake, do not drink the night before, or pull an all-nighter, or smoke on
your way to the interview. This is essential. You don’t want to smell like booze or smoke in
the interview. You also want to be on your game.
8. Arrive 15 minutes early for the interview and make sure you know the names of the
people you're meeting with. Basically, leave early and do some research in advance.

9. Dress up. This is non-negotiable. Even if you are the only one wearing a suit, that's
OK. Polished nails and shoes are a must. Spend money on a go-to classy interview suit.

10. Grooming goes a long way. Guys, you should file and de-funk your fingernails.
Ladies, a coat of clear polish is best. Style your hair. Guys, a fresh haircut and shave are in
order. Hold the cologne and perfume.

11. Carry a simple portfolio with pen, paper, extra résumés, simple business cards, and
a sample of your portfolio. Gals, leave your handbag in the car.

12. Smile, act confident, and be sure to ask questions. Come prepared with a notebook to
take notes, and have a few questions pre-written in case you forget to write anything down.

13. Try to balance talking about yourself, while taking great care not to brag. It's funny
how a group of people will perceive the candidate after the interview. Some will love the
confidence, some will be slightly turned off by slight arrogance.

14. Focus on your accomplishments. Do not just read your résumé to your interviewer.

15. Share what you learned from past internships or jobs. Focus on how you overcame
challenges and never, ever, say bad things about your former employer. It makes you look
bad.

16. One question to be sure to ask: How is the internship supervised? Will you have one
boss or many? The answer to this question may help you prioritize internships. Having this
information may be crucial to knowing how much guidance you'll get and, consequently,
how much you'll learn.

17. Write down the names of your interviewers and send them each a handwritten
thank-you note. I suggest dropping the notes in the mail the same day as the interview; that
way they arrive shortly after your interview. Sometimes decisions are made very quickly, so
don't skip this one.

18. Only call to follow up after a week has passed. If they love you, they'll call you back,
but sometimes people have to talk to a number of other managers or HR folks before making
the call.

19. Send a courtesy e-mail to the hiring manager to let them know if you've accepted
another internship. Do this regardless of the timeline.

20. When you receive an offer, feel free to ask questions about the pay level or other
benefits. Asking too soon in the process might make you appear as though your priorities are
misplaced. Internships are about learning and gaining experience, not earning a ton of
money, per se. It's nice to be paid, but the internship should be about furthering your career
goals and filling gaps in your résumé. Here are some finishing touches that leave a great
impression and show your commitment to being hired by a reputable company:
  Friend the company on Facebook, and follow it on Twitter. Find the company's page
on LinkedIn, and follow it, too.
 Forward a link to your online portfolio, a website you've created, or your LinkedIn
page with a short note thanking the interviewer for their time.
 Clean up your online profiles. No pictures of yourself in a hoochy-mama skin-tight
dress, no drinking photos, no photos sitting on someone's lap. Be sure to make your
profile as private as possible.

I'm a firm believer that internships are the reason people get offered full-time jobs after
college. Do you have any burning questions that you need to ask?

>

The 50 Most Common Interview Questions:

1. What are your strengths?

2. What are your weaknesses?
3. Why are you interested in working for [insert company name here]?
4. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years?
5. Why do you want to leave your current company?
6. Why was there a gap in your employment between [insert date] and [insert date]?
7. What can you offer us that someone else can not?
8. What are three things your former manager would like you to improve on?
9. Are you willing to relocate?
10. Are you willing to travel?
11. Tell me about an accomplishment you are most proud of.
12. Tell me about a time you made a mistake.
13. What is your dream job?
14. How did you hear about this position?
15. What would you look to accomplish in the first 30 days/60 days/90 days on the job?
16. Discuss your resume.
17. Discuss your educational background.
18. Describe yourself.
19. Tell me how you handled a difficult situation.
20. Why should we hire you?
21. Why are you looking for a new job?
22. Would you work holidays/weekends?
23. How would you deal with an angry or irate customer?
24. What are your salary requirements?
25. Give a time when you went above and beyond the requirements for a project.
26. Who are our competitors?
27. What was your biggest failure?
28. What motivates you?
29. What’s your availability?
30. Who’s your mentor?
31. Tell me about a time when you disagreed with your boss.
32. How do you handle pressure?
33. What is the name of our CEO?
34. What are your career goals?
35. What gets you up in the morning?
36. What would your direct reports say about you?
37. What were your bosses’ strengths/weaknesses?
38. If I called your boss right now and asked him what is an area that you could improve
on, what would he say?
39. Are you a leader or a follower?
40. What was the last book you’ve read for fun?
41. What are your co-worker pet peeves?
42. What are your hobbies?
43. What is your favorite website?
44. What makes you uncomfortable?
45. What are some of your leadership experiences?
46. How would you fire someone?
47. What do you like the most and least about working in this industry?
48. Would you work 40+ hours a week?
49. What questions haven’t I asked you?
50. What questions do you have for me?

How to prepare for common job interview questions:

Do your homework. “One of the biggest complaints of hiring managers is that many
job interview candidates know very little about the company they’re interviewing for,”
says Andy Teach, author of From Graduation to Corporation: The Practical Guide to
Climbing the Corporate Ladder One Rung at a Time, and host of the YouTube
channel FromGradToCorp. Google the company you’re interviewing with and read
some of the articles that pop up; study the company’s website; know the company’s
mission, its products and services, its locations, and who their top executives are.
Go to the Public Relations tab on their website and print out some of their latest press
releases. “Study them so that you can talk in the interview about what’s going on with
the company now,” he says.

Prepare a list of likely questions. Shweta Khare, a career and job search expert says
getting a list of common questions for an interview is easier than ever before.
“You can never underestimate the importance of preparation. It’s the first step and the
most important,” she says.

Identify what the organization wants and needs. “While the focus of ‘Why should
we hire you?’ (and other similar interview questions) is on ‘you,’ the interviewee, it’s
important to remember the answer isn’t all about you,” says Miriam Salpeter, job
search coach, owner of Keppie Careers and author of Social Networking for Career
Success and 100 Conversations for Career Success.
The most successful interview responses focus on the hiring manager’s needs.
“Framing replies that demonstrate you understand their problems, or ‘pain points,’
makes a big difference when competing with many other qualified candidates.”

Prepare by identifying the skills employers are looking for. “Use their in-depth job
descriptions, view videos the employers post about their organization, and visit their
Facebook page and Twitter feeds,” she suggests.

Google yourself. Find out what the company knows about you, Teach adds. “See
what they see. If there’s anything negative about you, have a response ready as to why
it’s negative but don’t get too defensive. Respond and then move on.”

Interview yourself for the position. Before every interview, ask yourself: “Why am I
a good fit for this job?”

“I tell my clients to post the question, ‘Why should we hire you?’ on their bathroom
mirror, refrigerator or anyplace they will see it during the day,” Salpeter says. “I
instruct them to answer, out loud, keeping different companies in mind each time.
Rehearsing this way will help you hone in on what you have to offer.”

Identify what is unique or special about you. How have you gone above and beyond
the call of duty? What did you accomplish that no one else managed to do? Did you
volunteer to tackle a problem and solve it? “Don’t underestimate the value of looking
at yourself, your skills and your accomplishments and outlining the key points you
will want to share with a prospective employer.”

Practice and plan. Role play answering typical interview questions with a friend,
colleague, or coach, says Anita Attridge, a Five O’Clock Club career and executive
coach. “Be prepared for the typical interview questions by thinking about what your
response would be to them before the interview,” she adds.

If you are a college student, set up an appointment with your career center and have
them conduct a mock interview with you. “Even if you’re a recent graduate, many
college career centers will conduct mock interviews to help alumni,” Tech says.
“Request that your interview is filmed so that they can critique you and you can study
the film. Don’t worry if you’re nervous or you screw up. You’re much
better off screwing up in a mock interview than in the real thing.”

You don’t necessarily want to memorize responses—but try to have a general strategy
for answering common interview questions. “Today many organizations are using
behavioral interview questions to better understand what you have done,” Attridge
says. “They usually begin with, ‘Tell me about a time when…’” She suggests briefly
describing what the situation was; how you handled the situation; and what the result
was.

To prepare for these, you’ll want to think about workplace experience stories that
describe your accomplishments or show how you dealt with a tough situation, Khare
says. “If you don’t have any stories that you can recall now, set aside a few hours to
think and write down at least two or three stories. A simple question like, ‘Tell me
about a time you made a mistake,’ can take you off-guard and it is not easy to recall
unrehearsed. Having a repository of work experience stories written down before
an interview will make it easier to recall.”

Reflect on previous interviews. Keep a computer or paper record of your interviews,

Teach says. “Keep a record of the time of your interviews, how long they are, your
impressions of the hiring manager, and perhaps most importantly, what questions were
asked of you, what answers you gave, and record any questions they asked you that
you felt could have been answered differently. “ Study these elements and your
interview skills will improve, he says.

Figure out how to articulate your goals. Most of the commonly asked questions
during an interview either dig into your previous experience or want to explore your
future goals, Khare says. “Prepare and articulate your goals, and remain honest here.
Inconsistent answers won’t get you the respect and credibility that is a must to impress
an interviewer.”

Be positive. When preparing for an interview and anticipating likely questions, plan to
answer all questions positively. “Even if you were in a bad situation, think about how
you can talk about the situation positively,” Attridge says. You always have a choice.
It is much better to talk about a glass being half full then to talk about it being half
empty. It’s all about your perspective, and in an interview being positive counts.

Never say anything negative about your prior employers or bosses, either–no matter
how bad the situation may have been. “A negative answer actually is a reflection about
your judgment and business acumen, and not about the employer or manager.”

Get comfortable. “Preparation and practice aside, the most important tip I would like
to suggest to job seekers is to feel comfortable with the interview process,” Khare
says. “You can read all the advice in the world about acing the interview, but none of
the tactics will work out of you are not yourself during the process.”

Feeling comfortable and relaxed positively influences your confidence. “And

interviewers always appreciate a relaxed and confident candidate, as opposed to a
heavy promoter and edgy one,” she adds. Practice calming your nerves, and focus on
how you can prove you’d be a valuable asset to the company.