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Interview Tips for Ph.D. Candidates

Excerpted and updated from a longer article written by Dennis Guthrie, Ph. D., former technical hiring manager for Dow Chemical U.S.A, for the National Association of Colleges and Employers. (Originally titled, What Interviewers Know that You Dont). There are four basic questions that every employer wants to know: 1. What job does the candidate want? 2. Can the person do the job? 3. Will the person do the job? 4. Is the person compatible with our existing team? Question 1: What job does the candidate want? At first this may seem like a trivial question. After all, youve been educated in a specific area of engineering or science; therefore, you think its obvious what type of job you want. Not so. It is quite common for interviewees to be afraid to answer this question very specifically, fearing that company XYZ may not be hiring that type of individual this year and they dont want to limit their chances of employment. However, the worst possible answer to this question is, Im willing to do anything. This response is directly interpreted as either desperation or a lack of thought and preparation. Instead, an excellent response is to list, in order of priority, the types of jobs that are of interest to you. For example, a B.S. or M.S. chemical engineer might have interest in working in several of the following areas: a production plant, a process research group, a pilot-plant, a technical service group, or a sales and marketing department. In similar fashion, a Ph. D. might be interested in working in areas such as: exploratory research aligned specifically with their training, applied research and development in the general area of their training, or a technical service group. The key is to briefly and confidently support any statements you make. In other words, tell the recruiter why you are interested in these areas, and whenever possible support your comments with specific examples. In order to give this type of detailed answer, you will need to have a fundamental understanding of what types of jobs the company you are interviewing with generally seeks to fill. If you have the ability to mention specific locations or organizations within the company that generally carry out the work you have mentioned, thats even better. Describing your employment interests in this way shows that you have put an effort into understanding the company and how you and your talents could be utilized. This type of company information can almost always be found in the employers recruiting literature (print or webbased). Visit the companys recruiting web site or check with your career services office.

Question 2: Can the Person Do the Job? To answer this question, the recruiter gathers information about the technical expertise and capabilities of the interviewee. We know you have the degree, but we also need basic information and data that verifies that you understand how to apply your education in real world situations. This is your opportunity to shine! Pick the project, or part of a project, which you feel is a good indication of your best technical performance. Highlight this in 5 minutes and describe concisely, and with enthusiasm, what you did. Remember, you are selling yourself, so talk about what you did, contributed, or accomplished. State achievements in terms of I whenever appropriate and talk about them with confidence; after all, you did the work. Often students ask me, what is the difference between being confident and being arrogant? The divided line between the two is indeed very thin, and the listener, not the speaker, draws the line. One yardstick is

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to remember the last person you thought was arrogant, and compare that person to someone you perceived as confident. The most common distinguishing factor usually is that the confident person knows the facts, provides specific and relevant examples in support of the facts, and states only those that are needed to get the point across. In contrast, the arrogant person often magnifies the situation, restates or provides more data than is really needed, uses complimentary adjectives to describe his contributions, and dwells on subjects that pat himself on the back. As an interviewee you need to (and should want to) talk about yourself. After all, you are not trying to get a job for your professor or advisor. In addition, you should feel good about the work you have completed and you should enjoy talking about it. But its best to be concise and factual. If the recruiter needs additional details, he or she will ask for them. Keeping the guidelines above in mind, strive to communicate your background, skills and technical abilities by means of how you have used your education to solve problems in the classroom, lab or work place. As you would expect, workplace examples will carry more weight and will help you build a stronger case for yourself. Be prepared to discuss examples from classroom or lab settings that demonstrate your background and skills as well, especially if you have little or no relevant work experience. This is a critical area where many students fall short. You need to come to an interview prepared to discuss specific examples. You may need to outline what you want to say ahead of time so that you know the main points you want to communicate. You can try your thoughts out on a roommate, parent, career advisor or professor to see how they react. These people can be very helpful because they can point out holes in your illustration that you thought were explained fully. In general terms, describe your message in three parts: 1. WHY: What were you trying to accomplish and why was it important? 2. HOW: What did you do and how did you accomplish the task? 3. RESULTS: What were the results of your effort? It is also helpful if you can demonstrate some initiative on your part in the work youve completed. Did you do more than was originally expected? How did you take the original idea and expand it? Did you take your project in a new direction? What positive result was obtained from your work that was not expected? Breaking your accomplishments into these three parts will allow you to communicate effectively to the recruiter. In addition, the recruiter will be impressed that you prepared yourself for the interview and that you can communicate your accomplishments effectively. Ph. D. Interviewees Ph. D. students are usually evaluated differently than B.S./M.S. students. Although their background and education will be important, they will be evaluated on their ability to do the job based on their research skills. In this setting it is critical that Ph. D.s are able to discuss their research briefly and concisely. Again, the best format is to break your work into three parts: 1. WHY: What were the goals of the research? Some individuals feel they have to extrapolate their academic research to some real-world application to impress a recruiter. This is not the case. It is expected that it is academic research, but it is critical for you as a researcher to understand and communicate what the goal of your work was from beginning to end. Consider preparing a brief written abstract of your research to leave with the recruiter. 2. HOW: How did you approach the problem? What tools did you use and why? What worked and why? This is the bulk of the work you just spent three to five years doing, so you should know your work inside out and be very comfortable talking about it. After all, you should know your work better than anyone else in the world! Remember to be brief. Less than half of your interview time will be spent answering these questions. 3. RESULTS: this is the bottom line, what you worked towards all those years. Be specific and brief.

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Communicating via this three-step process accomplishes two main things. Fist, it indicates to the recruiter that you understand the work you have done and that you can discuss, recognize and communicate a complex message effectively. Secondly, you are presenting your research in the same language and flow as that used by researchers within industry. Basically every project in industry is discussed in terms of: Why was this done, how was it done, and finally, what were the results? Therefore, its important for candidates to communicate their research in a similar fashion. Keep in mind that you are trying to sell yourself. Discuss what you did, what you contributed, and what you accomplished. If part of the project was a joint effort, then state that, but be sure to describer your role well enough that the recruiter can easily identify your contributions. Question 3: Will the Person Do the Job? The recruiter must estimate how the candidate will perform on the job. Probably 90 percent of the candidates the interviewer meets could do the job, but most employers are not looking for employees to just do the job; they want employees who will excel in the job. An important element in evaluating this dimension is to determine what the interviewees leadership and performance have been in the recent past. Therefore, the interviewees need to give clear examples of what they have recently done that was beyond the normal call of duty. The recruiters underlying question is, Show or tell me what you have accomplished in the past so I can gain insight as to how you might perform in the future. Unfortunately, the request is seldom stated this directly to the student. Consider for a moment how important this data can be. Suppose the recruiter has seen 25-30 applicants in the past two days. Generally, they will fall into four groups: 1. Those that have the education but only limited demonstrated skills; 2. Those with the education and demonstrated skills, but limited work place experience; 3. Those with the education, skills and strongly related work place experience; and finally, 4. Those with everything stated thus far, but with the added dimension of easily identified leadership skills and initiative. Examples of leadership skills include: the individual has organized or initiated projects, organizations or groups; chaired a committee or group; or indicated a willingness to go the extra mile in their classroom work, lab work, research project or other activities. These skills can be exhibited in an extra-curricular setting as well as a work or academic setting. In virtually every set of interviews, the applicants are forceranked from first to last. Leadership/performance skills, therefore, can help elevate you towards the top in the rankings. Question 4: Will the Person be Compatible with our Existing Team? Measuring interpersonal skills is a subjective call. However, data is collected during the interview to address the question of compatibility. In any workplace, it is critical that people work well together, that people have respect for their fellow employees, and that candidates are compatible with the culture and values of the organization. If other factors are equal, data in this area can tip the scales in either the positive or negative direction. A candidate needs to demonstrate as many positive attributes as possible during an interview. A good recruiter will also talk with faculty members to collect additional data. Therefore, your relationship with the faculty can affect your rating with an interviewer. Other illustrations of good interpersonal skills would include: mentoring younger students; interdepartmental or interdisciplinary interactions; or successfully participated in a team project. Once again, the point you need to demonstrate is that you have worked well with people in the past and therefore are likely to work well with people in the future. Interviewing Points to remember It is critical to always keep in mind that you must allow the recruiter to lead the interview. On the other hand, some initiative is good, especially in those few interviews where you have a poor recruiter. Under
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such circumstances, I recommend the use of a summary statement: If you dont mind, I would like to leave you with a final thought regarding my strengths as a candidate for your company. Then proceed to describe yourself in two to three brief points. This gives you an oportunitity to summarize your primary qualifications for the job as well as to communicate information about your strengths as a person and professional. One way to begin is to say, My background (or research) has demonstrated my technical abilities; however, in addition I would like to highlight my personal strengths then briefly discuss your major strengths with short and specific examples. Rememberbe brief and concise: you should be able to write everything you plan to say on the back of a business card. Only highlight strengths that are especially relevant to the job or were not discussed completely in the interview. Timing Can Be Everything The vast majority of companies conduct on-campus interviews during the months of September, October, and November, followed by January and February. The best times to schedule an on-site interview are the months of December, January, and February. Having an on-site visit in March or April may be late in the general hiring cycle. In years when there are only a limited number of offers available in many companies, it is possible that there may not be any offers left to give even a top candidate who interviews late in the season. Differences Between On-Campus and On-Site Interviews A major difference between interviewing on-site vs. on-campus is that the campus recruiter usually has received more formal interview training and conducts the interview with more structure. Your interview at the employers location will most likely be with scientists and engineers who have received little, if any, formal training in interviewing and recruiting. During an on-site visit it is common to talk with at least two types of interviewers: fairly new employees who have been with the company two to ten years, and those who have been with the company for more than ten years. The latter group usually has developed better interviewing skills through many years of experience. It is not only important what you say but how you say it. Although all four basic questions are still being addressed during an on-site visit, generally more emphasis is placed on two of these: Can the person do the job? And will the person be compatible with the existing team? In general, preparation for the on-site visit will be the same as for the on-campus interview. In addition, the candidate should prepare a number of questions to ask the interviewers through the day. This is your opportunity to find out if this company suits your skills, career goals, and values. Furthermore, the questions you ask send a message about your interest and commitment. If you dont have questions, you give the perception that you are not inquisitive or not interested. You dont need 20 questions; five to eight will do fine. You can ask the same question of several people since most interviews are carried out in a face-to-face discussion and you might well want to have multiple viewpoints on the same topic. Your questions dont have to be profound; rather, they can be very simple. For example: How do you like working for XYZ company?, How are new projects or jobs determined or evaluated?, or Tell me about your career or background and how working at XYZ has helped satisfy your career interests. How would you describe the culture at XYZ Corp.? When you are prepared with questions, you will make a good impression and you will obtain multiple viewpoints on subjects that will be important to you when making your final employment decision. The On-Site Ph. D. Seminar In almost all cases, Ph. D. students will be expected to begin their on-site interview by giving a seminar about their research work. The single most important element of a Ph.D.s on-site interview is this seminar. The reason is quite simple. This is the first opportunity that all your interviewers have of

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evaluating you as a candidate. Here you make first impressions that will last the rest of the day and will carry through to the evaluation process. Keys to an Effective Seminar Practice your delivery Be organized Be concise Be clear Introduce yourself Who you are Where you received your degree What you are going to talk about Describe your research Objectives and goals How did you reach these objectives and goals Communicate your results very clearly Polish your presentation Be enthusiastic Be confident Be professional Other Rules of Thumb Use only one form of media (but consider bringing a back-up disk or even a set of transparencies so you can use an overhead projector if necessary). Do not put too much data on one slide; split the information into two or three slides if needed. Use a font thats easily readable from a distance. Spend your time practicing your presentation and refining the content, not sweating over fancy PowerPoint visuals. Verify the employers expectations for timing of the presentation and practice to make sure you can stay within the defined time. At maximum, keep your entire presentation to 40-45 minutes. Do not allow your entire seminar (including your introduction and the questions and answer sessions) to exceed an hour. Corporate employers work in one-hour time slots. Never talk down to your audience; talk to them the same as you would to the faculty in your department. Be prepared to communicate your knowledge of the literature related to your research. This can be done either during the seminar or in answering questions after the seminar. An area that is often overlooked by seminar presenters is the importance of the question and answer session after the main talk. Your ability to answer questions on your feet is very important. Therefore, dont view any of the questions defensively; rather view them as an opportunity for you to demonstrate the depth and breadth of your knowledge as well as your listening and interpersonal skills. Be prepared to provide the first ice-breaker question to get the audience started. Ask if anyone would like you to elaborate on device X, experiment Y, or the literature addressing Z. Again, keep in mind that this is an opportunity for you to show your stuff. Closing the Deal All companies desire to hire the best people possible. Even in these years of limited hiring and reduced staffing, there are still many good jobs available. In any year, the best candidates get job offers; in fact, they usually have multiple offers. By preparing for your on-campus and on-site interview as much as possible, you can place yourself among the best.

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