6B Wednesday, January 18, 2012 // The Statement
Wednesday, 3B
Pitching yourself
Behind the interview process
by Kaitlin Williams
You sit down for your job inter-
view. The first question arrives.
"How many people are using
Facebook in San Francisco at
2:30pm on a Friday?"
Why would anyone ask this
question during an interview?
How would you begin to answer
it? And, most importantly, what
would your answer say about you?
A Dec. 28 article on glassdoor.com
placed this question, which was
actually asked at Google job inter-
views, among its "Top 25 Oddball
Interview Questions of 2011."
Lynne Sebille-White, senior
assistant director of employer rela-
tions at the University's Career
Center, said while these "case inter-
view" questions are rare for typical
job interviews, students applying to
jobs in certain fields like consulting
can expect off-the-wall questions
from companies looking to gauge
critical thinking skills.
"Obviously, there's not going
to be an answer for the question,"
"Think about
those times
when you
were a leader,
when you did
something
innovative."
-Megan Budzynski,
senior consumer and
market knowledge
manager at Procter &
Gamble
Sebille-White said. "For some
questions, there could be, but for
a lot of things, they're Hypotheti-
cal. They just want to see how that
(critical thinking) process works."
Sebille-White said behavioral
questions - such as "What are
your strengths?" and "What are
your weaknesses?" - are still the
most popular in job interviews.
While, these are more standard
questions, Sebille-White said
practice is essential to performing
well in everytype of interview.
"Because obviously most
Michigan students are articulate,
they're bright, have great com-
munication skills, they think the
interview part is going to be the
easy part," Sebille-White said.
The Career Center offers half-
hour appointments for mock
interview sessions, which are
conducted by staff members who
record audio and video to review
with the student later.
Students can schedule one
appointment a semester to prac-
tice for interviews for jobs after
graduation, summer internships
and graduate schools.
Sebille-White said students are
urged to dress up for the practice
interview to really get in the right
mindset.
"I think that with any inter-
view prep, one of the key things
is to get beyond prepping in your
head or prepping on paper and
actually getting to articulate your
answers," Sebille-White said.
Students can even practice
working out case interview ques-
tions like, "Why are manhole cov-
ers round?"
While Sebille-White stressed
That interview questions tend
to remain unchanged through-
out the years, more companies
are tweaking their processes to
weed out candidates before an
interview even takes place. She
said more employers are now
conducting pre-interview assess-
ments online.
Olivia Sitto, campus recruit-
er for the satellite TV provider
DISH Network and a 2010 Uni-
versity alum, said DISH utilizes
a pre-hire assessment online as a
part of the multi-step hiring pro-
cess.
DISH Network accepts candi-
dates from all majors, and Sitto
said that the company will be at
today's Winter Career Expo look-
ing for students to fill summer
internship positions. Sitto said
that after the pre-hire assessment,
a behavior-based interview is con-
ducted, followed by a problem-
solving assessment that covers
quantitative reasoning, critical
thinking, verbal ability and inter-
net proficiency.
"We really value your innate
characteristics, like energy, intel-
ligence and need for achievement
a lot more than we value your
actual experiences just because
we feel like those are the things
that can't really be taught," Sitto
said. "Experience can be taught,
on the other hand."
As a recent University gradu-
ate, Sitto advocates using the
Career Center Connector, an online
resource listing employers and job
openings.
"When I was a student, I basi-
cally lived on the Career Center
Connector, and really applied to
everything that I felt I might be
interested in," Sitto said.
Megan Budzynski, senior con=
sumer and market knowledge
manager at Procter & Gamble and
a 2005 University alum, recruits
students for the company but also
helps them prepare for interviews
with rsume reviews and mock
job interviews. Budzynski said the
mock interviews are behavioral-
based and can translate into any
job interview situation, although
they are modeled off of what can-
didates can expect when they
apply for a job or internship with
Procter & Gamble.
For interview advice, Budzyn-
ski said students should under-
stand the company and type of
interview to expect.
Sebille-White said most compa-
nies who conduct case interviews
will inform the candidate before-
hand and provide sample ques-
tions online. Coming prepared to
any interview with specific anec-
dotes is important, Sebille-White
and Budzynski said.
"Really think about those times
when you were a leader, when
you did work with a team, when
you did something innovative,"
Budzynski said.
To those navigating the job
interview process, and some
potentially strange questions,
Budzynski said preparation can
only help.
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Michigan Book and Supply faces possible
closure as it undergoes evaluation from its
recently bankrupt parent company, Nebras-
ka Book Company.
Contact U-M Peace Corps Representatives:
Scott Burgess and Mackenzie Knowling
International Opportunities Center, Room 10,603 E. Madison St.
peace.corps@umich.edu, 734.647.2182, facebook.com/UMpeacecorps
PEACE CORPS NEEDS APPLICANTS
WITH DEGREES AND SKILLS IN:
Education "English Teaching -"Agriculture
Forestry. Environment.- Public Health
Math - Science -French - Spanish
For campus office hours & events, visit peacecorps.gov/events.
Find us at the 1/17SNRE Career Fair or 1/19 Info Session!
Sign up for updates at peacecorps.gov/info.
Life is calling. How far will you go? 800.424.85801 peacecorps.gov
with apologies to lou gehrig
[status update] by for an rochelson
Are you reading a good book right now?
"Water For Elephants." It's about the interaction
between on/mols ond humas. It's especially
interesting to me how some folk have no respect
for anima/s or other humans.
If you could visit anywhere in the world...
Germany. Lived there for ten years and have many
friends throughout Deutschland.
What would you do if you weren't teaching?
I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of
this earth to have chosen the career I chose. I won-
der if any Yankee fans will accuse me of plagiarism.
If so, I apologize to, them and to Lou Gehrig.
Restaurant Week, a promotional event for
local eateries, began this week. Throughout
the week 49 restaurants in Ann Arbor will be
offering steep discounts.
john rubadeau
english lecturer
The owners of Good Time Charley's and
BTB are opening a nightclub called LIVE in
downtown Ann Arbor. LIVE is set to open
Feb. 3.