Interview help

£15

£15

£15

Associate
Joined
7 Nov 2012
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UK
I have an interview tomorrow and I'm feeling sick. I've had tough interviews before. My last one took all day and involved aptitude tests, roll plays and then a panel interview. I was nervous, but excitedly so and was offered a place (never actually got into post due to civil service recruitment freeze days later).

But this time, I feel awful. I'm trying to channel the nerves into something positive, but I can't. I'm starting to think maybe this interview isn't meant to happen. That the job I'm applying for isn't right for me.

It's another civil service position, but dramatically different to what I do at the moment. It's an IT apprentice roll, management grade (a two grade promotion). Getting here has been difficult: a competency bases application form, an online management test, followed by 3 online aptitude tests. I'm down to the final 6 for interview tomorrow.

It's an hour long and I have to start with a 10 minute presentation on ITSM; balancing budgets against purchasing new tech and the pitfalls (paraphrasing).

I've been reading about ITIL/ITSM for the last week and the more I read the more nervous and sick I feel. I just don't think I can pull it off.

I'm looking for excuses to cancel, but feel obliged to go (family etc). I feel like a coward.

To add some context I'm probably going to be made redundant in 18 months as my station is closing. I'll be getting a decent payout, over a years wages. I've been thinking about what to do and up until getting this interview I've been thinking more and more about going self-employed. Getting out of the civil service and getting a trade. Being my own boss.

I don't know why I'm writing this, or what I'm expecting people to say. I guess I just need to get it off my chest.
 
DO NOT CANCEL!

Lets say you don't get the job... You will have interview experience for this type of position and that means next time you shouldn't be as nervous! The 18 months is a nice buffer and you should be able to find a job in that time period.

Think of it as experience if anything!

Edit: Of course it is natural to feel nervous at this point... I was a wreck before my last interview! If it is meant to be then it will be! If not then it is great experience! That is what my Dad and family have always told me and it has been some of the best advice.
 
Role.

But I'm sure you didn't write a letter asking them to consider you for a roll in their Department, did you? If you did, the only way you can salvage this situation is to enter the interview doing a forward roll something like James Bond and finish with a loud 'TA-DA!'. Otherwise you'll look extremely foolish, but hey, good luck on the interview.
 
Don't cancel.

I've been job hunting recently, a recruiter arranged an interview for me with a company that developed embedded systems. I'm an Android developer, that's what I've done since leaving uni. I've wanted to get into embedded stuff but hadn't been able to find an entry point. The recruiter told me that the job was Android SDK / Java - but from reading their website, it was clear to me it wasn't the case. I was super nervous about the interview - which as it turned out, was for embedded development, not Android development. I wasn't as prepared as I could've been, but felt it went well.

I start that job in a couple of weeks.

Grab every chance.
 
YOU WILL NOT BE SERIOUSLY INJURED BY ATTENDING THIS INTERVIEW.





That was the best piece of advice I had when I had my last interview. It is OK to be nervous, but don't lose sight that it's only for a short period of time, it won't be the end of you, and afterwards you will be in a fit state to walk to the pub and get drunk. Do not lose sight of that, no matter how hard that might be.
 
You're meant to feel a bit nervous for an interview. That's normal!

The fact that you're going up two grades is putting extra pressure on you - The pressure you're feeling can be turned around and turned into positives. You're nervous because it means a lot to you.

Keep doing your prep, keep reading about ITIL and ITSM (ITIL is especially rubbish! ;)) but you'll get there.

Get scrubebd up, turn up for the interview and give it everything. If you can walk out of the room with your head held high then you can't do anything more than that.

There's lots of people on here who know about ITIL and ITSM, so if you have any specific questions then fire away :)
 
Nerves are a part of life, embrace them, for every thing you are scared to do and you do, your balls will grow a little. Eventually you'll be able to take on anything with a cool and calm head.

Don't run away from your problems, run at them, bite off an ear and set fire to them because it's the only way to improve your situation.
 
If you've made it through the selection process, then that's an achievement in itself. Just a few thoughts that might help keep it all in perspective:
- the interviewers want to appoint the best person for the job; they wouldn't put you in the final 6 if you didn't deserve to be there.
- as it's a significantly different role to what you currently do, then it sounds like they are looking for someone with the right attitude and aptitude, not someone who knows everything on day 1 (and an "apprentice" role must involve learning).

So I'd definitely attend - you've nothing to lose but a lot to gain. Keep doing the research on the role, who you'll be meeting, etc., and try to focus on the positives of what you can do, how you would approach the job, how you would fill gaps in knowledge, etc.

Good luck!
 
Indeed. That's something I'm starting to think and that's after just reading the basics for 6 days.

Thanks for all the constructive comments. :)
 
No ones ITIL is the same in every company, but it's the foundations which it's built upon which is important. So in that sense it's important as it's based upon common sense for the large majority.
 
I recently went for an interview which I thought went terribly. I was a bag of nerves, I meandered on at tangents, forgot to research the position properly so couldn't even answer one of the questions. Afterwards I mentally kicked myself and chalked it up to experience.

I then got called for a second interview. During it the interviewer had to leave the room briefly and I had a sneaky look at the notes he had on my first interview. I was pretty amazed to see that they were really positive! I start my new job on Monday.

Moral of the story: It doesn't matter how you are feeling inside, you can still put yourself across well enough to get the job.
 
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