Preparing for an interview in one evening

A practical guide for Ridents readers, written from everyday experience.

One evening is enough if it is spent well. Read the job description and write a short story for each requirement: the situation, what you did and what happened. Five or six stories cover nearly every question. Then look at the organisation's recent news so you can ask one genuinely curious question of your own at the end.

One evening is enough if it is spent well.

Practise the stories out loud, not in your head; they shrink to a comfortable length after the third telling. Plan the journey and the clothes the night before, and bring a printed copy of your application. On the day, listen fully to each question before answering, and it is fine to pause. Afterwards send a brief thank-you that mentions something specific from the conversation.