Preparing for your Interview
Interviews are generally conducted in person at the University by an appointment committee; telephone or teleconference interviews are also sometimes used. You can expect to be interviewed by three or more people depending on the position. Interviews normally take place during the University's normal office hours of 8.30am - 5.00pm, Monday to Friday, New Zealand time. Special arrangements are often made to accommodate time differences in the case of phone or teleconference interviews with overseas candidates. All interview questions will be focused on the position for which you have applied. The same broad questions will be asked of all candidates.
How to prepare
To prepare for the interview questions you should:
- familiarise yourself with the advertisement, position description and person specification;
- reflect on specific examples of work and non-work situations where you have applied your relevant skills and abilities in the past;
- focus on the key tasks of the position and think about how you might carry them out;
- consider the responsibilities of the position, the types of problems that you might encounter and how you would tackle them;
- think about why you are applying for the position and what you need to find out from the interview.
Whanau or other Support at Interviews
Candidates may opt to bring family members or friends to the interview. This option is made available in advance on the application form. Please advise the HRM Division (email hrm@waikato.ac.nz, or phone 07 838 4003), prior to the interview, of the number who will be attending so that appropriate seating arrangements can be made. Whanau members or support people will be welcomed and will have the opportunity to respond. The interview structure will be as follows:
- welcome (a mihi and/or karakia for a whanau interview as appropriate);
- whanau members or support people will be invited to speak about the applicant, outlining the person's qualities and suitability for the position;
- the committee will interview the applicant, finishing with an opportunity for the applicant to ask questions of the committee;
- whanau members or support people will be invited to ask questions of the interview committee;
- the chairperson will indicate when the interview is finished; the whanau members or support people will be thanked for attending and will have the opportunity to respond.
Applicants and whanau members or support people may speak in either English or Māori.
Other Selection Activities
You may be asked to participate in additional job-related selection processes. Depending on the nature of the particular position, these may include:
- undertaking written or oral exercises;
- undertaking specific skills tests;
- giving a lecture or seminar to departmental staff and/or students;
- giving presentations to members of the campus community and/or the appointment committee.
You may also have the opportunity to tour the workplace and/or meet with staff or students. You will be given advance notice of any additional selection processes. These types of activities are aimed at broadening the selection process and examining skills that are not easily evaluated through interview questions.
Interview Expenses
When a vacancy has been advertised in the press media outside the relevant campus region but in the region in which the candidate normally lives, the University will meet approved travel and accommodation costs for applicants attending an interview (but not for whanau or other support people). Reimbursement of mileage, where applicable, will be at 62 cents per kilometre or the nominal rental car rate or the equivalent air fare, whichever is the lowest.