Job Interview Mistakes

When I attended job interviews during my senior year, I understood that companies were going to judge and evaluate me.  Therefore, I wore a suit to all my interviews and was very professional during the session.  My biggest mistake was not researching each company before the interview and not revising my resume to be customized for different types of jobs.   However, I did well enough since I received offers from six out of nine interviews.

Some current college graduates don't make the same assumption that I did on being evaluated during an interview.  This CNBC article report that 20% of new college graduates exhibit strange behavior during an interview, e.g. texting, dressing inappropriately, and overly casual language.  Some extreme examples include having a parent attend the interview (or negotiate salary) and bringing a pet to the interview.

As a former hiring manager, my main concern would be the candidate not knowing how to act professional after being hired.   That seems to be the case, as the article reports that about half of HR executives report that most new hires are unprofessional during their first year, up from 40% of HR executives the previous year.

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This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

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