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We all pursue college degrees in order to be well versed with the profession we are opting for. Before we get a graduation degree, most of us will apply for internships to break the otherwise unbreakable chain that needs experience for a job and a job for experience.
Internships are preferably awarded to bright and qualified students that have proven themselves in the field of education and will now start adding organizational value to make use of their education, talent, and intellect. Your grades may judge your memory, but only an interview will judge your personality and character. The interviewer or the panel of interviewers are well-qualified professionals with experience in the field of HR and can pretty quickly judge your visions and your ability to contribute to their greater good. Mind boggling questions may be asked which might seem absurd to you but will really expose all in a day's work. What are they?
Introduce yourself
This might sound like an easy feat to accomplish but this is just the beginning. Introducing yourself requires a deeper understanding of yourself over any other object. The interviewer will be judging what you tell them but more than that, how you tell them. Introducing yourself and your history will require confidence and boldness if you think you've lived your life the right way. Yes, confidence is the key and honesty is the keyhole. How and what you reply to this first question will determine which direction the rest of your interview leads you to. Be confident, bold and introduce your past with pride. Mention your hobbies, curricular and co-curricular. Your introduction should be a balance between your requirements inside and outside the work field. How the interviewer judges you for this more adamantly depends on how you judge yourself and how confident you are about it. Creating a good impression by introducing yourself with a smile, crisp and clear, will determine what direction the rest of your interview goes in.
What are your weaknesses and strengths?
This is the most commonly asked and most frequently misunderstood question by the fresh interns. No, this question is not asked in expectation of flaws that are unacceptable by the company, rather is more concerned about how you accept them. Accept your weaknesses and show what you have done to cover them instead of just hiding them since we all are humans and open to flaws and changes. While mentioning your strengths, be clear about your expertise in the particular matter and how it makes you different from the rest. Look for unique strengths in yourself because merely ‘being able to handle pressure' is cliché and doesn't work since everyone can handle pressure once experienced every day.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
This particular question doesn't at all mean to test your imagination but your goals that you believe you can accomplish. Keep your reply a mix of realism, vividness, and optimism. As for an optimistic person, they will want to see themselves as a wanted and reliable professional in their field with many competitors. Being realistic means not looking at yourself as the only person with a set of certain qualities as you don't know what everyone else is up to. Believe in yourself and show the interviewer that you can keep up with the competition but don't fool yourself by bluffing something you don't yourself believe in. Present a vivid picture of your goals and not just get on with it by saying "better than right now." That's for sure.
Why should we hire you?
This question shouldn't at all mean to belittle or berate you if it is asked after you have made your qualities and strengths clear but is presuming of how useful you think you can be for the company. Your answer should have more to do with how your qualities are needed and will be beneficial for the company in question rather than just mentioning more qualities in your reply. A company interviewing you for the internship of a web developer wouldn't probably have anything to do with your quality of being a pro at skiing. Be relevant in your answer and tell them how you have what it takes for them to excel. In short, vividly show them how ‘they could benefit from you.'
What do you know about this company?
The question will not be generalized and narrowed down as mentioned above. Instead, variations of this question could be asked like "Since how many years are we operating?" or "Who was our last CEO?" This question is more intended to check how keen you have been to apply for an internship here all this time since someone who is just trying his luck wouldn't go into such in-depth details. Expect vague and unanswerable questions but don't trip and lose confidence if you can't answer something, even the interviewers might not know some of the answers. Do the relevant research before showing up for the interview and if you can't recall the answer, very confidently say so. You can mention that it was the reputation of the organization and not the last CEO who brought you to sit in this seat.