How to face interview – Tips for Pharma freshers

Do you feel nervous or scared before an interview?? The answer will be YES …  for 99% pharma and clinical job seekers. Most of the student becomes panic when they visualize the chances of “failure” in interview process.Just ask yourself why do I just want to be so sure to get it right in the first time interview? Let’s face it. We all know that Interviews are not like general conversations and sitting in the hot seat giving answers when the interviewer is watching like a policeman.Here is an interesting fact. Studies show that most of the interviewers have never been trained before to conduct interviews. Even managers feel the same way as job seekers. They feel nervous, anxious, confused, and stressed while conducting a job interview. So, why do want to force yourself in to stressful situation before an interview.

What the pharma companies and CRO are really looking for

• How confident you are…
• Are you a team player?
• Do you have focus and attention to the details?
• How will you handle the most difficult questions?
• You attitude and body language.
• Stress managing capabilities.

ALWAYS REMEMBER IT’S YOU THAT ACTUALLY MORE PREPARED THAN THE INTERVIEWER.

What you should do and understand before attending interview

Do little research about pharma company or CRO?

• To find out what is the main areas they are working.
• To know whether your skills matches with the company area of work.
• To impress the interviewer when they asks: what do you know about our company, and why would you like to work here?”

If you know about the company what they are working on, it would be easily answers the interviewer’s question like do you have any questions to ask about the company?

Punctuality

Punctuality and discipline are the two most important factors that decide candidate’s fate. Never be late to the interview. Make sure that you present at least 20 minutes before the interview. If you don’t know the place of interview, it’s a good idea to make a trial run of your trip to the interview site just a day before your scheduled interview.

First impression is the best impression

We all know that first impression is always important. Same thing happens in the interview also. So make this advantage to you. No matter how you feel, wear a smile. A smile on your face shows self confidence and self-esteem. Here is one more reason to smile….. clinical evidence showed that when people smile, they perform better during the interviews because they are using both sides of the brain!

Handshake

Make sure that you have a firm handshake with interviewer by using the whole hand. Giving too lose handshake tells the interviewer that you are not confident and not fully committed. A strong bone-crushing handshake tells that you may be dominative and overly competitive. Neither of these handshakes is attractive to an interviewer.

Your Attitude

After you enter into the interview room, just don’t go and sit down. Wait for few seconds until the interviewer offers you to have a chair. If the interviewer doesn’t offer, just ask politely if you may sit down. Do not put anything on the interviewer’s desk. Keep all your belonging by your side or on your lap.   Make sure that your behave properly in the waiting room and reception. Interviewers often ask their office staff about your behaviour.

Interview questions

All interview questions are not the same. Some require very specific answers. Some warrant more vague and open-ended answers. Still others do not and should not have to be answered at all. These more difficult questions require a special kind of strategy so that you can navigate around them. In the next few chapters we’re going to talk about

There are four types of questions and the particular plan required to face each type:

Straightforward questions

• Tell me about yourself.
• What are some of your strengths?
• What accomplishments are you most proud of?
• What kinds of skills do you have that would benefit this company?
• Why should I hire you?

Questions behind questions

• What do you know about this company?
• What do you think you’ll be doing 5 years from now?
• Why did you leave your last job?

Stress questions

• What was your greatest failure?
• What is your greatest weakness?

Questions you ask the employer

• What would be the ideal candidate for this position?
• What would be some of my duties in the first year of employment?
• Ask about the company new products, services that is going to launch soon.
• What do you [the interviewer] like most about working at the company?
• What do you think I can personally do to drive this company to the competitive edge?

Here, only sample question are given. You can prepare your own notes for each of these questions and make your interview happen in more fun way. Good luck..

General Interview tips

Interviewing is an important part of the job-finding process. It can be very stressful unless you are prepared for the meeting with a potential employer. There are three aspects of the interview process:

• Pre-Interview Planning
• Interviewing
• Following-up

PRE-INTERVIEW PLANNING

It is very helpful to know enough about the organization interviewing you so that you can comfortably discuss the matters at hand with background knowledge. You will also feel more confident and able to ask more relevant questions. This will make you appear more intelligent and motivated.

Before you get started make sure to keep a written and/or computerized record listing:

• Date resume was sent
• Name of company
• Name of person you sent it to
• Address
• Phone
• Date and time of interview
• Results of interview
• Second interview
• When you sent a thank you letter or note

Research the company thoroughly. This is essential but it is often neglected. Try to find out the following information:

• Products or services
• Company history
• Number of employees
• Business methods
• Distribution methods
• Organizational structure
• Kinds of clients or customers -Locations
• Reputation
• Philosophy
• Industry standing/ Sales or activity volume
• Prospects for company growth

INTERVIEWING

First relax, take a deep breath, and think about all of your skills, accomplishments, and abilities. Are you talented, outgoing, intelligent, and able to work well with others, handle instructions well? Do you enjoy people or prefer to work alone? How do you handle criticism? Are you good at evaluating the work of others? Do you prefer to supervise or to be supervised? What did you enjoy the most about your last position? What would you change about it? What has been your major contribution to your last job? What are your long and short-term goals? What would you like to be doing in five years? How would you like to improve? What are you looking for in your next job?

Resume

• Always be honest.
• Be able to quantify your achievements with numbers and percentages
• Think in terms of increasing productivity, decreasing costs, and increasing profitability for the company – how can you do that?
• Try to appear poised and alert
• Be friendly and enthusiastic.
• If an employer tells you that they dress casually, ignore it. Dress in a suit and tie/suit and look
• professional at all interviews – first impressions count.
• Polish your shoes.
• Be well-groomed.
• Wear clothing that is professional and comfortable.
• Sit comfortably without sprawling.
• Let the interviewer be in control. Do not put anything on the interviewer’s desk.
• Ask questions. If you want to clarity certain aspects of the job, ask. Interviewers look badly on interviewees who have no questions.
• Wait until you are offered a Job to ask about paid holidays and vacations.
• Carry extra resumes and references with you.
• Do not smoke, chew gum, or eat candy.
• Do not wear fancy jewelry or cologne.
• Be polite. Do not show hostility.
• Show a can-do attitude which demonstrates that you can get along well with bosses, colleagues, and subordinates.
• If asked general questions, answer in terms of your professional abilities and experiences.
• Employers are interested in what you can contribute to the organization, not what you can get from it.
• Never, never be critical of former employers.
• Only 15% of getting a job is qualifications. Your tone of voice, posture, facial expressions. and eye contact give clues about your inner feelings and altitudes. Non-verbal    communication is important:
• Use good posture
• Don’t hide with sunglasses
• Don’t cover your mouth when you speak
• Use direct eye contact
• Give a firm handshake before and after the interview
• Speak clearly in a firm, confident, and not too loud voice
• Smile, when appropriate
• Try to relax
• Give specific answers to all questions. Don’t be vague.
• Get the name and title of the interviewer(s). Try to get a business card from all of those who Interview you.
• At the end of the interview, find out when and how you will be notified.
• Thank the interviewer for his or her consideration.
• If you are really interested in the job, tell the interviewer again before you leave.
• Leave promptly, don’t drag it out.
• Send a thank-you with- in the next 24 hours.
• Don’t be discouraged if you don’t get the job. Try to learn from the experience.
• Remember – you only need one YES!

EMPLOYERS INDICATE THAT YOU CAN HURT YOUR CHANCES OF GETTTNG A JOB BY :

• Poor career planning
• Lack of qualifications for the position
• Inability to communicate clearly
• Insufficient evidence of achievement
• Failure to research the organization
• Showing a lack of enthusiasm or interest in the organization
• Unwillingness to relocate
• Appearing overbearing, aggressive, conceited
• Seeming more interested in money and benefits than anything else
• Failure to follow-up after the interview

THE GOLDEN RULE OF INTERVIEWING:

Be yourself, know yourself, and sell yourself. Successful interviewing requires successful selling.

Keep in mind that employers are interested in what you can contribute to the company by:

1. Making Money
2. Saving Money
3. Saving Time