I was recently shortlisted for my first ECR interview, and I'm writing this post to provide some tips for other ECRs who will face the same situation at some point in the future. Before I proceed, I want to make it clear that what I'm sharing is not a step-by-step guide of what to do to get hired. I say this, because the outcome of my first interview was not so successful - i.e. I did not get offered the post. Nevertheless, the outcome was very positive as I learned much from this experience which has helped me to be better prepared for future interviews. And I thought I would share, as it may be of benefit for other ECRs who may be facing their first such interview. 

1. Prepare for the obvious

These are the typical questions you should prepare for in advance:

• Tell us a little about yourself

• Can you tell us why specifically you are applying for our University?

• How do you think you can contribute to our programme/modules?

So, you should read the University website thoroughly, check all the modules offered, think about what you can contribute and where you see yourself in the department.

You will also be asked to give a presentation. Prepare for this thoroughly. My interview was conducted online which will likely be a future trend. The advantage of having an online interview is that you can use pre-prepared notes for the presentation, which might not be as accessible in an offline interview. However, try not to make it too obvious that you are referring to your notes. To help with this, you may wish to use bullets rather than verbatim sentences as this will help you to present in a more natural way. Try to maintain eye contact with your webcam as often as you can. Make sure that your presentation is within the time limit that has been assigned for your presentation. I was assigned 9-10 minutes and asked to present on current issues in TESOL training and research.

2. Research the profiles of the panel members

Before the interview research the profiles of the panel members. This will help you to think about how your research aligns with their interests. Commonly, you will be told in advance who will be interviewing you. If not, you are likely to find this by looking in the Cc section of emails that have been sent to you about the interview such as the email including the invitation link. If for some reason this information is not provided to you, be proactive and contact the administrator to ask for it. 

3. Listen attentively for 'smaller questions' that will give you opportunities to shine

In my interview, the head of the panel asked: 'Is there something else we should know about you, or does anyone else have any questions?' - There were two different questions here. Before, I got the chance to reply to the first, one of the other panel members asked me a question which side tracked my focus and made me forget to respond to the first question. 

This was an opportunity I lost to go into detail concerning research ideas I had for the department. Of course, I had planned to do this before the interview started, but it slipped my mind in the pressure of the situation and was only something I realised later in hindsight. What I should have done is noted down key words when the question was first asked, that would have helped me to anchor back to my previous thoughts.

4. Fight your instincts 

You may feel compelled to give an answer immediately to questions asked, but take your time and think before you speak. Focus on the 'verbs' in the questions asked as usually the structure of most answers will involve you describing a situated task where you took some action that ended up in a particular result. In order to 'buy yourself time' to think, ask for the question to be repeated or check for the clarification of the question by rephrasing it yourself. If you instinctively respond to an answer, you may later regret, in hindsight, something that you did not mention. 

5. The best prep is a real interview

The best way of preparing for an interview is to have a real interview! Tireless practice cannot replicate the adrenaline rush you experience during an actual interview. In this situation, your thought process changes completely. It is a fight of flight mode where the pressure is intense. So, in hindsight don't put too much expectations on yourself in the first interview; instead, view it as a positive opportunity to learn and perfect your skill. You may very well have success in your first interview, but in the majority of case this may well not be the case. Therefore, take the positives out of the experience moving forward.