Engoo
(Updated )
Are you preparing for English job interviews? If so, you've probably wondered how to answer questions like "What are your salary expectations?" or "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?"
Today, we'll introduce tips and expressions for responding to three of the most popular interview questions in English.
Start by talking about your present and past experiences.
Next, talk about how these experiences helped you gain new skills or knowledge that you can use in your next job.
Finally, briefly talk about why you're applying for the position.
Here's a sample response that uses these expressions:
I've been a marketing manager for three years. I'm responsible for our company's email campaigns, social media accounts, and blogs. Before this, I worked in customer service at a bank and a hotel, where I was in charge of bookings and reservations.
My time in customer service and marketing have taught me how important it is to properly manage relationships with customers – and also how much I enjoy this aspect of business. So I started looking for other opportunities in this field and your company caught my attention because you focus specifically on solutions for customer relationship management.
This question asks you to talk about how you'd like to grow professionally – and how this growth might benefit the company.
Here are expressions you can use to talk about professional growth.
Here are expressions for talking about future hopes and goals.
You might also mention that you're interested in leadership roles in the future.
As an entry level employee, I'm mainly interested in learning, so I definitely want to increase my industry knowledge and take advantage of the company's training programs to further develop my project management skills.
Also, since my last company served mainly start-ups, I'm excited about the prospect of working with large corporate clients. In five years, I'll hopefully have taken the lead in a few big projects. I'd also love to be considered for a leadership position on the team, if the opportunity arises.
There's a budget for every role, so interviewers ask this question to make sure the company can afford you.
You can respond to this question with a range. Keep in mind that in most English-speaking countries, salaries are discussed as a yearly sum.
You may also want to briefly explain your reasoning.
Sometimes this question comes up too early in the interview. In this case, you'll need more information to provide an accurate range.
Finally, you can mention if there's anything else that might affect your expectations.
Here's a sample response:
Based on my knowledge of the industry, similar positions in this region pay in the range of $50,000 to $60,000. With my qualifications, I'd expect a salary in the upper part of that range, so somewhere between $57,000 and $60,000.
However, I'd like to learn more about what the position entails as well as the overall compensation package, including bonuses and equity. From there, I'm sure we can figure out something we can both agree on.
Would you like to practice interviews from the comfort of your own home? If so, book an online lesson with a professional English tutor. At Engoo, we have many tutors who have experience preparing students for job interviews. Learn more about us here.