Behavioral Interview Preparation

Solid behavioral interview preparation is your best bet for ensuring you are ready to answer the questions you are going to be asked because it tends to be a thorough interview.

With the behavioral interview, you certainly want to ensure that you are properly prepared because they tend to be interviews that require you to answer specific questions related to your past experience and accomplishments.

Among other things, here are some things you should do to specifically prepare for a behavioral interview:

1. Make sure you fully understand the content of your resume and the cover letter you sent to the company. Yes, you wrote your resume and cover letter so you should know the content but in stressful situations like interviews, sometimes our memory goes and we forget things. Make sure you get your facts straight and verbalize the same numbers that you have in your resume. Bring a copy of your resume with you that you can refer to during the interview if needed.

2. Make sure you understand the job you're interviewing for. The job description should highlight the main skills and experience that you require which should go a long way to helping you figure out the types of questions you will be asked. Prepare for them.

3. Make sure you are knowledgeable about your best career accomplishments. Since the interviewer will be asking you about your past experience, you will want to highlight your best accomplishments as proof of your suitability for the job. Make sure you know the specifics of these accomplishments and be ready to detail them during the interview.

4. Make sure you are aware of areas that you might be deficient in. Sometimes, you might be considered for a job where you might be lacking in a particular area that could be critical to the job ie. you don't have the ideal experience that they want, you don't have the specific degree they're looking for, etc. Think of ways you can alleviate a hiring manager's concern by letting them know how you make up for the areas you lack in and why this should not dissuade them from considering you for the job.

Remember the Problem, Action, Result format when structuring the answers to the questions you are asked.

Your answers should be concise, specific and to the point.