Demonstrating your knowledge of the company is good, but you also need to show that you are qualified for the job. This is where questions of strength and competence come into play. Highlight your extensive legal work experience and identify the specific element that led you to pursue a career in your chosen area of expertise and why. Provide details about the experience you sought in your chosen field and how it strengthened your interest in that area of law. In summary, an interview is not just about looking fresh and being sure of your skills and qualifications. It`s about showing interest in the company. By asking the right questions, you will gain insider information about the company and intelligently show that you are a good fit for the job. They show your enthusiasm and personality and do important investigative work to determine if the company is right for you. After all, it`s just as important (maybe even more important) that you feel comfortable working for the company as they feel comfortable hiring you to work for them.
Don`t be afraid to mention a request to a competing company. Impressing yourself with the rest of your interview can work in your favor, as recruiters probably don`t want a talented candidate to join the competition. Avoid choosing something too controversial. Choosing a law or legal issue that has been in the news recently is a good option, as it shows that your legal knowledge is up to date. Alternatively, you can introduce a law that directly benefits the law firm or its clients. This question shows the initiative and shows that you are interested in the company`s workflow. It shows that you are passionate about the area of law, the different areas of law, the complexity of cases, and the authority you could gain as an employee. It will also help you decipher the type of cases or transactions you need to deal with on a daily basis. Listen carefully to the interviewer`s answers to determine if the job seems exciting, challenging, or mundane.
Behavioral interview questions can also assess your ability to respond to future challenges. An employer may present you with a hypothetical situation related to a project, supervisor or other workplace issue and ask you to develop a response, or present an ethical dilemma and ask you how you would handle the situation. Your answer should solve the problem presented while highlighting the strengths you want to convey during the interview. A great way to complete your interview is to take the opportunity to ask your own questions. « Ask questions that indicate that you are interested in developing and building a long-term career with the employer, » advises Louise. « Questions about the type of responsibilities given to interns, the skills the interviewer felt were important to previous interns, and the company`s expansion or investment plans over the next few years are all appropriate. » When it comes to asking more general questions, look at 7 good questions you should ask during a job interview. On the other hand, if you work with a medium or large company, you may have to wear a lot of hats. For example, you can conduct legal research, write briefs, participate in eDiscovery, and litigate cases. By asking detailed questions about what might be expected of you in the company you are interviewing with, you will have a better understanding of what is expected of you. And if you`re offered the job and you accept, you`ll walk in with your eyes open and know firsthand if this company fits your overall goals in terms of tasks you enjoy working on.
Interviewing for a public defender position is a unique challenge – interviews can be confrontational or hostile, usually involve hypothetical assumptions in the field, and in the panel phase include a mock client interview, indictment, cross-examination, opening statement, or summary. Watch this video from OPIA and a panel of practicing public advocates to learn the basics of effective professional development interviews. Finally, some employers conduct « structured interviews, » often with the goal of minimizing the impact of implicit bias in hiring. In a structured interview, each candidate is asked the same questions, the answers are written down and compared later. Interviews are heavily scripted and questions are generic; Some interviewers in these situations may not even have seen the candidate`s resume or may be asked not to respond to the candidate`s answers. Such interviews can sometimes seem troubling, but you shouldn`t take the lack of response personally. Other competency-based questions include: On average, you conduct two to three interviews with a company before receiving an offer. If you were invited to an interview, your resume caught their attention.