Consider the typical interview stereotype: The intimidating and powerful interviewer interrogates the ill-fated candidate, looking for flaws, tapping into weaknesses, and trying to trap the candidate into saying or doing something that will knock him/her out of the running.
While this might be how it feels to be a candidate, in fact interviewers desperately want to find the right person to fill an open position. The talent shortfall is hindering the school, hurting the students, and causing the hiring committee to spend inordinate amounts of time interviewing potential teaching replacements.
Candidates who understand and appreciate the interviewer’s perspective give themselves an advantage during interviews.
Even though a phone interview may seem easier than a regular interview on the surface, it can actually be a bit harder. You have to successfully project your personality without having the advantage of face-to-face contact. You must rely solely on your voice to make a connection with your interviewer.
These tips will increase your chance of having a successful phone interview.
1. Eliminate ALL distractions. Make sure you are in a quiet place away from people, TV, pets, etc. If your dog tends to bark a lot, see if you can find a sitter during the interview time. This will allow you to keep 100% focused on your interview…
1. Ask informed questions – When you are given a chance to ask your interviewer questions, don’t come at him/her with boring or off-target subjects. Don’t ask questions about routine elements or functions of the school, but do ask intelligent, well prepared questions. You don’t want to make your interviewer think you will waste valuable school time on unimportant matters.
2. Do your homework – The interview is a chance for you to put your best foot forward and to impress your potential employer with your skills and knowledge. Don’t waste the opportunity with random chit-chat. Instead, talk about subjects related to teaching, the specific school and your teaching experiences.
3. Bring your portfolio – A great way to show proof of your teaching excellence is to…
After you’ve introduced yourself to the interviewer, made some small talk and established a good beginning, you’re ready to move on to the bulk of your interview. This is your chance to let the interviewer know why your personality, education, work experience, and skills will make you the best person for the job.
To help you along in your interview, prepare ahead of time some answers and information about your skills, education and training, work experience, and personality traits as they relate to the teaching position. Have specific examples ready for each, rather than general statements.
Don’t forget the importance of eye contact. When we get nervous, we tend to want to avoid directly looking at others, but in an interview, it is very important to establish contact with your interviewer through eye contact and to not nervously fidget. Remember that the interviewer should have control of the interview. Allow for the natural ebb and flow of conservation and avoid interrupting or cutting your interviewer off. Try to answer all questions sincerely and completely, and be aware of natural pauses to ask your questions.
Interview questions can be divided into two basic categories – personal questions and questions related to the specific school. For personal interview questions, it’s important to be honest and positive with your answers and to accurately describe yourself as an educator. With questions related to the school, you will need to perform research on the institution before your interview so that you can make informed responses to these questions.
Below are some guidelines on how to answer both of these kinds of interview questions.
Going to a teacher job interview can be a highly stressful situation for many people. The best way to help relieve this stress is to maintain a positive attitude and be prepared. Preparation cannot be stressed enough. Think of it as if your interview officially starts from the moment you receive a phone call. You need to use the time leading up to your interview to become as prepared as possible to ace your interview.
You will need to spend more time than the interview itself will take in preparing for it. This preparation will include learning about the job and the school, as well as preparing yourself to answer interview questions…
