Job Hunting: Common and Rare Questions During Interview

Job Hunting or getting employed are very competitive nowadays especially with the pandemic crisis unemployment rate is high. The traditional interview would be visiting the company office and have the interview personally.  The millenial way of job interview these days is to have a virtual interview like Zoom conference or other web conferencing applications.  So whether it is a personal interview or virtual, you should be ready on the questions.  There are tricky questions sometimes, so you have to quick to answer those.

Here are some common and rare questions during a job interview.  

Tips on  how to answer them in positive manner

Tell me about yourself.   Keep it brief and simple.  Let them know that you are a well adjusted, stable and flexible person.

What do you know about our company?  Your advance research about the company will pay off when this question is ask during the interview.  Tell them the company history, products and services, goal and philosophy.

Why should I hire you?   Make sure that you know the job requirements as stated in the advertisement  of the company so that your answer should be aligned to fit their requirements.  Your knowledge on the job, related skills and good working attitude are reasons for them to hire you.

What makes you different from other applicants, what can you do for us  that someone else can't? Always be positive and optimistic with your answer.  Emphasize your good working attitude like flexibility and dependability towards work.  Other applicants may have the same knowledge and skills or even more but what makes an employee stands out is the right attitude towards work, on the ability to handle situations and solve problems objectively.  Relate one concrete example that you experienced in the past that you successfully overcome.

How long would you stay with the company if hired ?  As long as I am still contributing, achieving, and growing in the company and being recognized by the company.


What kind of salary are you worth? There are three factors for negotiating salary.

• What is the company salary range for the position
• What is your current salary.
• What is your level of expertise or your job qualification for the position.

Research in advance the salary range for the same position you are applying for so you will already have an idea.

The safest way is to ask  what is their salary range for the position first to know their offer and start negotiating from that range.  If the range is lower than your present salary and you feel that your level of expertise is high and qualified for the position.  You may bargain for a higher figure but not too high.  In some cases, one applicant maybe the top choice but if the expected salary is too high and not within their budget, they will most likely get the second choice applicant.

For those applicants who are applying for a different profession than their previous and job and been unemployed for a period of time, there is not much bargaining power on the side of the applicant.  If the salary range offered is acceptable but not necessarily high, it is already to accept the offer to keep back in the work.

Updated May 4, 2021