Interviews can be super intimidating. You're not just trying to get a feel for your prospective boss, but also doing your best to impress and show them you’re perfect for the job. On top of all that, the only time you get to exercise your skills is when you’re actually sitting across the table from the hiring manager. How are you supposed to get comfortable with this whole process? Enter the practice interview.
Setting aside time to run through questions with a trusted friend—or even by yourself—is a great, low-pressure way to strengthen your skills, build confidence, and receive valuable feedback.
Ready to ace your next interview? Find the perfect fit by looking for open jobs on The Muse »
How to do a practice interview?
Practice interviews are a great way to prepare for the real thing, but to get the results you want, it's important to do it right—meaning you should focus on fixing your weaknesses, overcoming your insecurities, and emphasizing your strengths. Here's how to do it:
1. Decide what you want to work on
Are you feeling iffy about the entire process, or do you get tripped up on a specific type of question? You may totally nail your elevator pitch but draw a blank on behavioral questions, or get super awkward when asked about why you're leaving your current job. Spend some time reflecting on the areas where you’d like to improve so that you can approach this with a clear goal in mind.
2. Make a list of practice questions
Start by making a list of questions or topics that you’ve struggled with in the past, keeping your end goal in mind.
Then build from there, mixing in questions about your experience, goals, reasons for seeking a new job, and transferable skills. You’ll probably want to include a few behavioral questions, too.
Not sure which ones you want to practice? Interview questions tend to follow a similar pattern across most companies—except for technical questions, which will vary based on the position you're applying for.
Here are some of the most common interview questions to help you get started:
- Tell me about yourself.
- How did you hear about this position?
- Why do you want this job?
- Why do you want to work at this company?
- Tell me about a time when you made a mistake.
- What is your greatest strength?
- What is your weakness?
- What motivates you?
- Why were you fired?
- Why are you leaving your current job?
- What's your work style like?
- Where do you see yourself in five years?
- What's your dream job?
- Why should we hire you?
- Do you have any questions for me?
For the technical ones, use the job description and qualifications requirements to anticipate the type of questions the interviewer might ask.
Read more: How to Read a Job Description the Right Way
3. Pick a partner
It’s important that you be comfortable around whoever you decide to ask for help, as they’re likely going to provide you with some tough feedback at the end of your session.
Focus on choosing a partner who you respect, and who you know has your best interests at heart. This may be a former boss, a close friend, mentor, or, heck, even your mom. Bonus points if they have experience interviewing or managing staff.
If the person you ask is also in the market for a new job, offer to return the favor. Otherwise, you can say thank you by picking up the tab the next time you meet for coffee.
4. Set the scene
Next, decide if you want to interview practice in person, over the phone or via video conference. Whatever medium you feel least confident about is probably the one you’ll want to focus on, but, when in doubt, meet in person.
These are way more effective if you treat them like the real deal from start to finish. So, from the moment you walk through the door, act like you’re the candidate and the other party is the hiring manager.
This’ll give your interviewer a clearer picture of what you’re like during a real live meeting, and may expose other opportunities for improvement. It’ll also dissuade you from breaking character and shouting, “Wait, let me try that again!”
5. Embrace feedback
The whole point of this exercise is to get better, so ask for honest, constructive feedback. Then, take it all in. It may help to jot down a few notes as you go, so it’ll be easier to remember what all was said. This is also a great opportunity to strategize and talk through alternative answers or different ways of phrasing your responses to tough questions.
If, after your first practice session, you’re feeling like you want to take another crack at it, ask your friend if they’d be willing to meet up again in a week or so for another round or get a fresh perspective by asking someone new the next time around.
How to practice for an interview with AI?
If you don't have a trusted person to practice with, or simply don't feel comfortable, consider an AI interview practice. Artificial intelligence tools like AI Apply can generate questions tailored to the job description of the position you're applying for and provide suggested answers.
Another great resource is ChatGPT, one of the most popular AI tools right now. Just input your responses to those common job interview questions and receive valuable feedback. You can also save time that'd be spent researching the company by asking for a summary of their story and culture.
But check other reliable sources, as AI tools aren't always one hundred percent correct. Use their answers as a guide to formulate your own responses rather than simply copying everything it says.
How can I practice interview by myself?
If you're not a big fan of AI and prefer doing things by yourself, no problem. Our advice is to list a couple of the most common interview questions and record your answers. Then, listen to the audio to determine what you can improve and, most importantly, to check the length of your responses. There's no need to rush, but try not to turn the interview into a monologue, either.
Remember to include some technical questions related to the role in your list. For instance, if you're applying for a marketing position, you may be asked about marketing tools and strategies. These types of questions are easy to forget when practicing for an interview alone since we tend to focus on the behavioral ones—but they're equally important.
Practice interviews are a great, stress-free way to build your confidence and sharpen your skills. As with anything, the more often you spend time running through commonly asked questions, the better you’ll get.