Job-Seeking Skills Resources: Job Interview Skills

Questions You May Ask the Interviewer(s)

1. Asking Questions

When the interviewers find that they have had adequate information about you to make a decision, they will close the interview by asking this very typical question:

“Do you have any questions that you might like to ask?”

A common misconception: if you ask questions, it means you have not prepared yourself well or that you have not done any research into the company. In reality, this is not true.

This is a genuine opportunity for you to get your questions answered by someone who knows the company well. It also offers the interviewers another chance to judge how much you know about the company and how serious you are about the job.

You should prepare two or three questions beforehand. Questions may be related to job responsibilites, training, career progression, or matters of interest to you, such as products and services offered by the company, new developments/ directions of the company, etc. For example:

“What is your company’s policy regarding promotions from within?”

Two suggestions made by career counsellors are:

• Ask only work-related questions

  Concentrate on the employer’s needs and how you can meet them.

• Ask “what would” questions, if possibleCompare the following two sets of questions:

  “What would my duties be?” vs. “What are the duties?“

  “What would you expect me to do?” vs. “What are the job expectations?“

  By using “what would” questions, you sound more positive and confident. You are also subtly encouraging the interviewers to picture you in the position.

Task 1

Now generate a list of questions that you might like to ask in an interview.

2. Prefacing the Question

Prepare your audience for your question, by adding background information, explaining why the question interests you or by relating the question to what you spoke about earlier.

Why is it necessary to preface a question? Let’s have a look at Angela’s case.

In the video, Angela prefaces her question like this:

“I know that you have several regional offices in Manila, the Philippines and Japan and you are planning to open offices in Indonesia and Taiwan. To what extent do your regional offices cooperate on policy making?”

Could she have omitted the first sentence?
Does it serve any purpose?

Yes, Angela could have omitted the first sentence, and her question would have been acceptable. However, without any introduction, the question would have sounded rather direct or sudden to the interviewer. To avoid this, Angela prefaces the question with an introductory statement.

In this case, by prefacing the question, Angela shows that she has done her homework on the company, and that her question is not just a standard one that she asks every time she has an interview!

Task 2

Here are a few questions that you might like to ask in an interview. Try to ‘preface’ them so that they sound less direct. For example:

Q: Will you expand your business in China?

Answer: “I know that you’re planning to expand into the mainland China market in the near future – could you tell me where the company will be based?”

Answer: “I’m interested in the possibility of working in mainland China – do you plan to expand your offices in the near future?”

Now, it’s your turn: Click here for your questions.

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