Week 4—Nailing the Interview

Revisiting using education as experience with specific tips to nail your next interview.

Written By : David Hir Edited By: Madeline Cornwell

#MillennialMonday

Your education can be used in a powerful way while interviewing. Don’t be afraid to discuss it.

           Our focus in week two was on a basic career path and how similar it is to our education. Both include phases of hard-earned development, trials to prove your mastery of topics and subjects, and conclude with being a more advanced professional. This does not mean that we believe we’re graduating as CEOs and expect to be treated like royalty, as so many assume, so pump your brakes and keep reading. What this does mean is that we have the experience to step into a higher-level role than what was previously considered “entry level.” While reading today, I ask you to deeply evaluate the semester or term-long projects you completed, think about the challenges you faced, how they can be applied to the professional space, and how valuable that experience was.

Don’t become discouraged because someone told you education isn’t experience. Start using the tips we discuss today to get into your desired position and take control of your professional future.

I’m going to begin this section with specific tips on preparing for your interview. After which, we will apply a framework to effectively use nontraditional experience while interviewing. Please consider “nontraditional experience” as all experience gained outside the workspace.

Let’s say you’re looking for an opening, and found two at separate organizations that meet the requirements of your desired position. You read through both the posts once and feel that you meet many of the requirements! Time to pull out the resume and cover letter, and submit the same documents to both openings. The postings were similar, so there’s no need to take the time to adjust your documents for applying to each. Also, your resume and cover letter combo is solid—they were edited at the Career Center. Oh, and don’t forget, everyone says that applying is a numbers game so your chances are doubled! Does this sound like your approach?

I’ll be honest, when I first started applying, that was me. I relied on one resume, one cover letter, and I applied to what I felt were very similar positions so it didn’t seem like an issue. Unsurprisingly, my success rate was not high and I didn’t understand what was happening. I read the openings and I felt qualified for a majority of them. What was getting lost in translation?

Remember what I said in week 3 about professional development? If you don’t take your professional development and career seriously, nobody will take you seriously. I didn’t know it while applying, but I was making it clear that I didn’t take the opportunity seriously. I wasn’t taking the time to show that I understood the opening, that I displayed the specific traits and skills they were asking for, and that I had genuine interest in joining the team or company. Ever hear of the “Who’s our CEO?” question? That is directed at those who apply like I was. I would not have stood a real chance in an interview, and I often never received a call back. Something needed to change.

I began researching strategies and studied what practices worked best for others. After a week or two of seriously reconsidering my approach, I applied it. First and foremost, I adjusted my resume for practically every opening I applied to. Start by creating a list of your duties and responsibilities for each of your professional experiences. You may have to sit down for quite a while in order to accomplish this, but I promise you it will be worth it. This will give you the ability to adjust your resume for each opening you apply to so you can best support your candidacy. Some of my past experiences had very short lists to choose from. My role was limited, but I took the time to truly understand my impact. Others had such unique projects, opportunities, and individual experiences that I had to consider at length what projects would carry the strongest message. Carefully constructing your resume like this will keep the interview focused on your relevant skills to the opening as well as the value you will add to the team.

I didn’t stop there. I adjusted my cover letter and focused on my educational experience and accolades to summarize me as an individual for the first half. I opened with a quote my father raised me on and one I truly believe in: “If you fail to plan, you’re planning to fail.” I planned to make a strong impression. The second half was edited every time, and highlighted my education and professional experience that was applicable to the opening. This is where you can talk about those term projects and major assignments if you can’t rely solely on professional experience. Congratulations, you now have a legitimate reason to be discussing your nontraditional experience while interviewing!

Deeply evaluate the semester or term-long projects you completed, think about the challenges you faced as well as how they can be applied to the professional space, and remember how valuable that experience was.

I’ve said that twice now. I believe it is essential in the way I describe my nontraditional experience. This might seem basic, but it is the framework that supports your message. If you can combine the strategies above with the approach below, I know you will find success in your career search.

Start by creating a concise overview of what the project was, follow with your role and responsibilities (as well as any partners), discuss the challenges you faced or overcame, and finish by connecting it to the opening in a relevant way.

Boiled down to its core, your answer should contain these three elements: what you did, how you did it, and why it connects to the opening you’re discussing today.

Let’s talk about the three elements I mentioned above to drive this home.

A.   What you did: Start by simply telling the interviewer about the project. Some of the more general things you can discuss are the time constraints on the project (time/project management skills), team size/dynamics (you’re a team-player/work well with others), or even field of study (i.e. not your major but you had a comprehensive project that can connect to the opening). These are only a couple ideas that you can use to build on…remember how I asked you to deeply evaluate the projects you’ve completed? If you have, you will be comfortable and confident in explaining your past nontraditional experiences, projects, or relevant experience.

B.    How did you do it: Now that you’ve put deep consideration into the project, you should both understand and be comfortable speaking to your project’s process. Keep in mind that you need to understand the opening you’re applying for, or the focus on your relevant experience will be lost. Identify the top qualities/skills from the actual post, try to find other professionals in your desired role on LinkedIn to see what kind of experience they may have, and understand the company’s values/mission to give you something to build from when speaking on how. Doing so will, first and foremost, make it clear if this actually is a good fit for you. If your projects/nontraditional experiences are a stretch to fit the opening, you might not have the skills to jump into that role. This also feeds directly into why— it allows you to hone the focus on the specific skills/qualities they’re looking for and how you display them/are ready to expand upon them.

C.   Why is it relevant: “Finish strong.” How and Why walk hand-in-hand for this approach. Your description of How you did it is Why it’s relevant. If you truly understand your experience and the opening’s desired skills/qualities, almost everything you discuss will be relevant. If they’re looking for a team player, talk about that group project that you had an interesting assignment with. Maybe it’s a time/project management oriented role, do you have projects that required extensive management of process throughout? I could keep listing these but hope you get the idea—truly understanding both your experience and the opening will completely change how you interview.

If you take away only one thing from this installment in the series, I want you to believe in yourself. Believe that your nontraditional experience was powerful in shaping your professional self. Believe that you will continue to challenge yourself to be better than you were yesterday. And believe that your education has value.

I said it in week 2 and I’ll say it again: Our education has given us a literal playbook of real experience. Stop leaving it on the bench and start using the experience you worked so hard for.

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