Do You Know The 19 Types Of Interviews?-- To Win At The Interview Game You Must Be Ready For All These Interview Formats.    Before you launch yourself into the interview cauldron you need to know the lay of the land. Not only do you need to be aware of how interviews are conducted from a question and answer level, you need to know their structural format. This article gives you the big picture on the 19 different types of interview formats and what to expect as you move through the interview process.    910 words.

Do You Know The 19 Types Of Interviews?

To Win At The Interview Game You Must
Be Ready For All These Interview Formats

Bill Cole, MS, MA
Founder and CEO
William B. Cole Consultants
Silicon Valley, California

Before you launch yourself into the interview cauldron you need to know the lay of the land. Not only do you need to be aware of how interviews are conducted from a question and answer level, but you need to know their overall structural format. This article gives you the big picture on the 19 different types of interview formats and what to expect as you move through the interview process.

1. Assessment Interview: Rather than being interviewed by a human, you may be asked to complete psychometric tests, medical or physical tests, analytic tasks, skills tests or other tested measures.
   
   
2. Audition Interview: Here you may actually be asked to demonstrate something, teach something, sell something, explain something or stand up and deliver a speech to the interviewers.
   
   
3. Behavioral Interview: This is the most common type of interview you will encounter, and the one that takes the most training and preparation to master. The interviewer asks questions that probe your actual experience and competence, as opposed to asking you questions about qualities you say you possess. Also called a competency-based interview or behavioral event interview.
   
   
4. Case Interview: Here the interviewer may describe a hypothetical client or situational problem or challenge and ask how you would approach it, analyze it, and solve it.
   
   
5. Follow-Up Interview: After your first successful interview you may be called back for a number of ensuing sessions, often with different people.
   
   
6. Group Interview: Sometimes called a tag-team interview, here you are in a room with a number of other interviewees at the same time, and typically a panel of interviewers. You are expected to compete strongly to differentiate yourself from the others.
   
   
7. Informational Interview: This interview has less pressure since you are not actually asking for a job, but merely seeking details about a career, industry, or trends in a field.
   
   
8. Mealtime Interview: You may be asked to interview over breakfast, lunch, dinner or drinks.
   
   
9. Multiple Mini Interview: The multiple mini interview (MMI) uses a timed circuit over numerous independent assessments to arrive at a metric for a candidate. This format is popular because it results in an objective score that can be compared to other applicants.
   
   
10. Panel Interview: In this format you are alone in front of a group of interviewers, and may be asked questions by any or all of them.
    
    
11. Semi-Structured Interview: Considered more flexible than the structured interview, the semi-structured interview gives the interviewer (and interviewee) freedom to make deviations in the flow of the interview. Follow up questions, probing questions, and more conversational elements can turn this format into a dialogue rather than an interrogation.
    
    
12. Serial Interview: In this format you will be asked to give interviews, on the same day, back to back, with different people.
    
    
13. Skeet Shoot Format: A series of panelists ask you a series of questions in a short time frame to test your ability to handle stress.
    
    
14. Speed Interviewing: Here you almost run from interviewer to interviewer for short three-minutes or less episode of rapid-fire questions. Similar to speed dating, but with more stress.
    
    
15. Stress Or Hostile Interview: In some industries where a candidate needs to work in a stressful environment stress interviews are used to determine who has the mental and emotional toughness to survive and thrive at the job. Here the interviewer may be rude, dismissive, hostile or abusive.
    
    
16. Structured Interview: This type of interview has a pre-determined, rigid structure that does not allow for extemporaneous, creative additions to the format. This requires the interview to be conducted with exactly the same questions in the same order. Sometimes also known as a standardized interview or a researcher-administered survey.
    
    
17. Telephone Interview: This is also considered a screening method, but it can be rather in-depth and lengthy at times. The interviewer is seeking to determine if they want to call you in for a face to face interview.
    
    
18. Video Interview: Interviewing in front of a camera is becoming one of the next steps in the online recruiting process. Employers know that they can use video conferencing faster and more efficiently than they can in scheduling in-person interviews.
    
    
19. Web And Email Interview: Generally considered a screening method, rather than an in-depth interview, here you will be asked to submit your resume, cover letter, application and answer some questions.

Knowing in advance, as much as is humanly possible, the way an interview will be structured, is critical to you as you prepare to be interviewed. You really need to know what to expect so you can adjust your interview training and practice accordingly. As your interview coach I will help you devise smart strategies for each type of interview so you can enter each one with the most important ingredient of all-confidence.

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This article is an excerpt from the Interview Success Guide, an indispensable tool you need to make your interview campaign a big success. This is a 216-page master blueprint that helps you understand and navigate the interview process so you can mount a successful interview campaign. This book has deep, insightful and immediately applicable interview wisdom that demystifies the world of interviewing. It also has over 400 questions, listed by category, for a variety of careers and jobs, which you could be asked in an interview. There are also over 1200 interview task reminders, questions and guidelines in checklist form so you leave nothing to chance in your job hunt. This guide gives you a step-by-step approach to mastering the interview process. Everything you need to do, from the moment you begin your job hunt to when you accept the position, is covered. We have thought of everything you could possibly need to know to conduct a comprehensive, smart job hunt campaign. Learn more about The Interview Success Guide and purchase it in pdf format, downloadable directly from this website. The Interview Success Guide eBook is also available in Amazon Kindle format and Barnes & Noble Nook format.


To learn more about how interview coaching can help you improve your abilities in media situations, oral test and exam situations, and job interviews visit Bill Cole, MS, MA, the Mental Game Coach™, at: www.mentalgamecoach.com/Services/InterviewCoaching.html.

Copyright © Bill Cole, MS, MA. All rights reserved.

Bill Cole, MS, MA, a leading authority on peak performance, mental toughness and coaching, is founder and CEO of William B. Cole Consultants, a consulting firm that helps organizations and professionals achieve more success in business, life and sports. He is also the Founder and President of the International Mental Game Coaching Association (www.mentalgamecoaching.com), an organization dedicated to advancing the research, development, professionalism and growth of mental game coaching worldwide. He is a multiple Hall-Of-Fame honoree as an athlete, coach and school alumnus, an award-winning scholar-athlete, published book author and articles author, and has coached at the highest levels of major-league pro sports, big-time college athletics and corporate America. For a free, extensive article archive, or for questions and comments visit him at www.MentalGameCoach.com.

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