Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on talking about your goals and expectations in a job interview.

In a job interview in English, you’ll surely have to answer questions about your experience and your background. And you’ll be trying to convince the interviewers that you’re the person they are looking for. But what are you looking for? And how does the job you’re applying for fit into your plans?

Your goals and expectations matter. Interviewers want to know that you’re the right fit for each other. So you should be prepared to talk about your plans and what you’re looking for. You should also be ready to talk about the industry, and about the company you’re hoping to work for.

Today we’ll learn some of the techniques and language you can use to talk about your goals and expectations in an English job interview. We’ll look at how to answer a question about career goals, and to answer a negative question. We’ll also cover how to show knowledge about the industry and ask good questions about the company. And finally, we’ll look at how to give salary expectations and talk about your intangible priorities, which means what you’re looking for besides money and benefits.

In the dialog, we’ll rejoin Ryan, who’s interviewing for a job at a software company. He’s being interviewed by Sandra and Victor, who want to know about Ryan’s goals and expectations.

Listening Questions

1. What is Ryan’s career goal?
2. What question does Ryan ask about the company?
3. What are Ryan’s salary expectations?

Download: Podcast MP3

Hello and welcome back to Business English Pod. My name’s Edwin, and I’ll be your host for today’s lesson on dealing with difficult questions in a job interview.

In an English interview, even simple questions about your experience and background can be difficult to answer well. Even though you’ve done your preparation, you might feel nervous or uncomfortable. And then, to make it even more challenging, the interviewer asks you a difficult question.

Sure, everyone expects the question about a personal weakness. That’s one that you need to have a good answer for. But you might also get a range of other difficult questions that you can’t prepare for. And so you need to think on your feet and give the best answer you can.

Today we’ll look at some of the techniques and language for interview English you can use when faced with these difficult questions. We’ll learn how to answer hypothetical questions and leading questions. We’ll also cover softening language for talking about a weakness and stalling for time with a difficult question. And finally, we’ll look at how to explain how you’re different from other candidates and how to connect an idea back to an earlier idea.

In the dialog, we’ll rejoin Ryan, Sandra, and Victor. Ryan is interviewing for a job at a software company, while Sandra and Victor are giving him some difficult questions to deal with.

Listening Questions

1. How does Ryan answer the question about what he “would” do in a certain situation?
2. How does Ryan describe his weakness?
3. What does Ryan think makes him different from other people?

Download: Podcast MP3