Skip to Content

My Pharmacy

Interviewing

Ready to ace your next interview? The Interviewing section of the Career Enhancement Series prepares students for the variety of interview types and questions they may encounter throughout the job search process.

Prepare for Your Interview

The best way to prepare for any type of interview is to practice (and practice, and practice!) Ultimately, the purpose of an interview is to find a job that will allow you to achieve your career goals in an organization that aligns with your personal values. 

Always prepare to answer these questions regardless of the position or type of interview:
  • Tell me about yourself.
  • What are your strengths and weaknesses?
  • Why should we select you for this role? 

Review our Frequently Asked Interview Questions resource for a more thorough list. Mock interview sessions are available for USC College of Pharmacy students. Schedule a session with Pamela Hite.

 
Types of Interviews

Throughout the job search process, you may encounter variety in the number of interviews you have and how they are conducted. Regardless of the type of interview, it is best to prepare for an interview by reviewing any application documents including your CV/resume and cover letter/letter of intent. Furthermore, it is advantageous to explore the company or organization's website and social media accounts prior to your interview. If you are provided names of the people you are interviewing, research their background, if possible. 

The objective of this interview is to ask for advice and learn more about a particular career field, employer, or a particular job.  Interviewing experts in their field is one more way to become more occupationally literate.  The knowledge that you gain here will make you a sharper and more informed.  You will also make a contact and further develop your network.

This is helpful for students to conduct in order to learn more about potential career interests, and for practicing pharmacists who are seeking to transition into another field. As a pharmacist, you may be contacted by students who wish to conduct an informational interview with you. 

This type of interview is most commonly expected when referring to the word "interview." While most people are familiar with this type, we offer a few simple tips:

  • Prepare to answer questions regarding who you are, your work experience, your qualifications, behavioral-based questions, and any other common type of question. 
  • If you know who the interviewer is for your meeting, research if possible, who they are and what their role is within the company. 
  • It is okay to break eye contact occasionally to avoid any staring contests.
  • Avoid crossing your arms in the interview as it can make you appear closed off.

This type of interview will have multiple interviewers with typically just one applicant. The interviewer(s) will typically ask a question, listen to your response, and then immediately ask the next question. There is little, if any, commentary provided about the response you provide. This is to keep interviews relatively similar between applicants, to see how an applicant performs under 'rapid-fire' questioning, and to provide the interviewer(s) the opportunity to ask more questions during the same amount of time. These can be conducted in any format: phone, virtual, or in-person. 

This type of interview consists of multiple applicants and multiple interviewers. Typically, each panelist will ask at least one question to the group of applicants. Helpful hints when in a group interview include:

  • Make eye contact with the various interviewers and other applicants. 
  • Listen to other applicants when they speak. Nodding while someone else is speaking can demonstrate that you are actively listening. 
  • If you have a similar response to another applicant, you can reference their response. For example a response like, "Similar to Garnet Gamecock, I too was working on a group project when..." This demonstrates active listening as well. 
  • Never interrupt another applicant or interviewer. 
  • Be mindful of how long your responses are. While you want to communicate your responses, you do not want to take up so much time that other applicants can't answer at all. 
  • Do not excessively fidget. It can distract the interviewers and other applicants when they are speaking. If you are someone who fidgets often, it is best to practice sitting relatively still for the interview period, or find small, non-distracting movements such as lightly tapping your leg. Interlocking your fingers, sitting in non-swivel chairs, and crossing your ankles can help to prevent common fidgeting movements.
  • And please, do not fall asleep while other applicants are talking. (Yes, we have really seen this in our experience prior to pharmacy)

Phone interviews can be used as a way to gather more information regarding your eligibility including work experience details, ability to relocate, start date availability, etc. or they can be used as an alternative to in-person first-round interviews. If an organization is conducting phone interviews to replace in-person interviews, it is best to prepare answers to 'typical' interview questions and behavioral-based interview questions such as those found here. If you are unsure of the purpose of the phone interview, prepare as if it is to replace an in-person interview. It is best to be over-prepared than under-prepared.

Virtual interviews may include a 'panel' meaning more than one interviewer is in the virtual room with you, or it may be one on one. As these are a newer type of interview, the most abundant type of virtual interview is unknown. However, for all virtual interviews, there are some tips we can share to help you prepare:

  • If you are unsure of the meeting technology (Zoom, Webex, Microsoft Teams, etc.) don't hesitate to ask so you can test that system on your device in advance. We recommend that you test your technology with a colleague or friend to ensure it works! Use the exact device, headphones, camera, and microphone that you intend to use during the interview. 
  • Ensure you have a professional background that is not distracting. Distracting items include bright colors, artwork, and other people (or pets) moving around. If you are struggling to find such a 'wall' to use as a background, you can try hanging a curtain or sheet that is a solid, muted color or apply a virtual background as long as you test it before using it. Sometimes virtual backgrounds can be distracting themselves because they appear to give people 'floating heads.' If a virtual background does that during your test run, it's best to avoid using it.
  • Check the lighting. If your lighting is poor they may not be able to see you during the interview. Add lamps or ring lights as needed to ensure that the interviewer(s) can see your face/facial expressions to mimic an in-person interview. 
  • If choosing to use any headphones, make sure you charge them before the interview. You don't want to be fidgeting with them when they die in the middle of the interview and pause your sentence or ask them to repeat themselves. 
  • Unless the organization informs you differently, don't be afraid to make small talk before the interview begins if not all attendees are in the virtual meeting room yet. 
  • On the actual interview day, dress head to toe in professional attire as you would for an in-person interview. This helps you 'dress for the job' and avoids any opportunity for interviewers to see less than professional clothes.
  • Look at the webcam when speaking to mimic making eye contact with them. When you look at the individual's face on your device's screen it doesn't look like you're making eye contact with them.


'Do you have any questions for us?'

Another standard occurrence during an interview is the expectation that the applicant may have questions for the company or organization. Through your research, you should be able to create specific questions. Review the Questions to Ask in Interviews resource for a list of questions that may be useful to ask at the end of an interview. 

After an interview, it is appropriate and acceptable to ask for feedback regarding your interview and their hiring decision (typically when an applicant does not receive an offer for the position.) This can help you continue to grow as a professional and will highlight what experiences to focus on during future interviews. You may not receive a response when you reach out, but if you never ask you will never know. 


Residency Interviews

If you are searching for residency-specific interview tips, the Pre-Residency Track Blackboard page contains information about residency-specific mock interview opportunities and tips from our faculty. Find additional Residency Interview Resources below. 


Resources

Residency-specific resources:

 

Challenge the conventional. Create the exceptional. No Limits.

©