Typical Interview Questions
There is no true way to predict the questions an interviewer might ask you. The choices depend on many factors: how often he or she has asked the same question in a single day, how he or she is feeling, how many poor responses he or she has received to a single question, and so on. So how do you "practice" responses to questions you can't even predict?
Well, why you don't know exactly which questions you might be asked, you actually can predict some basic ones. They fall into general categories. They're asked repeatedly, over years. Some are illegal--but you'll still want to figure out ahead of time how you'll respond if you are faced with one of them.
Categories of Questions
The sorts of questions you are likely to be asked during an interview fall into basic sorts of categories designed to plumb particular areas of your credentials, experience, and personality. Here are just a few:
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Questions Regarding Facts: These focus on specific facts, such as your gpa, the courses you took, how long you worked at X job, which computer skils you possess, and the like. There's no wiggle room with fact-based questions.
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Questions Regarding Specifics of Experience: These extend from fact-based questions. Essentially, they take a fact from your history and ask you about it: You interned for 3 months at X Company. What did you learn there? or I see you were enrolled in a course called "Intro to Critical Reading." What did that class teach you? or I see you list "leadership" among your skills. Can you give me an example? Prepare for these questions by reviewing your resume and the hard-core facts it contains. Anything on your resume is fair game.
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Questions Regarding Your Opinions on X Issues: These questions might ask you to role-play: How would you respond if you were asked to intervene in a conflict between two co-workers? They might ask you to provide subjective responses about yourself: How would you describe yourself to a stranger? What are your top 2 strengths? Top 2 weaknesses? These are the "formulate a thoughtful response" sorts of questions. These are ones for which you can and should practice!
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Questions Regarding the Weirdest Things You Can Think Of: These questions test your ability to think on your feet. They'll ask bizarre things like What color best describes your personality, and why? If you could be any sort of tree, what kind would you be, and why? If you could eat only one sort of food for the rest of your life, what would it be, and why? It's not enough for you to say you're best described as silver, you'd love to be a Bradford pear, or that you could never give up Spaghetti Marinara -- you have to explain why.
Typical Questions
These are just a few of the questions you might hear during an interview:
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Tell me a little about yourself.
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Why did you decide to go to X school?
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Why did you decide on X major?
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Why did you choose X and Y as minors?
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Why did you decide not to pursue a minor?
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Is your gpa what you wanted it to be? Why or why not?
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How did your education prepare you for the working world?
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Why did you decide to go into this career?
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How did you prepare yourself for this career?
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What sorts of things motivate you?
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What goals do you have for yourself, career-wise? (Be prepared to offer goals for diferent periods: after 5 years, 10 years, etc.)
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How do you plan to achieve your goals?
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Which goals are the most important to you, and why?
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What do you believe to be the most important goal you have accomplished thus far (in any facet of your life), and why?
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How effectively do you work in teams?
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How do you handle conflict?
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Have you ever experienced conflict with a teacher, a co-worker, or an employer--and if so, how did you resolve it?
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How do you handle pressure?
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How do you handle deadlines?
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Why should this company hire you?
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What sorts of skills can you bring to this company?
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What are your greatest strengths and weaknesses? (Maybe singular--strength and weakness!)
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What do you know about our company?
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What sorts of questions do you have for us?
That last questions is often the stumper, but you should be prepared for it, just as you should be prepared to show you know something about the company. Other questions might ask you about the possibilities of relocating or travelling, as well as what sort of salary you expect.
Illegal Questions
While weird questions are permissible, illegal ones are not. Interviewers should not ask questions related to or about
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Gender or marital status
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Child care
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Pregnancy, method of birth control
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Abortion
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Race or color
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Nationality
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Religious affiliations
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Health (medical history)
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Physical disability
But sometimes such questions slip out. Should you answer them? If you don't, will the interviewer think you are being evasive? If you can gauge the interviewer's demeanor and believe that the question is asked innocently, as small talk (for example, you might actually begin to talk in a friendly way about family and children), you can respond as fully or as briefly as you want. If you believe the question to be intrusive or motivated by a hidden agenda, try your best to redirect the conversation back to another subject, firmly but politely (I'd really love to tell you about how I learned to program computers on my own!). Never respond indignantly (not matter how indignant you might feel): I really don't think that's any of your business or That's a totally illegal question, and I resent the fact that you asked me.