I. What do you think might be the stages of a job interview? II. Look at the adjectives below to describe people and their behaviour, and think about their antonyms. Use prefixes where possible. Example: decisive – indecisive, determined – doubtful/hesitant/reluctant decisive determined energetic enthusiastic open-minded flexible friendly hard-working helpful imaginative independent patient persistent rational reliable self-disciplined straightforward well organized modest big-headed honest polite impulsive tolerant responsible tactless predictable III. Complete the sentences about yourself. They should be true. I think I’m quite ……………… I’m not at all …………………. I’m sometimes ……………….. I tend to be rather …………….. People say I’m………………… I can’t stand people who are ……………… IV. Presenting oneself. Interviews usually start with a question: What can you tell us about yourself? Think about a short introduction to present yourself in an interview. Incorporate some sentences from the previous exercise. Be ready to talk about yourself for ca 3 minutes. V. Being diplomatic – polite disagreeing. Did you use the last sentence from ex.III in your presentation? Transform it, so that it sounds more polite, using the structures below (beginnings are given). I’d rather… I’d rather you… I wish I… Well, I was hoping to/for… It’s definitely an inspiring/interesting/invaluable… but I’m afraid I have no experience with… You can also use unreal past in other situations during an interview. Transform the sentences below, so that the meaning stays the same, but they sound more polite. 1. I don’t know any other foreign language. I wish … 2. I didn’t know your company moved headquarters to the Czech Republic last year. If only… 3. An idea of travelling on business sounds good to me, but I didn’t have this option in the previous job. I wish… 4. I really want you to give me this job! I wish… Can you think of any other examples of polite disagreement with the use of those structures? VI. Job interview questions; pair work Write 5 questions that an employer might ask you during your interview. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Compare your ideas with the questions in the list below. Are your questions there? 1. Tell me about yourself. 2. When were you born? 3. Where do you see yourself in five years? 4. Are you willing to relocate? 5. Are you willing to travel? 6. Are you willing to work overtime? 7. What is your race? 8. What are your hobbies and interests outside of work? 9. Do you have physical or mental disabilities? 10. What jobs did you have as a teenager? 11. Who are your references? 12. May I contact your references? 13. Are you taking any prescription drugs? 14. How do you feel about air travel? 15. What do you do to maintain your health? 16. Do you have any physical problems that limit your abilities? 17. What organizations are you a member of? 18. How do you balance career and family? 19. What is your greatest strength? 20. Have you ever been arrested? 21. Would working on weekends conflict with your religion? 22. What is your greatest weakness? 23. Do you work better alone or as part of a team? 24. Do you consider yourself to be organized? Manage time well? 25. Are you a risk-taker? 26. Are you a self-starter? 27. How do you react to criticism from supervisors? 28. How well do you handle change? 29. Are you opposed to doing a lot of routine work? 30. How do you resolve disputes with co-workers? VII. Some of the questions above are either illegal or just rude. Which ones? VIII. What questions might you ask in an interview? Think about those areas: - typical working day: - more info about the position: - perks: - company profile: - travels: - prospects for growth and advancement: - outcomes of the interview: IX. Indirect questions. You can make questions more polite by changing them into indirect questions. Change your questions from ex.VIII, using the phrases below: I wonder… (I was wondering – even more polite) I would like to know… Can you tell me… (Could you tell…/Could you possibly tell…) Would you mind telling me… Do you mind if I ask… Do you happen to know… X. Body language. Which of the tips below are dos, and which are don’ts of a body language in an interview? mirror move about touch your face smile make eye contact wave your hands sit with your arms crossed slouch scratch yourself sit up straight lean forward a little when asked questions have a balanced handshake XI. Watch an interview with Daniel (salesman for a large European supplier of IT hardware) and comment on it. Use adjectives from ex.II in your evaluation. XII. HOMEWORK: a) Watch another interview, with Sarah (assistant sales director for a chain of language schools) and say what makes her performance successful. Again, use adjectives from II in your evaluation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRiaznQevTA b) Transform sentences from the grammar handout activity so that they contain unreal past. Sources: Lesson adapted from Daniela Dlabolová’s handout: Job Interview Ex. V, VIII, IX, X, XIV: Agnieszka Suchomelová-Połomska https://www.englishclub.com/vocabulary/adjectives-personality.htm http://www.resumagic.com/job_interviews.html https://www.totaljobs.com/careers-advice/interviews/body-language https://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish