WEBVTT

00:00:00.001 --> 00:00:04.068
Be honest. Toot your own horn 
if you excelled. However, if 

00:00:04.069 --> 00:00:06.835
you did not do well, you should 
offer an explanation 

00:00:06.836 --> 00:00:08.412
for your grades. 

00:00:08.912 --> 00:00:12.021
If you attended a large school 
and did not take advantage of 

00:00:12.022 --> 00:00:14.957
the professional and social 
organizations there, the 

00:00:14.958 --> 00:00:18.478
interviewer may wonder why. A 
good reason for not being 

00:00:18.479 --> 00:00:22.371
involved in many extracurricular
activities is that you carried

00:00:22.372 --> 00:00:26.192
an unusually heavy course load
or were working nearly full-time

00:00:26.193 --> 00:00:28.081
to help finance your education.

00:00:28.581 --> 00:00:31.229
The interviewer may want to
know if your skills are

00:00:31.230 --> 00:00:34.780
up-to-date, especially if you
graduated several years ago.

00:00:34.781 --> 00:00:38.906
Talk about on-the-job training
and journal articles you've kept

00:00:38.907 --> 00:00:42.248
up with, as well as seminars,
classes, and so on.

00:00:42.748 --> 00:00:46.410
Even if your grades were low,
do not make excuses. Simply

00:00:46.411 --> 00:00:49.183
explain the situation and tell
how you would do things

00:00:49.184 --> 00:00:50.371
differently now.

00:00:50.871 --> 00:00:53.947
Most interviewers like to see
that you helped put yourself

00:00:53.948 --> 00:00:57.137
through school. If you did not,
offer a reason.

00:00:57.637 --> 00:01:00.655
Some students give up on
courses after they discover

00:01:00.656 --> 00:01:04.097
that real academic work will be
involved. If you dropped a

00:01:04.098 --> 00:01:06.148
course, offer a reason for it.

00:01:06.648 --> 00:01:09.734
The interviewer is wondering
how much foresight you had

00:01:09.735 --> 00:01:12.202
when selecting the courses you
would take in college.

00:01:12.203 --> 00:01:16.534
Stress how the courses you did
choose helped, and mention one

00:01:16.535 --> 00:01:18.786
or two courses that you
would like to take.

00:01:19.286 --> 00:01:22.643
Amazingly enough, some
interviewers will ask you this

00:01:22.644 --> 00:01:26.147
question even if you're ten
years out of school. If you do

00:01:26.148 --> 00:01:29.094
not know the answer, you should
be able to find out from the

00:01:29.095 --> 00:01:31.942
registrar's office at the school
you graduated from.

00:01:32.442 --> 00:01:36.358
If you liked school, say so.
If pressed to give an answer,

00:01:36.359 --> 00:01:39.029
try not to complain
or blame others.

00:01:39.529 --> 00:01:42.269
The interviewer may want to
know how much influence your

00:01:42.270 --> 00:01:43.871
educators had upon you.

00:01:44.371 --> 00:01:47.633
Even if you had an A average,
it could have been better.

00:01:47.634 --> 00:01:50.275
Think about what you would do
if you had the chance to do

00:01:50.276 --> 00:01:51.427
it over again.

00:01:51.927 --> 00:01:56.720
If it was, great -- tell why.
If it wasn't, do not wallow

00:01:56.721 --> 00:01:59.586
in self-pity -- explain how
you would do things

00:01:59.587 --> 00:02:00.710
differently now.