Shortlisted for interview? Well Done! Now you need to have an idea on whom are you meeting and how are they going to access you. Being invited for an interview builds a house full of questions in the candidate’s mind regarding who will interview them, how will they be assessed, what questions they will be asked, and many more.

Some companies inform the candidates in advance regarding the type of interview. But you can’t expect this all the time as each job and company have their own way of assessing the candidates. Never hesitate to enquire about what type of interview you are going to face. Having basic knowledge on different types of interviews is extremely important. This allows you to prepare well and ace the interview.

Though there are numerous types of job interviews in practice, companies adopt the one considering the job position, level, time limit, etc. Here are few popular job interviews types you should be familiar with.

Most Popular Types of Job

Interviews

One – On – One Interview

This is the most common type of interview practiced by recruiters. Here, the candidates are expected to answer to a pre-planned set of questions. A single representative of the company conducts this where candidates are assessed in terms of their skills and basic knowledge about the job. Standard questions such as “Tell me about yourself and “Why should we hire you” can be expected during this type of interview.

Group Interview

Companies hiring a large pool of candidates usually practice group interviews. Certain group of candidates are interviewed at the same time. Most of the time it starts with a brief information about the company. Interviewers put forward a set of structured questions and assess the candidates in terms of how well they manage to voice their ideas among all.  You need to be very careful while presenting yourself because you will be compared to the rest at the same time.

Panel Interview

Panel interview is also a very popular interview type. Usually there are 3 -5 interviewers judging one candidate at the same time. The panel comprises of representatives of different departments of the company as well as industry professional from outside the company. Here, candidates will be asked questions by only few interviewers and not all. Rest will be analyzing every single detail of the candidates in terms of language, gesture, promptness in answering, and other features. This interview saves time of both the recruiter and the candidate. Here, decision will be made based on the collective judgement of the panel.

Telephonic Interview

Sometimes, candidates stay far from the recruiter’s company and cannot be physically present for the interview.  Also, most of the times company might think of conducting the initial interview via phone to save time for both the parties i.e. interviewer & the candidate. In these cases, telephonic interviews are conducted. Questions asked is almost similar to the ones asked during a one-on-one interview. Candidates facing telephonic interview should make sure that they are in a quiet place and keep their phones free during the scheduled time in order to avoid unnecessary disturbances.

Stress Interview

This is a situational interview practiced by recruiters to assess the candidate’s level of patience. Candidate’s reaction in a stressful situation is assessed by judging their level of anger, fear, confusion, nervousness in the provided scenario. Candidates are asked quick questions by the interviewer. Further, they are highly interrupted while answering to test their ability to stay calm and face any sort of situation. Recruiters generally prefer to hold this sort of interviews for senior level positions.

Following the basic guidelines of above discussed types of interviews will be really helpful to you if prepared in advance. Having an idea of what is to be expected is always a step towards successfully performing in any job interview.