i've interviewed before... here's what i look for in general:
- genuine interest in the position -
i understand mainly needing a job for the money, but i need to know you actually care about what you're going to be doing
- engagement -
especially as in, you are actually paying attention to me lol
- social skill -
can range from just being attentive and understandable for a behind-the-scenes position to being highly engaging and diplomatic for a more social position
- skills and overall demeanor that match the position you're applying for
- evidence that you've researched / thought about the position and the institute
- values and attitude that fit with the position and institute
- attention to appearance -
you don't have to look incredible, or like someone who's not you, just put-together and appropriate. in my personal book, extra points for dressing especially nicely, as long as it's not overdone or out of place
things that aren't such a big deal to me especially with younger interviewees include being nervous and tripping over words a little, needing a little time to reflect (like 30 seconds, not several minutes), asking if you can start an answer over, saying something a little awkward once or twice, doing something clumsy, speaking really fast (though i'll probably ask you to slow down, lol), other general nervousness indicators that don't really have any bearing on your ability to do the job
weirdest things i've experienced / who not to be like (lol):
- a guy with one-word answers and no eye contact
- a chick who played with the zipper on her bag the whole time and applied lip gloss very carefully (mirror and all) while i was asking her an in-depth question - then asked if i could repeat the question
- a chick with clothing better suited to prostitution, who had a lot of trouble walking on her 4" heels
- more than one person with an apparent lack of hygiene
- a chick coming in and admitting she hadn't really prepared at all -
don't tell me that!!! either you've prepared well, or your skill in acting on the fly will be evident in that i don't know you're doing this on the fly) unfortunately in her case she wasn't very good on the fly :[
- a guy with a huge beef with his last employer who really wanted to share that with me
i really do understand hating your boss, but an interview isn't really the best time to bring that up
- a chick who shook in fear the whole time -
still ended up hiring her, she's good at what she does and does not shake anymore
- a guy who went off on so many tangents he never actually ended up answering 3/4 of the questions posed to him
- a chick who used a "cute voice" when she was giving examples of things she would say to people in certain scenarios -
it was so unbelievably annoying - i was on a panel of people who interviewed her, and when we discussed things afterwards, this was our #1 turn-off. we couldn't imagine her being socially appropriate on a day-to-day basis if she was doing this during a professional interview.
my #1 advice is don't be late!! i usually advise students to go to the interview location 30 minutes beforehand to give them a big time cushion in case anything should happen. if they're early, they can just hang out somewhere (car, lobby, nearby cafe, etc) and review their resume, notes, and cover letter, go to the bathroom, double-check their appearance, and just meditate a little to relax and center. then go in 5 minutes early and give the secretary or whoever a heads-up that you're here whenever they're ready.
ps if you run into some horrible circumstance like getting stuck behind a car accident in traffic, call ASAP, explain, apologize, and ask if you can reschedule (and don't be picky about when). we know that shit happens but we expect you to have done everything you can within reason to prevent it