{"id":6275,"date":"2019-01-07T14:00:52","date_gmt":"2019-01-07T14:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/?p=6275"},"modified":"2019-01-05T01:07:56","modified_gmt":"2019-01-05T01:07:56","slug":"how-to-prepare-for-a-second-round-job-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/how-to-prepare-for-a-second-round-job-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Prepare for a Second-Round Job Interview"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019re right to be proud of yourself for making it past the first round of interviews for that new job<\/a> you\u2019re trying to land. That means the company has determined you\u2019re a valid candidate, and you\u2019ve most likely got a real shot at getting the job.<\/p>\n

So get ready for round two. The first round is all about screening out the obviously unworthy candidates. The second round is about pitting the worthy candidates against each other in order to come up with the one they\u2019re going to hire. Time to roll up your sleeves and get serious, so here are some pointers for acing that second round. But don\u2019t get cocky: the job isn\u2019t yours yet.<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0Do Your Research\u00a0<\/b>\u2013 You should have learned the important stuff about the company before your first interview, but now it\u2019s time to dig a little deeper into the company\u2019s history and the challenges facing them. And remember, this time you\u2019ll be talking to people who have much more riding on who gets hired: hiring managers and direct supervisors. You should be able to get their names beforehand from your contact that set up the interview, so look them up individually and see if you can find some commonalities you share with each of them.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0Study the First Interview\u00a0<\/b>\u2013 Inevitably, after the first interview, your sense of what is expected of the person who gets the job will have filled out a little. Use this as you go into the second interview, where you may end up being asked some of the same questions by a different interviewer. Whoever you\u2019re talking to will be expecting you to be a bit more knowledgeable about the company and the role after that first interview, so give yourself some solid ground to stand on.<\/p>\n

3. Prepare Some Questions of Your Own\u00a0<\/b>\u2013 This second interview isn\u2019t just about you trying to get hired. You\u2019re also trying to get a sense of how good a fit you\u2019ll be at the company. So ask questions about the company culture<\/a>, ongoing programs, and new developments. You\u2019ll get points for not seeming desperate and for the self-respect you exhibit by asking questions meant to determine if the company is a good place for you to land.<\/p>\n

What Not To Say During a Job Interview<\/a><\/p>\n

4.\u00a0Highlight Your Achievements with Concrete Examples <\/b>\u2013\u00a0The first-round interview will include more general questions about your past work experience, without the need for too much detail. For the all-important second session, you\u2019re going to want to be explicit about how you excelled in the various roles you\u2019ve held. It\u2019ll sound a little bit like a listing of your greatest hits, but hearing how your expertise has averted past work crises is just the kind of thing the interviewer wants to hear.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0Dress to Impress\u00a0<\/b>\u2013 Never mind if your contact tells you to dress casually. If there ever was a legitimate excuse for overdressing, a second-round job interview is it. Even if the company has a business casual policy, they\u2019ll be impressed if you go above and beyond for your time with them.<\/p>\n

6.\u00a0Remember You\u2019re Being Studied\u00a0<\/b>\u2013 So if you\u2019re introduced to any other employees, of if you\u2019re asked to go along on a lunch or dinner, it\u2019s a safe bet that every move you make will be scrutinized. So don\u2019t tell any stories that paint you in an unflattering or irresponsible light, and be courteous to everyone you meet \u2013 they\u2019ll probably be asked later regarding their opinion of you.<\/p>\n

7. Send a Follow-up Communication\u00a0<\/b>\u2013 Make sure you\u2019ve got the names (and preferably business cards) of any of the people who interviewed you during the second-round interviews. Send each a follow-up e-mail, but don\u2019t use a form letter. Try to personalize each one with a reference to some of the personal interaction you had with each individual. That way they\u2019re more likely to remember you (and your courtesy) when the time comes to make the hiring decision.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You\u2019re right to be proud of yourself for making it past the first round of interviews for that new job you\u2019re trying to land. That means the company has determined you\u2019re a valid candidate, and you\u2019ve most likely got a real shot at getting the job. So get ready for round two. The first round … Read full-story <\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":6277,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2,4,8],"tags":[47,152,313],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6275"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6275"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6275\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6279,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6275\/revisions\/6279"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6277"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6275"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6275"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6275"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}