What is a Mock Interview? Practice for Your Job Interview
If you dread job interviews, you’re not the only one. Fear of public speaking affects an estimated 73% of the population, so it’s no surprise that interviews are most people’s least favorite part of the job search process. Mock interview practice is one of the best ways to lessen interview stress, practice answering difficult questions, and improve your communication skills.
Preparation and practice are the keys to a great interview. You want to outshine and stand out from the other candidates.
What Is a Mock Interview?
A mock interview is a practice run before your actual interview. Ideally, you do your mock interview with a trained interview coach who can give you constructive feedback that will help you prepare for the real thing. The purpose of a mock interview is to give you the skills and experience you need to walk into your real interview feeling relaxed, confident, and prepared.
Whenever possible, we recommend doing a series of mock interviews (instead of just one) so you have a chance to incorporate initial feedback, finetune your skills, and get as comfortable as possible in an interview setting.
What Do You Learn from Mock Interviews?
Why practice interviewing? What kind of feedback can you expect to receive? When you work with a professional interview coach, you can expect actionable suggestions that are personalized for your skill set and the type of job you’re applying for. This might include advice about:
- Handling behavior-based interview questions
- Preparing and practicing impactful, memorable answers
- Tone and delivery
- Body language
Ultimately, practicing out loud, multiple times is the key to being prepared.
We don’t use a one-size-fits-all approach. Interview coaching should be customized to fit each person. Our goal is to identify areas where you can improve and get you to the point where you excel in those areas before your real interview.
Should You Prepare Before a Mock Interview?
Yes. In order to get the most out of your mock interview, you want to make it as similar as possible to a real interview. It’s best to prepare for your mock interview the same way you would prepare for an actual interview. This way, you’ll behave more realistically during the mock interview, and you may even get helpful feedback on your preparation process. You want to illustrate to the hiring manager that “How you prepare for the interview is how you will prepare in your job.”
Plus, if you’re like most people and you tend to get nervous for interviews, taking your mock interview as seriously as possible will help trigger those nerves, so you can practice dealing with them and learn strategies for overcoming them.
Tips for Mock Interviews
Any time you schedule a mock interview, you want to make sure your practice run is as beneficial as possible. If you work with Rush Recruiting & HR, your interview coach will explain how the process works and what you can do to prepare, but these are good general rules of thumb:
- Wear what you’d wear for a real interview.
- Review your resume in advance.
- Brainstorm and practice speaking about 8-10 experiences using the STAR technique. Be as specific as possible, and bring your written accomplishments to the meeting.
- Prepare up to 10 questions for the interviewer.
- Practice confident body posture right before you walk in.
Job Interview Coaching Services
It’s normal to be nervous for interviews. No matter how anxious you are, there are strategies you can use to help deal with your fear and improve your interview confidence, and positively impact your performance. We’ve seen the amazing difference interview coaching can make, and we can help you prepare for your next interview in a variety of ways — including mock interviewing. Get in touch with us today.
