The senior English classes recently started to forge their path after finishing high school with mock interviews on Wednesday, Sept. 11 and Thursday, Sept.12 during all four blocks each day.
According to the senior English teachers, the goals of the mock interviews were to help the students prepare for entering the workforce and to instill good habits for the interviewee.
To begin the process of preparing for the interviews, the seniors created resumes and watched videos on how to respond to common interview questions before hearing from a panel of speakers on Monday, Sept. 9 and Tuesday, Sept. 10 in preparation for the mock interviews.
At the mock interviews, business professionals interviewed students. Volunteer interviewers included the following: Paul Adams, Aaron Begler, Ashley Begler, Hali Bielser, Britney Bogner, Scott Braun, Stacy Campbell, Brittani Clark, David Clingan, Chrisy Crough, Andy Cutright, Grady Dixon, Rachel Dolechek, Jason Englert, Molly Gauger, Erin Giebler, Scott Gregory, Elodie Jones, Tanner Julian, Lisa Karlin, Danielle Knoll, Sara Kuhl, Sharon Leuenberger, Justin MacDonald, Karen McCullough, Kris Munsch, Kari Naegle, Luke Oborny, Brian Pfannenstiel, Shane Preston, Brian Ruder, Mason Ruder, Ruth Ruder, Vanessa Schumacher, Henry Schwaller, Charlie Stieben, Andrew Taylor, Amanda Tippy and Ron Wilson.
English teacher Dawn Bush said, “The main factors I saw in reading what the interviewers wrote [were] 1. Dress professionally, or at least dress for the job you are interviewing for, and smile. 2. Have a good handshake. Look them in the eye while introducing yourself. 3. Be prepared to brag about yourself – which is difficult for most people. Be your biggest fan! 4. Know a little about the company. Do some research on the company and their mission statement. This lets the interviewer know you are interested not only in the job, but for working specifically with them. 5. Be able to say, ‘I’m not sure, but I can find out.’ Having a growth mindset is a game changer! 6. Be able to hold a conversation with the interviewer. You probably don’t know them, but they are trying to see how well your personality fits with their team.”
25jhouchen@usd489.com
