So What Questions Do You Have for Me? How to Ace this Part of the Interview

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Now that on-campus recruiting season has winded down, I have been debriefing with students about their interview experience. As graduate students, many are looking to make a career change, and for some, this is their first time interviewing in the US. The one topic that keeps popping up as an area of development is questions candidates have for the interviewer. Here are some common questions that students have asked interviewers and my suggestions on how to make them better.

Question 1: What are the day-to-day duties of the position?

Oof. Why don't I like this question? Because you should know what those are already! A way to make this question better is to rephrase it. Say something like, "Based on my understanding of the job description, I would be working on X and Y. Can you tell me more about X and/or are there other important projects coming up that are not listed in the job description?"

Question 2: Can you describe the company culture?

I am sure either you have been asked this question, or perhaps you have asked it yourself. The problem with this question is that it is too broad, too vague. Company culture means so many different things. Identify what piece of company culture is essential to you then zone in on that. Something like, "I value receiving feedback as I place high importance on growing professionally. Can you tell me how performance is evaluated here?"

Question 3: What are the biggest challenges you are facing?

This question is OK as it helps you learn more about the person, organization, and/or the job itself. What would make it better? Try to be more specific by tailoring the question for the person. (Side note: always ask for the name of the interviewer beforehand so you can look them up on LinkedIn.) If you looked up the person, you could ask about challenges based on something you have observed in their profile (an industry change, a function change, etc.). For people that you would be working with regularly, challenges related to job requirements may be best. Whereas interviewing with a more senior team member may provoke a question around more macro-level challenges facing the business and/or industry.

Lastly, have your questions prepared ahead of time. Written down is fine if it makes you more comfortable. It shows you are prepared and signals a positive indication of how it would be to work with you as a colleague. Need more? Here are three last-minute interview tips: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/help-3-last-minute-ways-prepare-your-interview-lindsey-plewa/

What are some other ways these questions could be better? Comment below.

Lindsey Plewa
Associate Director, Graduate Career Management Center, Zicklin School of Business
Lindsey Plewa has coached thousands of students on how to successfully navigate a job search for over ten years. She is currently the Associate Director of Career Advising at the Zicklin School of Business at Baruch College.  She holds an MA from New York University and is pursuing her EdD from Northeastern University.

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