Download - Introducing yourself in interviews
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Now, please introduce yourself.Yes, well…I…Ah…???
Introducing Yourself in a Job
Interview
Mary Willes
Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
INTRODUCING YOURSELFIN A JOB INTERVIEW
Mary Willes
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Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
Contents
Preface
1. About this book 2
2. Forms of the question: Please introduce yourself 2
3. Meanings of the question 3
4. The Interviewer's point of view 4
5. What the Interviewer wants from the applicant 5
Preparing for the day
6. Making a start 8
7. Presenting yourself as a serious applicant
10
8. Presenting yourself as a suitable applicant
13
9. Presenting yourself as a memorable 15
- even an outstanding applicant
Introducing a potentially valuable employee
10. The Interviewer's worst nightmare 16
11. The really excellent employee
17
Past experience applicable to work situations
12. The experience of study
20
13. Participation in extra-curricular activities
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"Please introduce yourself" A selection of answers
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Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
PREFACE
1. ABOUT THIS BOOK
This is a very short book - not much more than a booklet, or pamphlet. You will
be able to read it through in 45 minutes to 60 minutes. It is part of the Job
Search Communication Package of the ILC, and it is about just one single
question.
The question is an important one, because almost all interviewers ask it! You
can almost sure it will be asked, in some form, at any job interview you attend.
A few interviewers ask you for an answer in Putonghua - but most of them ask
for it in English. They treat the question as a test of your English, and of your
skills as an applicant.
If you answer it appropriately, and with understanding, then you are well on the
way to a successful interview! So what is the question? It is expressed in
different ways, but the most usual is:
2. FORMS OF THE QUESTION
You may hear this question expressed in a number of different ways. All of
them are intended to get the same sort of response from you. Here are some
of the ways in which the question may be asked:
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1 Would you like to introduce yourself?
2 Tell us what sort of person you think you are.
How about you? Your family, your interest?
Let's hear what you have to say about yourself.
Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
Notice that the key is yourself. That's the word that you immediately recognize
- so you take a breath, and you get ready to answer. Now stop, and before the
interview, let's think about what the question really means, and what sort of
answer the questioner needs and wants.
3. MEANINGS OF THE QUESTION
The question has different meanings in different contexts. Think how different
the meanings would be, for example -
At a party, where it might mean, do you know any of the people that I
know?
or from a psychologist, in his consulting room, where it might mean.
does anything in your childhood experience explain what you are feeling
and doing now?
or in a Police Station, when you have reported (say) a theft or an accident, and
it might mean, are you someone whose evidence should be taken
seriously?
It doesn't mean any of these things in a job interview!
If you are going to understand what it does mean, you have to ask another
question first. It is this: What, exactly, does the interviewer want? What
would he - or she - find helpful in deciding among several applicants which is
best suited to the job? So we'll look at that question now.
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Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
4. THE INTERVIEWERS'S POINT OF VIEW
It's time to imagine you are not you - the final year CUHK student reading this,
but someone quite different! Let's suppose…
Your name is Desmond Wong, and you are in your late forties, with greying
hair. You are very well respected in your middle management position, and
your children are growing up, and your wife is in full-time employment. The
elder of your sons is already in the second year of Medical School - it's the
second one - not doing very well in Secondary School - that worries you.
However, you have to put aside your family and financial worries this
afternoon.
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You have been asked to interview
five - or is it six? applicants for that
management trainee post. The
interviews will take at least until six
in the afternoon. You are worried
about what the stock market
is doing and the value of some
shares you bought on Tuesday …
Enough of that. You remember that
for each of these five? Six? Young
people this is an important day.
You hope none of them will waste your time by canceling their appointments
at the last minute - or, worse still, by failing to turn up at all…. The trouble is
they all look so alike. You do hope you will be able to remember which name
belongs with which face. Is there time for some tea? No there isn't - here is
the applicant now. She comes in, and sits down. You get a good first
impression - she's tidy and suitably dressed - she's looking straight at you, not
fidgeting or fussing. Thank goodness. You start, in what you hope is a
pleasant way, in a welcoming manner, not an alarming one.
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Let's leave them to the interview and make a summary of what Mr. Wong
wants, and what he doesn't want.
5. WHAT THE INTERVIEWER WANTS FROM THE APPLICANT
We can summarize what he needs in a way that is very short and very easy to
remember: he wants to identify the applicant from you as
Obviously he needs to identify each applicant. Most applicants start by saying
"Well, I'm Linda Chan and …
There is nothing wrong with that - but it is a mistake to continue by telling the
interviewer the personal details which he already has on your application form
and the accompanying letter. "There is one point you should be careful of
Good afternoon Miss Chan. It's Miss Linda Chan, isn't it? Right Miss Chan. Would you like to introduce yourself?
Serious
Suitable
Memorable and
Outstanding (if possible )
Clear – free from uncertainty and confusion
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here. If, by any chance, the papers are in the wrong order, and it isn't Linda,
but Lynne Chan she must say, at once, and firmly, but not irritably
"No, my name is Lynne, not Linda. I'm the applicant from Chai
Wan, majoring in Sociology in the Chinese University."
You too need to remember how easy it is for someone to present the
application forms in a different order from that in which the applicants appear -
and make certain you are correctly identified.
E
vidence of the applicant's
seriousness
As this interviewer knows very well,
not all applicants are serious. They
are the ones who fail to arrive,
without any sort of telephoned or
written messages. And waste the
time of busy people. Just by being
there, Linda shows she is not one of
those - but she may be able to say
something in addition, that will show
that she is serious about the job.
We shall look later at some of the
things she might say.
E
vidence of the applicant's suitability.
Someone who may employ an
applicant needs to know what sort of
character and disposition the person
has, in order to make a judgement
about whether he or she will fit in
and work well. You simply have to
demonstrate self-knowledge and the
language to express it. We shall
look at ways of making sure you do.
C
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lear and free of ambiguity and confusion.
Ambiguities - statements that leave
the interviewer uncertain how he is
to interpret them - are present in
many applications, and may appear
in yours. They are of several sorts.
If, for example, your grades are not
very good, or if they are noticeably
uneven - that will seem to the
interviewer something that needs
explanation. If you have majored in
a subject that is not an obvious
preparation for the job you are
applying for, then that will seem to
him/her, something you ought to
explain. Of course the interviewer
can ask you directly - and if you
have not answered the question
before, he almost certainly will.
However, you are likely to do better
in the interview if you raise the
questions that perhaps you would
prefer not to be asked! You get a
chance then to offer an explanation
without seeming defensive. Don't
lose that opportunity!
ne or more reasons to remember
you!
Most of the people an interviewer
sees in the course of a long, hot
afternoon are likely to be adequately
qualified and reasonably well
prepared. They are not likely these
days, when there is so much
emphasis on preparing for job
interviews in the final year of degree
courses, to make any of the obvious
silly mistakes of dress and manner.
Many interviewers pack their brief
cases at the end of the session
feeling that everyone seen that day
is very similar, and there is little to
choose between them! The request
to you to introduce yourself is,
among other things, an invitation to
say what is special, unusual,
outstanding, about yourself. And
many of us (not just final year
students!) feel that really we are very
ordinary. There is nothing
outstanding or special about us at
all! That is what makes the question
hard to answer sensibly,
satisfactorily and truthfully! There is
an honest effort to help you with this
part of the question.
O
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Let's sum up so far.
Your interviewer wants to be convinced, right from the point where you
respond to the very first question, that you are somebody whose application
he must consider seriously, and that you are a potentially suitable employee.
In the next few minutes he hopes that you are going to establish yourself as
someone he will remember as an outstanding applicant.
PREPARING FOR THE DAY!
6. MAKING A START
We look now at how you can meet the needs of the interviewer who says to you
Let's take first. Your greeting to the interviewer and the very first words you
say. We can deal with that quite quickly. Let's suppose the interviewer has
already greeted you by name, and you have every reason to think that you —
the person in front of him — are firmly associated in his mind with your
application, your photograph, your Curriculum Vitae (or resume) and your
letters of reference. (You should make sure that both your English and your
Chinese name recognize you though.) What can you sensibly say next,
promptly and politely? Here are some possibilities for you to consider:
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Such an acknowledgement isn't only polite — it tells the interviewer what
information you already have and he can take for granted and need not
repeat. None of this need to take you more than a few seconds. You have
the next few minutes to establish in the interviewer's mind that you are a
serious and a suitable applicant, and that you are someone he will
remember for the right reasons. To do that, you have to give thought, before
you attend interviews, to what you are, and to the sort of person you expect to
become. Let's take the questions in the same order as before.
7. PRESENTING YOURSELF AS A SERIOUS APPLICANT
Thank you for the address of your
company's web-site. I found this
very informative.
Thank you for the opportunity of this
interview.
I received and read the detailed
particulars of the post/ the information
about the company/ the brochure —
thank you for these.
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You have already gone a long way towards reassuring the interviewer that you
are — simply by the fact that you are there, at the right time, suitably prepared
for the interview. You might therefore feel he has no reason to doubt that you
are entirely serous in your application, and will accept the job if it is offered to
you (unless of course there is a very good reason why you should not). If, in
addition, the subject of your major is directly related to the job offered, then
your seriousness will not be in doubt. Somebody applying for a training
position with an auditing company who has majored in Auditing has nothing to
explain. Somebody who is about to graduate with a BBA, and is applying for
a trainee management post with an import— export company is in the same
position. If you are in this position you can skip the next few paragraphs and
go directly to 8.
Supposing, however, that you majored in a non-vocational Arts subject, in
History, or Sociology or Geography or Psychology - say - how will the
interviewer respond to your application then? Will the interviewer believe that
you are a serious applicant - let alone a suitable one? You need to give
serious thought to the possibility that he will be doubtful about you.
Start by thinking back to the real reasons why you choose your major. Here
are some that most people (quite right) don't mention in job interviews but that
seemed to them important at the same time. Tick any that are true of the
choices you made.
I really liked the subject, and I wanted to study it, and at the time, I
just didn't think in any realistic way, about a future career.
I wasn't strong candidate for University place, and I thought my
chances were better if I chose a non-vocational subject as my major.
I chose the only subject in which I had even moderately good
grades at that time.
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There was a little group of us — all friends — we spent a lot of time
together— they were all applying for University places. It seemed the
thing to do next, I really had no clear idea of what University study
would be like.
See if you can add other reasons to this list
Recognize that many people, not just you, make decisions for reasons of this
sort. You were young and inexperienced, - so of course people guided you
who had your interests at heart. You were not in the position of a strong
competitor - so you didn’t choose the courses of study where entrance was
most competitive. What could be more sensible? So don't feel ashamed, or
resentful or apologetic!
Instead, - think a bit further. Did you find and use any options and
opportunities you and your course of study that are likely to be useful to you in
the sort of job you hope to do? Here are some possibilities that you may
remember. Again tick any you think apply to you.
There were projects, involving research, analysis, teamwork
You undertook fieldwork, extended visits/exchanges. These
broadened your experience. Perhaps you discovered unexpected
links between theory and practice
You made use of language learning and development opportunities
not easily found outside a University setting.
You developed other intellectual skills that you think can be applied
in a wide variety of circumstances
Add any others you can think of.
Now you are ready to think what you can say about your choice
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of major which is true, and which is going to reassure your interviewer that
you a serious applicant, who may very well be potentially a good employee.
Here are some things you might say.
I chose History / Geography / Sociology because
I was strongly drawn to the subject and I saw my
University course as an opportunity — perhaps
the only opportunity, — to study in depth.
I chose History / Geography / Sociology because
I was strongly drawn to the subject and I saw my
University course as an opportunity — perhaps
the only opportunity, — to study in depth.
I was advised by my parents / teachers to choose
Chinese Studies / Sports Science/ Psychology
because at the time when competition for
University entry was severe, the demand for these
subjects was less than that for vocational
subjects.
I was advised by my parents / teachers to choose
Chinese Studies / Sports Science/ Psychology
because at the time when competition for
University entry was severe, the demand for these
subjects was less than that for vocational
subjects.
Like most young students in secondary school I
chose to study further the subjects(s) in which I
had the best grades. Career guidance is more
detailed now than it was at that time.
Like most young students in secondary school I
chose to study further the subjects(s) in which I
had the best grades. Career guidance is more
detailed now than it was at that time.
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Having given this honest answer, you can then add any of the following which
are true for you, and which you are prepared to talk further about:
Almost certainly the interviewer will be reassured and will ask you to enlarge
on the claim you have just made. From your viewpoint this is satisfactory. It
means that the second question you have to answer is one that you have
chosen, and one that you have already thought carefully about. You can feel
that you have tackled that first question ("Now, please introduce yourself!") in
a satisfactory way.
8. PRESENTING YOURSELF AS SUITABLE APPLICANT
You may have the sort of excellent academic record and enthusiastic
references that leave no interviewer in doubt of your suitability! If you have,
you can skip this next section! There are many applicants; however, who
have disappointing or uneven or simply bad grades and you may very well be
one of them. Don't think these will escape the interviewer's notice! It is much
better that you, when you are asked to introduce yourself, should recognize
I was, however, able to take a minor, / additional course, / options within
the course which relates more directly to the work I hope to do.
During my course I was able to develop skills (rapid reading and writing
and summarizing/ assembling and evaluating evidence / working as a
member of a team / communicating with people of different cultural
experience) — which I believe are widely applicable to the sort of
employment I look for.
I was, however, able to take a minor, / additional course, / options within
the course which relates more directly to the work I hope to do.
During my course I was able to develop skills (rapid reading and writing
and summarizing/ assembling and evaluating evidence / working as a
member of a team / communicating with people of different cultural
experience) — which I believe are widely applicable to the sort of
employment I look for.
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that they raise doubts about your suitability in the mind of the interviewer. You
can say something that will lessen those doubts. Again, you need to think
about what to say before the day of the interview. Can you explain to yourself
why your grades were disappointing?
Here are some possibilities.
Having said something like this you can add
“I feel I learned something from this disappointment” - for example,
From finding out my weaknesses, I learned what my real strengths
are
I learned to be more patient with people who have trouble doing
things that I can do easily
I learned that success doesn't come without effort— but effort alone
isn't enough to make sure you succeed.
If you open up the subject of disappointing grades as you introduce yourself,
and address it honestly, the interviewer is not at all likely to follow it further.
I found the whole culture of the University very strange. I really didn't
know what was expected of me. I learned from the mistake and
confusion of the first year and did better in the later part of the course.
"During part of my first / second/ third / year I was ill / a member of my
family was ill / I had severe family problems. Missed assignments and
poor exam results produced disappointing grades. (Be prepared to
supply evidence if you say anything like this) "
"There were parts of the course for which I was unprepared / that were
beyond my abilities. Even though I worked hard, and asked for help
and got it, I got a very disappointing result."
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Almost certainly he will continue by asking you another question - probably by
asking you to extend what you have already said about the topic.
Now comes the hard part! If the interviewer is satisfied that you are a serious
applicant, and a suitable one, you now have a few minutes of your
introduction to persuade him that you are a good applicant - perhaps an
outstanding one. There is something special, something memorable about
you. So how are you to prepare to do this?
9. PRESENTING YOURSELF AS REALLY GOOD
- EVEN AN OUTSTANDING APPPLICANT
Right now, you may have little experience of the role of employed person - or
none at all! You may have done part-time and temporary jobs - but people’s
expectations of you in those roles are often not very well defined, and not (as
a rule) very demanding. There are other roles of course in which you have a
great deal of experience. You are very familiar, for example, with what is
expected of a student. You have had a lifetime of practice in the role of a son,
or daughter, perhaps, also of a younger/older brother/sister and in some other
roles too - friend counselor perhaps, representative of a group, or team
member. You know that in each of these roles you present a rather different
image. Different aspects of your personality emerge - but you are still
recognizably yourself. You are probably more at ease in some than you are in
others. Now you have an opportunity, and an obligation, to consider how you
are going to present yourself in the role of a potential employee.
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INTRODUCING A POTENTIALLY VALUABLE EMPLOYEE
10. THE INTERVIEWER’S WORST NIGHTMARE!
It’s time to put yourself in the position of the Interviewer again! Interviewers
are expected (by their companies) to be rapid and accurate judges of
character and ability on the basis of application letters and interviews, but all
interviewers know that they can be badly mistaken, and if they are, the cost to
the company is high! The Interviewer’s worst fear is of recruiting someone
thoroughly unsatisfactory - someone we might call the TAC, the Truly Awful
Colleague! What words would you use to describe such a person? What is
he or she being like? How about, for a start-
Careless, slovenly in work habits? The sort of person who leaves work unfinished?
Unpunctual, unmethodical, inconsistent in work habits?
Untidy, casual, and grubby in appearance?
Rude, disagreeable, sullen in manner?
Can you imagine the damage that somebody like that would do in an office?
In addition, the TAC
Is a clock-watcher?
This handy English idiom is used of people who seem to grudge the time that
work demands - so they are always looking at the clock to see when they can
go for lunch or leave in the evening! You sense that the minds of clock-
watchers are always somewhere else. TAC’s never focus on what they
should be doing. They don’t improve on their bad start
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because they are
Unwillin g (or unable) to learn
They take any suggestion as a criticism, and any criticism as a matter for
resentment.
That Truly Awful Colleague, you notice, is not malicious, is not deceitful, is not
cruel - could not justly be a bad person at all - but does so much damage that
he doesn’t last very long in the job! Let’s turn from the Interviewer’s
Nightmare, to the Interviewer’s Earnest Hope - that on the day of your
interview he will find and recommend for appointment the person who will
become the opposite of the Truly Awful Colleague –
11. THE REALLY EXCELLENT EMPLOYEE
If you feel nervous, and even despondent, at the prospect of an interview -
remember that the Really Excellent Employee is the person that the
Interviewer hopes he meets when you walk into the room. Once you have in
your mind the picture of the awful opposite - it isn’t difficult to describe an
excellent employee, is it?
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He or she arrives at work looking very much as you do on the day of the
interview - neat, fresh, alert, suitably dressed, and (of course) punctual. That
person’s attention (like yours) is focused on the job to be done. So the
Excellent Employee quickly learns what is required in the new environment -
and goes on making use of all the learning opportunities that the environment
offers. He is well mannered and pleasant with colleagues. After all, he hopes
that some of them will become good friends. And he expects that he will
collaborate more or less closely with them as members of a team because his
attention is concentrated on the job in hand, he avoids muddle and mess and
confusion. Colleagues quickly come to see him as an orderly, methodical
person who does not waste his time or theirs, and can almost find things
quickly when they are needed. As the workload increases, he sorts out the
more from the less important tasks, and makes deliberate decisions about
how he is going to use the available time. In that way he avoids crisis and
panic except on very rare occasions! And his colleagues agree he is the sort
of person who can work well under pressure. He does make mistakes
sometimes of course - but he accepts criticism, and he doesn’t make the
same mistakes twice! Increasingly, people come to rely on him. He isn’t
perfect, or a paragon, and he certainly isn’t an efficient machine - but he is a
good, competent, conscientious employee.
You almost certainly recognize that you have the qualities of such a person.
So how are you going, in the few minutes you have to introduce yourself, to
persuade an Interviewer that you have the potential to be satisfactory, and
perhaps an excellent, employee?
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It’s no good to just to say you are punctual, alert, clear-headed, calm, and
conscientious! It’s no good saying that you can cope with situations where
there is simply more to do than can be accomplished in the available time,
that you are calm, and methodical and work well under pressure. Certainly
it’s no good claiming to be an analytical person, who can offer innovative and
creative solutions! Anyone who simply makes unsupported claims is likely to
be thought naive - or worse, conceited, ignorant and boastful. So what are
you to do?
You have instead to identify situations in which you know that you have
already shown one or two of the qualities that are characteristic of a really
good employee. And be prepared to talk about them. Let’s look at the ways
in which you might do this, and at some of the things you could say.
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PAST EXPERIENCE APPLICABLE TO WORK SITUATIONS
You have much more experience applicable to your future in employment than
you may realize - but you need to think carefully about it, and how you are
going to talk about it, in advance of your interview. All students have
experience of academic study: almost all have participated in extra-curricular
activities. We look now at what each of these has to offer you as preparation
for the world of work.
12. THE EXPERIENCE OF STUDY
First: If you arrived on time at the interview, suitably dressed, and
unhurried, that is a start in itself! And you don’t even need to say anything
about it! It’s still a good start.
Second:You have experience – years of experience – of working as a
student. Ask yourself – are there any ways in which being a student is similar
to being an employee? Certainly there are! Could you, as a result of that
experience, say any of these things truthfully, about yourself?
I have learned, as a student,
To work seriously and conscientiously, meeting obligations and
meeting work deadlines, and I do all these now as a matter of habit.
The importance of working at anything you have to do with
energy and concentration.
How necessary it is to learn from criticism of one’s work. Most
of our teachers correct work very conscientiously, and though it is
disappointing to see mistakes highlighted it is very important to
study and learn from those criticisms.
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To search for additional information about things that interest or
puzzle me, it is very important in learning to take initiatives and it is
something I hope to apply in my working life.
To become familiar and at ease with computer use – as a source
of information, as a means of language extension and practice, as a
resource for information.
To work as a team member. All the projects we completed
involved collaboration. Everyone had a chance to practise all the
various roles that team members are required to fill.
To plan the use of time. There is never enough time to complete
a task as well as it could be done! A student’s work, like other work,
has to be done within the resources available. And time is the most
important of those resources.
You may think of other ways in which you have learned, as a student, to do
things that have to be done in the different environment of a work place. Be
prepared to talk about just two or three of them. – Not more. There won’t be
time for more. Notice that if you talk about opportunities, which you have
experienced, you avoid seeming to make claims! You leave the interviewer to
infer that you have, in fact, made good use of the opportunities you talk about.
You don’t then seem to be boasting and bragging about your achievements.
If the Interviewer asks you for more detail about anything you say, you will be
able to answer very easily. Just be careful not to go on too long!
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13. PARTICAPTION IN EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES
As a student you probably took part in one or two extra-curricular activities.
Interviewers are, quite properly, interested in these, because they often
provide opportunities to learn practical and intellectual skills that can be
transferred to the work place.
So think about the things you did at any time in the past. Years of your
University course of study – or indeed before then – field trips, visits,
production of publications. Think … were you on the editorial committee of a
publication? Did you assist in the organization of events? Did you help to
start a new society or indeed any new venture? Were you involved in
competitive sports? It is not very likely that the answer is no – none of those
things! (If it is – then see the paragraph below on page 23)
Then consider whether you could truthfully say anything like the following:
"In my second/third year I helped with/took a leading part in the
organization of a workshop/student conference / several study
days / immersion camp / music festival / swimming gala / series
of cricket matches I learned some widely applicable lessons
about long term planning / financial management / producing
appropriate press releases / coping with the unexpected."
"In my third/fourth year I was involved in / helped to set up a
society for promoting interest in magazine production /
inexpensive travel / cultural / religious / political activity. Like all
those of us who undertook this activity, I learned a lot about
offering and receiving hospitality / advertising and promotion/
managing activities within budget / balancing the claims of
these activities and the need to meet work deadlines."
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The last point is very important. If you were very active in extra curricular
functions and societies, you must make clear that your University work had
always its rightful, central, place in your life – the place that the Interviewer
expects that in future your employment will have.
Suppose you are the student mentioned above who avoided any
serious extra-curricular involvement at all? You would probably do
best to offer some explanation rather than wait to be asked for one.
Almost certainly it is not the case that you could find nothing to interest you!
The explanation you offer is likely to be something along these lines:
You are not likely to be questioned further. You come over as a responsible
person rather than as someone having a narrow range of interests and / or
limited vitality and energy.
All that might sound as if you have spoken for half an hour! You haven’t of
course. You have introduced yourself in three or four minutes, said (perhaps)
four sentences given the Interviewer a settled conviction that you are a
serious and suitable candidate - and perhaps the very person the company is
looking for. That’s a good answer to the initial question and a good start for
the interview.
In the remaining section of this handbook you’ll find a few examples of how an
answer to the question “Please introduce yourself!” might look.
"I had to spend 2/3/4 hours daily travelling, and I decided that in these
circumstances involvement in music/sport/drama was simply not
practicable. I couldn’t do that and do justice to my studies."
"I had inescapable family responsibilities in addition to the workload
involved in my course. I simply couldn’t commit my time to any extra-
curricular or sporting activity."
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Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
“PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF!” A SELECTION OF ANSWERS
In the final section of this Handbook you get a chance to practice answering
this question. This is how it works.
Read first the two notes on each student, the Biographical Note, and the
Personal Reminder.
The first is a short summary of that person’s dates and academic record. The
second is a note made by the applicant before the interview about things he
or she thinks are relevant to the application, should be mentioned, and might
be overlooked in the circumstances of an interview.
Try to keep your answer to the question quite short – if you write it down, don’t
use more than five lines. You should know that each applicant really wants to
be offered that job and will do his or her best to persuade the Interviewer of
his or her suitability. Then compare your answer with the answer the
applicant actually gave. Don’t think of the applicant’s answer as the “right”
answer though! In the circumstances of a job interview some of these
applicants are inexperienced and nervous, and their answers are not as good
as yours are! You may be able to think of advice you could give to some of
them.
The first person (fictitious of course) is someone you may know already, if you
have used the Job Search Dialogues. It is Wendy Lo. Do you recall her
interview with Mr. Bernard So? She applied for a position as a teacher of
Biology in his school. It is Dialogue 9 in that series. Very few applicants
attended only one interview and this was not the only interview that Wendy
attended. She applied for a job two weeks earlier in an Aided School in Hong
Kong. The advertisement was for an English teacher, but said that some
teaching of Biology might be available for a suitably qualified applicant.
Wendy applied and was asked to attend an interview. Here is a summary of
her Curriculum Vitae (or Resume) and a copy of the note she made for her
own use before the day of the interview.
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Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
Wendy Lo:
A Biographical Note born Kowloon Tong 1976: consistently
good grades in Primary and Secondary School. Satisfactory
grades in Hong Kong Certificate of Education and Hong Kong
Advanced Level and high grades in English and Biology.
Majored in Biology in the Chinese University of Hong Kong,
and graduated in 1997. Worked (in the summers of 1995,
1996) as a summer teacher in a Church Community Centre – with great
interest and enthusiasm. Has an enthusiastic letter of recommendation from
the Director of that program.
Immediately on graduation applied for and obtained a trainee-ship in
Personnel Management, but was not happy or successful in that environment,
and is anxious to leave, and find full time work as a graduate teacher of
Biology. This vacancy is for an English teacher who could teach some
Biology in lower forms. It is not ideal, but Wendy still thinks it worth applying
for.
B Personal Reminder I enjoy teaching both younger and older students.
Convinced of the importance of education to the individual and to society.
Majored in Biology – but have a long-standing interest in English Studies.
Regularly watch English Language TV- especially the wild-life programs.
Some (not very extensive) experience of teaching English. Keen to extend
this.
he scene is the Office of the Director of Studies in an Aided school.
Her name – Mrs. Sotheby B.Ed., Dip.RSA, is on the door. The
school is able to offer a good starting salary, and Wendy is one of a
very large number of applicants. Wendy’s good examination results when
she was a school student were noticed, and secured an interview for her –
though she is less experienced and less suitably qualified than some other
candidates who were not called for interview.
T
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Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
Mrs. Sotheby, "Please take a seat Miss Lo. Now – first of all – I’ve read your
application letter of course – but, would you like to introduce yourself?"
Your turn now! Read the Biographical Note and the Personal Reminder
again, and then write between five and seven lines, in English, in which
Wendy tells Mrs. Sotheby about herself.
Now look below at what Wendy actually said. Notice that she didn’t
remember everything! And this is not intended as a model answer!
Mrs. Sothby jots down her impression of candidates. She gives 10 to
someone whose answer seems to her absolutely outstanding, really excellent,
and 1 to somebody who is too shy and embarrassed to manage any sensible
or useful answer at all…How do you think she rated Wendy’s answer?
Introduce myself? Oh, yes, well…I’m a Hong Kong person, born
and educated here. I’ve recently graduated from the Chinese
University. Biology was my major. I’ve always been interested
in English though – and I’ve done some teaching of English – not
a lot – in Summer Programs. I enjoyed that, and I think the
students did. I’d really like an opportunity to do more…I think
teaching is one of most valuable things a person can do –
though I know it’s very hard work and everyone knows that it’s
stressful…
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Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
Comment: Probably 5 or 6. Wendy gives a straightforward response: it
doesn’t sound over-prepared; she is evidently serious about teaching and she
seems realistic in her expectations. This is not at all a bad start.
DANIEL KWAN
I wonder if you remember Daniel? His interview with Mrs.
McKenzie is in Dialogue 8. Again, that was not the only
interview he attended. He applied for a position as
trainee manager with another company, and again he
found that since English was this international company’s
working language, he was likely to face an interview in English. Here is a
summary of his biographical details.
Daniel Kwan was born in Mainland China, and came to Hong Kong with his
parents when he was very young. The family makes regular visits to family
members however. Daniel went to Primary and Secondary school in Hong
Kong. He was a hardworking, serious student, always liked by teachers and
students, and by diligent application and hard work he managed to quality for
entry to the Chinese University, and to graduate. Geography is his major. He
is not, and never has been, an academic high-flier. He is always very nervous
at the prospect of an interview in English. He has an excellent record of
involvement in extra-curricular activities - all of it in socially valuable projects.
He has worked with several voluntary organizations. – They all speak warmly
of him.
Personal Reminder This is the note Daniel wrote in preparation for the
interview. Short sentences! Say what I’ve done. Say what I want to do. Say
I’m more interested in people than in school subjects. Don’t pretend to be
good at exams. Talk about work with voluntary groups.
he scene this time is the Hong Kong office of an international
company. The management trainee post which Daniel is an
applicant is not especially well paid, but offers the possibility of
promotion. The Personnel Manager, Mrs. Ada Chan, speaks fluent English,
the working language of the company.
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Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
Mrs. Chan:
(There is some shuffling of the large pile of papers on Mrs. Chan’s desk)
Your turn now. Look again at Daniel’s biographical details and write what you
think he said. Remember he decided to keep it short - so limit yourself to four
or five lines this time.
This is what Daniel managed to say:
No, I’m not David Kwan. I’m Daniel
Kwan.
Oh yes, Mr. Kwan, isn’t it? Mr. David Kwan?
Do sit down. Please introduce yourself.
Oh dear yes – sorry, here we are. Right – so,
just introduce yourself, will you?
Yes, I'll introduce myself. I'm Daniel Kwan. In 1997, I graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. I majored in Geography. I always wanted a career in business though and to specialise in Personnel Management. My interests are in people, not in academic study.
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Introducing yourself in a job interview Mary Willes 1998
Mrs. Chan, (unlike Mrs. Sotheby) didn’t put a figure on the performance, but
she did of course make a note. Of the following remarks, which would you
have made about Daniel’s performance?
No right answers of course, but I expect you chose the second or the third!
There may be additions to these examples – if, in responding to the
questionnaire relating to the material, you say you would like them! I hope
you found them useful in thinking out how you will answer the same question.
It is a question you are almost sure to be asked! Please introduce yourself
gives you an opportunity
to show how well and confidently you can answer in English;
to sound at the same time assured and modest.
You don’t need to give many biographical facts. (These are in your documents
anyway)
You can draw the hearer's attention to the ways in which your experience is
relevant to the vacancy.
And good luck. I wish you successful job-search.
Pratik Dangore,25th April 2010.
Weak applicant: short, hesitant, poor quality
Modest, sensible, conscious of his own limitations
Good, obviously sociable, sympathetic – arm, likeable personality
Very good, concise, clear, to the point, seems a strong candidate
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