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Why and How to Conduct a Mock Job Interview

A mock job interview is an opportunity to practice and improve your interviewing skills before an actual interview. By doing a mock interview in front of others, you can get constructive feedback that you can use in your real job interview.

If you can, why not videotape your mock interview so you can see how you did? Then do a second one.

When you review your second interview you will most likely see quite an improvement. After that you can go into your interview with confidence that you’ll do a great job.

Confidence shows, and employers like to hire confident people!

Conducting A Mock Job Interview

One good way to conduct a practice job interview is to have one person act as the interviewer and two or three other people act as members of the interview team. Think of it as a dress rehearsal for a play or a contest where you are competing with yourself. First prize is the job!

The interviewer asks you, the interviewee, common job interview questions, such as:

Tell me about yourself
Why are you interested in this job?
What is your greatest strength?
Tell me about a weakness of yours
What did you like best about your last job?
Why did you leave your last job?
Where do you expect to be in five years?

If you're looking for more questions, here are another 38 sample interview questions.

The interview team members take notes while you answer each question, jotting down the strong points and the weak points of your answers. They may even write down suggestions about how to improve your interview answers.

The team members also evaluate you on general performance by writing down comments on questions such as the following:

Did the interviewee research the company? How could you tell?
Was she prepared? What told you that the interviewee was or was not prepared?
What did his body language communicate?
Was she enthusiastic in general and about the job in particular?
Did the interviewee ask questions? If yes, were the questions appropriate?
Did the interviewee communicate effectively? Give an example
Was he dressed appropriately? Explain
Did he thank the interviewers and shake hands?

After the mock job interview, the 'interviewers' can share their observations and give you constructive feedback.

Interviewing Skills Matter

Good interviewing skills are skills you'll use throughout your life, even when you're not interviewing for a job. Being able to communicate with people you don't know, respond under pressure, present yourself appropriately, listen well, and ask good questions are all skills that will help you succeed in your career.

But first you have to get the job. It would be a shame if you lost out on a job you are well qualified for because you didn’t interview well. Mock job interviews are a terrific way to improve your skills so you can ace the interview and move closer to landing the job you want.