Like any interviewee, I spent the entire week prior to my interview considering all the reasons I should and should not teach. I talked myself in and out, up and down, round and round until I realised that all I had to do was be myself. All the things I had learnt and encountered so far had led me to this point and all I really had to do was sit in a room and talk about it. Easy. Once you take the pressure off yourself and realise that the interviewers truly want you to do well and have been and seen people in the same situation, it relieves a little bit of pressure. 

Don’t get me wrong, that does not mean you shouldn’t prepare. After all, fail to prepare, prepare to fail. So I channelled all of this nervous energy into finding things out. Anything that was listed on the offer of interview you can bet I did it with bells and whistles. This meant investigating into teaching standards (super important to relate your experiences back to these), the national curriculum and my own subject area, the alliance themselves and why they need you as much as you need them, and of course, a little self reflection. What has gotten me to this point? What experiences are relevant? Another great place to do some digging is TES. It has everything from news to jobs to resources. 

Just follow this link – https://www.tes.com/

For my particular interview day I had to teach a small session. Don’t freak out! It’s essentially a room that’s not a classroom with 7 key stage 3 students for 20 minutes. Simple. Here’s your chance to turn up the volume. It’s all well and good being able to tick boxes and answer questions but when you’re thrown in at the deep end, the interviewer wants to essentially see if you’re a good swimmer. Choose an activity that will set you apart, something that excites you is going to excite the students. It’s unlikely it will be something the interviewers have never seen before but think what you could add to give it your own personal twist. They want to see your personality. Commit to your session and let your confidence shine through. Lead by example and don’t be afraid to release your inner student when demonstrating your tasks. Keep smiling. Nothing will ever go as you’ve planned but what’s important is how you cope. Demonstrating you’re resilient will stand you in great stead. 

When it comes down to the all important interview, remember they’re not out to get you. Yes, you need to be saying the right things but honesty and integrity is the best way to show them who you really are. “How did your lesson go Emily?” “I think it was absolutely marvellous, couldn’t have been better.” OR “I think it was successful because the children showed X. They told me they’d learnt Y which showed me that Z.” Show that you can reflect. The interviewers will ask you lots of questions from what you know about your subject to how your session went. They’ll ask you about teaching standards, current educational topics, and about yourself as a person. If at any point you panic or lose your train of thought, just remember to breathe. Remember, you can ask them to repeat the questions and you can start again. 

Generally, the interview feels so much scarier than the day itself. It’s actually quite enjoyable. A good rule that I go by is be the person you would like to meet in that situation. Be smiley, say please, say thank you. Of course it’s so important to be yourself, but making an effort to do such small things really go the distance with the right people. 

Once your interview is done, try and not stew on it. Congratulate yourself for what went well and don’t dwell on parts that perhaps could have gone better. It’s been, it’s done, it’s gone.

Good luck if you’re waiting to interview or well done if you’ve got through it.

Keep your head up and get ready for the next steps! 

Top Tips 

• Get out of your head. 
• Be yourself. 
• The interviewers are just people. 
• Do your research. 
• Tell them why they need you just as much as you need them. 
• Keep calm and think “all I have to do is…”. 
• Show your enthusiasm, knowledge and confidence.
• Reflect on what’s actually happened. Not what ideally would have happened.
• If it feels a little chaotic in your head, just breathe. 
• Be the person you would like to meet.
• Small acts go a long way. 
• Once it’s done, it’s done.