How to prepare for job application process

The job hunt once you leave university can be quite tricky, with more and more industries becoming super competitive. A great degree will of course stand you in great stead but this by no means guarantees that you will walk in to the job of your dreams straight away. In our latest student advice guide, we take a look at how you can prepare for the job application process.

Practice your interview questions

As with many things in life, the key is really preparation. If you can head into your interview with some answers prepared for key questions, this could ensure you come across confidently and impress your prospective employer. You can also put together a list of your questions for your interviewer, for many this can be as important as nailing their questions for you. Research into the industry, the firm and the latest sector trends can help you to make your mark and get ahead of the competition.

Assess the job description

When applying for jobs, many graduates make the mistake of thinking that because the title is the same, the job descriptions will be too. This isn’t the case as every company will be a little different and some will have specific roles and tasks that are unique to them. Although it could be somewhat laborious, research all of the job descriptions thoroughly so you can come across as well as possible in the interview and hit the money when it comes to the aforementioned questions.

Your potential employer won’t want it to seem like you are giving generic answers for every interview, make them feel like you are keen to work for them and them only.

Brush up on your oral presentation skills

When looking to find a job you care about, it isn’t just about your academic prowess as we have discussed. You need a good mix of grades, personality and confidence, but the latter needs to be carefully approached, as you don’t want to come across as arrogant. This is a fine art but essentially it comes down to ensuring your oral presentation skills are spot on.

The best way to refine these skills is to practice and practice. The first time you stand in front of scary interviewers you will naturally be nervous, and the likelihood is that you won’t nail it first time, but the more you do it the more comfortable you will become.

Nothing can really prepare you for heading into that room for the first time, but there are things you can do to ensure you are prepared as possible. Recording yourself on your phone or web cam and watching it back can help you to iron out any imperfections or even just reciting your research and answers in front of a mirror can help. Finally, you could run through everything with friends or university mates, although it may not be great for morale in the short term, they will probably be the best people to give you constructive criticism.

Student accommodation from Collegiate

We hope this guide to preparing to the job application process has been useful, you can find more guides just like this in our student advice section. If you are on the hunt for luxury student accommodation in Portugal, then be sure to take a look around the rest of the Collegiate site. We have premium residences in key student locations such as Lisbon and our properties are as stylish and sophisticated as you will find anywhere in the country.