It’s 15 minutes until your mock interview...

It’s 15 minutes until your mock interview. You just rolled out of bed at the crack of 12:45pm, slipped on some shorts and put on a hat to cover that tangled mess of bed head. Halfway to your interview, you realize you forgot to brush your teeth. Luckily, you have a pack of gum.

So you pop in a piece of gum and call it good. You arrive a few minutes late. But you’re okay with this, because it isn’t a real interview. It’s just a mock interview.

It may seem logical to approach a mock interview this way, but don’t get caught up in this thinking.

Mock interviews should be treated in the same manner as an actual interview. If you strive to perform in a mock interview the way you do in an actual interview, we’ll be able to better help you improve your interview skills and assess issues that may be hindering them.

First, always arrive on time or a few minutes prior. When dressing for an interview, always dress professionally. By dressing professionally it will be easier to get into the mindset of professionalism. It gives us an opportunity to correct any issues in professional dress that you may be unaware of as well.

Just as you would in an actual interview, bring your resume. While it’s best to have a resume critique done prior to the mock interview, bringing it to the interview will allow us to correct any problems you may have. Also, it will allow us to ask you questions based off your resume, questions you might expect to hear in an actual interview.

Look over interview resources as well. We have free resources available in Rehn 113. These resources are a great way to learn what types of questions you will expect to hear in an interview. Try to answer the questions on your own, before the interview. Don’t, however, memorize your answers. This makes you appear rehearsed and impersonal in the interview.

Remember, chance favors a prepared mind. And that’s the purpose of a mock interview, to prepare your mind and develop a solid strategy for interviews.