6 Easy and Necessary Ways to Prepare for a Virtual Job Interview in 2021

If you are in the midst of job hunting in 2021, chances are you have had to do some form of virtual interview. Personally, I have been searching for a full-time job for the past few months and have landed 4 interviews. While the format of interviews has changed from the times of in-person interviews, a lot of the same preparation techniques work, for example researching ahead of time. It never hurts to be more prepared and an easy way to do that is to research.

Research the Job 

That brings me to the first way to prepare for your interview. The most obvious is to start by researching the job. When you applied to the company, there was likely a job description that gave a basic description of the company, the job’s tasks and qualifications needed. I always print this description out so that I have it in front of me during the interview. After printing it out, I go through and highlight what seems to be the most important and which qualities especially exemplify me. These are the aspects of the job I want to speak about during the interview.

Plan Stories to Tell During the Interview

From the job description I think about and write down what stories or examples I could bring up during the interview. Recruiters often ask the same questions- along the lines of ‘What do you know about this company?’, ‘Why do you want this job?’, ‘Why are you the best candidate for this position?’ and ‘Tell me about a time that you overcame an obstacle.’. Planning ahead of time for what you want to talk about will ensure you don’t stumble during the interview.

Research the Company

The next thing I do is research the company. You’ll want to go to the company’s website first. Scour the site for information on the company’s values, past work the company has done, what they describe as the company’s mission among other information. The more you can learn about the company, the better prepared you will be for the interview. You will also have a better understanding of whether the work and what the company values fits what you want to do.

Check your Background

Since you are likely completing the interview from home, it’s important to double check your backgrounds. While the view of your messy living room might have been okay for the occasional Zoom call in the past, you will want to update your background for the interview. I recommend setting up the camera so that it shows a wall of your home with a few simple decorations. Ideally, you would sit at a desk. But, if you do not have one, I’ve found that positioning an armchair and table in front of a wall works as well.

Research your Interviewer

If the company specified who you would be speaking to, make sure to learn more about them. The easiest way is to read their LinkedIn profile. If you happen to have something in common, like you both went to the same college, you can use that as an icebreaker before the interview starts. Sometimes you can also find them on the company’s website and can learn more about their work at the specific company. If you are able to locate the interviewer online, save their contact information so that you can send a thank you message afterwards.

Pick out a Zoom Appropriate Outfit

Lastly, you’ll want to pick out an outfit for your interview. You may need to modify the business outfits you used to wear as now the interviewer will only see you from the shoulders up. For professional job interviews, I recommend either wearing a colored shirt and black or navy suit jacket or a lightly patterned blazer and solid colored top. Make sure that your top goes up fairly high, as most of it won’t make it on screen. And, while wearing casual bottoms may be tempting, I recommend wearing matching dress pants or a skirt. I also wear work appropriate heels or boots. Completing the outfit makes me feel more ready and confident. Showing confidence is key in an interview and anything you can do to make yourself feel more confident is a bonus!

Now that you’ve done the 6 steps above, you should be ready for your virtual interview. Just remember there is a reason that you’ve been selected for the interview. You have the skills and capabilities for the job- now you just have to show the recruiter that!