Tips for Students and Graduates
Video Interview Tips
If you’re asked to complete a one-way recorded interview, you’ll typically be asked three to five questions. For intern and graduate positions they’re fairly standard questions.
An example of achievement or personal initiative; teamwork and managing conflict; managing your priorities to achieve an outcome; where you stepped up into a leadership role; a situation where you had to communicate complex information to others. You could also expect a question of why do you want to work for us. Practicing answers to these and a few others will be a big help.
But here’s another tip. Do your best to present yourself professionally. Students would be surprise to learn that some employers automatically reject applicants because the background of their video looked untidy or messy; or the lighting was poor; or their clothing was inappropriate eg. a hoodie head covering.
Assessment Centre Tips
Many employers use assessment centres primarily to see how applicants interact with each other and their employer representatives. That’s why you perform group activities.
What are employers looking for? The majority of employers are looking for an applicant who shows initiative and can step up as a group leader, when needed. That can be as simple as drawing out the thoughts from a “quiet” group member. “Hey Jane, we’ve been discussing this problem for a few minutes now. What are your thoughts?” Employers really like that.
On the other hand, many dislike the dominating personality. That’s the person who pronounces themselves as group leader and tries to control the group’s activities. Employers are also wary of the quiet person who only responds to the prompts of others.
The tip is to be supportive of other people in the team while voicing your own opinion.
Resumes and Cover Letters
While it’s natural for a student resume to focus on career-related achievements, it’s so important not to overlook non-career related experiences. The reason is it gives an employer insights to who you are, what motivates you and behavioural indicators such as leadership, initiative, teamwork and more. Examples are community volunteering; playing sports; gym, music, hobbies and interest.
Here's an example. A mechanical engineering student was applying for an engineering graduate position. While his background was very good, he omitted from his resume that he restored old cars as a hobby. When the employer learnt this from the interview, it only increased their interest in him. He would have been well served to have included it in his resume.
Some employers still require a cover letter. What should it include? Three paragraphs. The first stating your background (eg. about to graduate with an Accounting degree) and your interest in applying for the position. The second paragraph describes the skills and strengths you bring. It closes with a statement of your interest in building a career with the organisation and the sector it operates in.
The tip is to include non-career related information that showcases your achievements and interests.
Psychometric Assessments
Love them or hate them, many employers continue to ask students to complete psychometric assessments. They can be problem solving, numerical and verbal reasoning, personality and a lot more. There was a time when applicants completed the assessments in a supervised environment. Not now. Employers trade off the integrity of the results for convenience.
What do you do if you don’t perform well in tests? Practice does help. But there are many job applicants who simply choose another employer. The irony is that are enough HR managers leading graduate recruitment, who admit they would never have passed the same tests their graduate applicants are forced to go through.
Tip: Practice and get some help.
International Students
The biggest obstacle faced by international students seeking an internship or a graduate position is the employer! It’s because most employers don’t understand or aren’t sure about a student’s visa conditions. So instead of taking a risk, it’s simpler for them to say no to the applicant.
Students make it harder for an employer when they don’t make it clear they are on a visa. An employer will look at their resume and guess this looks like an international student. But there’s no mention of it. Even if the student looked fantastic, it’s not worth the employer’s time having to follow-up and ask.
The best advice for an international student is to be upfront and communicate exactly what their availability is for employment. It’s more than saying what the visa is. It’s explain their working entitlement to the employer. For example, “a graduate 485 visa, which entitles me to work full-time for three years”. Or “a student visa, which entitles me to work 20 hours per week during semesters and full-time outside of that. My currently availability is 20 hours per week March though to May and full-time June to early July”. That makes it so much easier for an employer.
Employers also have a concern about communication skills. So if the application process includes the opportunity for a video, go for it because it’s a real help to the employer. If you’re concerned you won’t perform well in the video, the same concern would apply in an interview. It doesn’t matter. What does matter is making it easier for the employer consider you, not ignoring your application in the first place.
Tip: Be clear about your working rights and availability.
Your First Graduate Role Matters
Your first graduate job matters. Why? Because it shapes the early stages of your career and can influence your professional trajectory in the long term.
That’s fine if you know you’re on the right career path. But what if it isn’t your preferred choice? It may have been a compromise just to get a graduate job and make a start. That’s OK and lots of graduates do that.
But it does make it harder when you decide to apply to another employer for the type of position you really want. Expect some resistance. It’s common for employers to look at your background and assume that’s your interest area. They’ll ask but why do you want to change so soon.
What’s important is demonstrating how you can leverage your experience to bring value to the new position even though it’s in a very different field. Whether that’s organisation or project skills, technical skills etc. Show the employer it’s an easy bridge because you already meet some of their experience criteria.
The tip is to show a new employer how your first role brings relevant skills and experience to their position.
Getting Past AI
Most assessments using artificial intelligence rely on text interpretation. For example, an employer job application platform may allow an employer to use key words to filter/screen applicants. Some video and bot interview platforms will capture word information. The text is interpreted based on an algorithm that ties into the particular position requirements.
So how do students get past it? First of all, it’s figuring out the key words that are relevant to the position. Take a look at the job ad and the organisation’s values. You should be able to come up with five key words. Or just put the job description into a generative AI platform and prompt it with suggestions. Now, just like search engine optimisation, make sure you frequently use those key words in your resume and cover letter and in your response to video interview questions (or bot interview).
Tip: Post the job ad in a generative AI application eg. ChatGPT and prompt for the key words you should use in your resume, cover letter, and video.
By the way, GradSift does not use text interpretation. The way to be successful using GradSift is to make sure you provide your full background including non-career related experiences.
Free Personal Feedback
Everyone likes feedback. But when it comes to an employment application, that can be rare or very generic eg. "unfortunately we have progressed with other applicants who have a stronger background".
So we developed EmpowerMe, a free AI tool for students and recent graduates to unlock insights into how employers assess your background. Learn more at https://au.gradsift.com/applicant/empowerme/
Tip: You can also join GradSift Talent, an open database of early career candidates, where registered employers search and reach out to candidates they're intersted in.