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Our team believes that every student and recent grad deserves a great career. Here we'll take a look at how students and recent college grads should respond to the most basic job interview questions. There are some questions you should know to expect, so don't get caught unprepared. Preparation is key to a successful job interview. Many students and grads focus on how they will answer the tough interview questions instead of mastering the most basic ones, so what are the most basic job interview questions and what responses do employers want to hear.

One of the most common job interview questions you'll get is: Tell me about yourself. With this question the interviewer is not asking about your personal life, this question is geared towards determining your professional skills, interests, and experience. Your response can explain how you're a good fit for the company's needs or show your career objectives, make sure your pitch is concise, and you can share a few of your interests that move on to your recent accomplishments.

Another common question you'll get is: What do you know about our company and why do you want to work here ? Provide information that demonstrates you did your research about the company and know their products and services, industry, and any recent news affecting that company. Then show how you can make a positive impact in the position for which you are interviewing for, when doing so, be sure to express your enthusiasm for the opportunities.

Another common energy question you'll get is: What are your strengths and weaknesses ? Before the interview, be sure to read the Job Description thoroughly, then when you're asked about your strengths in the interview, provide honest relevant examples of your strengths that directly relate to the qualifications listed in the job descriptions, be sure to provide specific examples of past experiences that demonstrate your strengths and confidences. When asked about weaknesses don't provide a canned response such as I work too hard, for instance, a sound approach is to name an actual weakness that is minor to the role, but follows it up with steps that you're taking to improve in that area.

The next question allows you to shine: Why should we hire you ? If you've researched the position in the company, you'll know which areas to focus on, then explain you are relevant skills and show your great fit for their corporate culture and how eager you are to make contributions as soon as possible. The final basic job interview question that I'll touch on is: If you have any questions for me. Always try to have a couple of targeted questions in your back pocket that show you've done your homework. Demonstrate your interest, ask your interviewer what are the company's short and long term goals, is this a new position, if not why did the last person left, how would you measure the success of a person in this role, what kind of career paths are available for a person in this position, I'm excited about the position what are the next steps. They are basic job interview questions, which doesn't mean you should give basic answers, use these tips to get ahead of the competition in your next interview.