I’ve now reached the final stage, the interview stage. One rejection after the other, my confidence levels weren’t so high. Being turned down by employers affected my job applications’ momentum and made me reassess my approach and goals.
In this blog, I will focus on how I used interview rejections to my advantage. Allowing them to pave the way for me to landing a job. There’s a positive side to a rejection and it’s a point of personal and professional development.
After an unsuccessful interview tailor your focus on what didn’t go well, and perhaps how you can avoid making the same mistakes for next time. It’s important at this stage to ask for feedback from the employer to confirm areas of development. I found that most recruiters were willing to provide detailed feedback if I asked nicely in a follow-up email. Useful feedback that I have taken on board includes working on my elevator pitch (1 min summary about myself), as well as aligning the role description with my strengths and skills.
I know that the employer must have seen potential in me to have invited me for an interview; it is now my interview technique that I should concentrate on.
Focus on the next interview with a fresh mind, as each the company has a different idea to what an ‘ideal candidate’ will look like. Don’t dwell on your last interview mistakes, rather use them to your advantage.
Make use of the Employability & Careers Centre, who offer mock interviews to students who have secured an interview. Have a look on Surrey Pathfinder for these resources:
Finally, I would say that every interview you take is a step closer to landing your dream job.
