The Second Interview

The second interview is typically what you are trying to receive when you attend a first interview.

Unless the job you're applying for has a one-interview process to be followed by a job offer to the successful candidate, you will most likely be trying to get invited back for a second and possibly subsequent interview.

Of course it also assumes that you are still interested in the position and want to go back for a second interview.

Unless you're absolutely 100% certain that you don't want the job, it's usually best to go back for the second interview just to make sure all your assumptions and thoughts are correct.

It would be a shame to decide not to continue interviewing for a job based on one interview and then find out that you made a mistake by not continuing on in the process.

For more senior positions you might even come back for a third and subsequent interview so there might be several more chances to sell yourself to the company and to have them sell themselves to you, too!

What actually happens in the second interview of course largely depends on what happened in the first interview.

We already spoke about what typically happens in the first interview but you can revisit that topic by clicking here to go back to the First Interview page.

If your first interview was with the hiring manager, the second interview might be a more in depth discussion with the same hiring manager and/or you might meet up with one of their peers (ie. another manager) or perhaps you'll meet up with people you'd be working with should you get the job.

In this case, the questions you face tend to be more in depth than before. At this point, the company has shown interest in you so they will want to gain more information about you and your suitability for the job.

You also need to gain more knowledge about the company and the people you'd be working with.

Some companies might hold a panel second interview where you get interviewed by several people at once. I've experienced this several times myself.

When you're leaving the first interview try to get a sense as to what the next step in the process is.

If you find out that you have been invited to a second (or subsequent) interview try to find out who you'll be meeting with and what each person does. This will help you get a better sense of what the second (or subsquent) interview will entail and what you will need to prepare for.

Assuming the interview process is successfully completed by you and a job offer is forthcoming, at this point you typically enter the reference check phase.

Go to the Reference Check page