If you’ve landed an interview, congratulations! This is an important step and recognition of your potential, and you should be proud of getting to this stage.

Interviews are a milestone in any job search. For many of the candidates we support, an interview can lead to a job offer that unlocks a life-changing skilled visa opportunity. Being prepared and really trying to enjoy the experience can help lower stress and make the most of this opportunity.

Thanks to a generous $50,000 grant from the KPMG Foundation, TalentLift is making resources like this accessible to youth living as refugees, helping them prepare for interviews and pursue meaningful careers. We recently welcomed Bunmi Adeboyejo, a recruitment manager with KPMG, as a guest speaker at a virtual event to share expertise on preparing for an interview with a Canadian employer. We’re grateful to share those insights here.

What kind of research should you do before an interview? 

Make sure to take time before your interview to research the company or organization. It’s important to be familiar with the company’s values and the work it does (its products, services, etc.). You also want to be familiar with the role and team you have applied to join, by thoroughly reading the job posting and any more information you can find on the company website. 

What types of interviews can you expect? 

A few main types of interviews are: 

• Behavioural interviews: These focus on past experiences to predict future performance, using questions like ‘tell me about a time when …’ Behavioural interviews assess key skills and fit for the role. 
• Technical interviews: Candidates are expected to answer technical competency questions related to the qualification requirements of the role. These aim to understand how you can apply what you’ve done before to the technical needs of this role.
• Case interviews: In some professional services roles, you might encounter a case interview. Here, candidates are given a complex business problem to solve within a specific time period (i.e. 24 hours). This usually includes submission of a detailed analysis, findings, recommendations, etc. 

There are other interview types for specialized roles – for example, coding tests are common for software roles – and you should be sure you know what type of interview to expect.

Tips for behavioural interviews

Make sure your responses are structured (organized), direct (answer the question), relevant (your response speaks to your fit for the role), and professional (delivered in a respectful manner). 

To do all this, you might benefit from using the STAR method for answering questions in behavioural interviews (‘tell me about a time when … ’). The STAR method stands for: 

• Situation – describe the event or situation that you were in (Who? Where? When?)
• Task – explain the task you had to complete (What happened? Why?) 
• Action – describe the specific action you took (How?)
• Results – close with the result of your efforts (So what? What did your clients or company gain?) 

Common interview questions

Make sure you prepare for some common interview questions. These might include:  

• Tell me about yourself.
• Why are you looking to leave your current role? (Or, why did you leave your last job?) 
• What do you bring to this role/what are your strengths? 
• What would your manager say you could improve? 
• Where would you like to see yourself in 1, 3 or 5 years? 
• Why do you want this role? 

You should brainstorm specialized questions to practice too, based on what you know about the role and the team. For example, for a healthcare role, you may be asked a behavioural question about patient care or health and safety protocols; and for a technical role, you may be asked how you would troubleshoot certain technical problems.

Importantly, your responses should be brief, kept to about 90 seconds. It can be helpful to practice answering these questions out loud to a friend or family member. While it’s important to practice your answers, you don’t want to read anything during your interview. The interviewer will want to see you are prepared but also how you think and respond in the moment. 

An example using the STAR method

Below is a sample answer using the STAR method to the question ‘tell me about a time you had to manage competing priorities under tight deadlines.’

Situation: In my previous role as an Engineering Administrator, I was responsible for coordinating documentation for three simultaneous projects while also handling urgent procurement requests.

Task: I needed to ensure all project documentation was submitted accurately and on time, while also processing purchase orders for critical equipment without delaying project timelines.

Action: I created a priority matrix to rank tasks based on urgency and impact. I communicated with project leads to confirm deadlines and delegated non-critical tasks to a junior administrator. For procurement, I expedited approvals by preparing all necessary documentation in advance and scheduling quick check-ins with the finance team.

Result: All documentation was submitted ahead of schedule, and the procurement requests were processed within 24 hours. This prevented any project delays and earned positive feedback from both the engineering team and management for efficiency and proactive communication.

Pro tips: Remember to speak about what you personally did in the situation (not just what the team did). And in your ‘action’ point, think about what you want to emphasize – i.e. communication, delegation, expediting. 

How to answer the common question: ‘Tell me about yourself’

This is a very common question to kick off an interview. Your goal to answer this question well is to provide a short overview of your professional self, your experience or qualifications, and why you’re interested in this opportunity. Many people make the mistake of starting too far back in time, or being too personal, or talking on and on without a structure.

Here’s one way to structure your answer to this question: 

• I’m a Mechanical Engineer with 3 years of experience in … 
• My recent roles include …
• I’m passionate about …
• I’m excited about this opportunity because … 

Getting this question right can help set a great tone for the rest of the interview.

What if I don’t have the right work experience to share in my responses? 

You might have little formal work experience, or experience outside your field or the field of the job position. Look at all the alternative experience you do have and think about the skills that you can highlight that would be valuable for this role. For example, our guest speaker Bunmi used the personal example of babysitting. She could include this experience and highlight responsibility and care skills. Another example is community volunteerism, which might show leadership, commitment, and passion. Your experience doesn’t need to be strictly professional – you can share examples from your community experience, your child/home care experience, or your student experience.

What to do on the day of your interview? 

The more prepared you are, the less stressed you’ll feel, and the more you’ll be able to enjoy the conversation. Here are a few to-dos on your interview day: 

• Do a test run with your computer, testing your video and audio (we recommend using a computer where possible – and please reach out to TalentLift if you might need support finding a quiet interview space and computer)
• Set up your space in advance 
• Prepare any reference materials 
• Dress the part (business or business casual) 
• Listen actively (it’s OK to ask the interviewer to please repeat a question if you didn’t hear it)
• Have fun! Really. This is a chance for you to shine, to learn from the experience, and to meet another great person (the interviewer). It means a lot if you’re smiling and happy to be there. 

Something can always go wrong. A few tips for addressing these: 

• Feel free to note anything at the start of the call that might make everyone more comfortable. For example, you can say ‘I apologize that my home is a bit noisy, you might hear my kids in the background’ or ‘I apologize that my internet connection is weak, please let me know if you can’t hear me or need me to repeat anything.’
• If your internet is not working or the connection drops and you cannot rejoin, send an email to apologize and explain the situation as soon as you can. Most interviewers will understand and will do their best to reschedule. 

At the end of your interview

Ask one or more questions. Come prepared with 3 questions to ask the interviewer. You can ask more about the role or the company/team and their culture (i.e. What’s a typical day like in this role? What are some of the things you’d watch for in a new hire for this role, to know you hired a great person?). Don’t ask questions related to immigration or visa steps, because it is too early and the interviewer likely does not have this knowledge (TalentLift is a good resource for these questions). 

Remember to be aware of how much time you have left in the interview. You might just have time for one of your questions, and you don’t want to keep the interviewer over time. 

Thank the interviewer for their time. 

Send a short email after the interview. In a few sentences, you can thank the interviewer again for their time, say that you enjoyed the conversation and are excited about the role and team, and that you look forward to hearing any feedback or next steps. 

Finally, a recap!

You can put your best foot forward if you: 

• Do your research on the role, team, and company
• Prepare a ‘tell me about yourself’ response and 6-8 STAR responses mapped to the job description
• Keep answers to about 90 seconds
• Test the meeting platform (Google Meet, Zoom, etc.) with your device, camera, and microphone
• Be 100% sure you know the correct interview time and have the meeting link
• Be ready to speak about any employment gaps positively 
• Prepare 3 questions for the interviewer (but there may only be time for 1 question) 
• Send a short thank you note after your interview

We’re cheering you on, and can’t wait to see the next steps in your career journey. 

Candidates living in refugee circumstances and seeking a job in Canada can join TalentLift. 

For more tips on a successful application and interview at KPMG, check out: Application journey – KPMG Canada.