After young people graduate from a college or university, they look for a job. The main reason why we study is to gain the required knowledge, experience, and skills to become experts in the profession we choose. The task of finding and acquiring the desired office isn’t easy at all. This task becomes more complex if you’re a foreigner. Thus, many people from China fail miserably when they try to pass their job interviews.
Why do they struggle so hard? Is that a problem with their origin? Obviously no! The American society is multicultural. Many cultures with a quite contrary mentality, habits, and life values live in the territory of the United States of America. Therefore, you’ll never be rejected because of your nationality or the color of skin. If you’re a good specialist with great potential, you’ll be definitely accepted. However, many Chinese candidates bring their interviews to ruin. What are the reasons and how to handle them effectively? We have some insights into this matter.
There are several critical points, which you should know if you are a student from China and wish to get a job. We ought to identify the typical ones. Afterward, it’s possible to develop effective measures to solve them. What are they? Consider the next crucial points:
- Dress code and body language.
- Manners.
- Calmness.
- A reasonable preparation.
- The precision.
Are you surprised by some of these things? Probably, you haven’t understood the whole matter from the perspective of the Chinese folk. They make mistakes at every point of the list. Let’s review them all a bit closer.
The way you dress and move can tell a lot about you
You cannot dress as if you’re on a walk. Dress professionally and in accordance with the office, you are supposed to embrace. No matter how great your curriculum vitae is as well as how gifted you are, the things you wear may spoil everything. Many great candidates with the highest grades and praises were rejected immediately just because they wore jeans and a t-shirt.
The others were rejected due to the way they moved
Abnormally nervous and frequent moves get on the nerves of anybody. Moreover, they tell that a person cannot calm down. This is a bad quality for the careers where stress-management is required. Therefore, write a great CV, dress professionally, and move confidently and calmly.
Your manners are important
They can be compared with your appearance too. Your clothing may be alright. Nevertheless, the lack of good manners spoils the first visual impression. You are expected to be well-mannered. Act after your own fashion, express your individuality but don’t cross the forbidden line. Turn on the positive tone, be kind, greet your employer, say the words of gratitude, etc. Be always patient even if you’ll have to repeat something or clarify issues that might be plain to you but not to your employer.
Remain calm
The Asians are well-known for being humble and tolerant. These are the great qualities. Nevertheless, everything may be destroyed when it comes to the matter of personal achievements. Many people simply cannot hold off from showing how skillful, smart, and effective they are. You are supposed to show a positive attitude toward your future.
You should convince your employer that you are a worthy candidate who can make an excellent contribution to the average development of the enterprise. Notwithstanding, the boasting is a different concept, which commonly awakes negative feelings and associations in other people. You should demonstrate your competence without high arrogance.
For instance, if your employer is looking for a leader, tell that you are ready to accept that role and will do your best to succeed. The wrong behavior is when you say that you are the real expert and will easily cope with any difficulty. This may be the truth. However, the opinion about your persona will be dressed in negativism.
Instead of boasting, show your proposition. You may tell about your strengths in a humble and official manner. For instance, use your experiences in your university/college. Tell about your interests and major gifts. Probably, you were a good team leader or have a gift of persuasion, selling or something else. Explain your qualities in practice. It’s good to share the results about your extracurricular activities if you had any.
Chinese students tend to prepare a way too much. Of course, this is an outstanding quality when you are preparing for a test or the exam. Not all people can fully devote the entire time to repetition and improvement of skills and knowledge. However, it does more harm than good if you prepare for a job interview.
The students from China are overly tense about the future interview. What are the negative sides of such intense preparation?
- People sound as if they read a speech;
- The conversation isn’t natural;
- Your voice is a monotone;
- You’re similar to a robot with restricted information;
It’s better to relax and have a more reasonable plan. Calm down and think about the possible questions. Prepare the smooth and logical answers to them. However, do not learn them word for word. Make the most important notes and give the answers. It’s like you compose a thesis statement in an essay. You have the main argument, and it’s supposed to be developed and explained throughout the text. Which way does it go? Nobody knows. Yet, you should clearly realize what your employer wants to hear.
Make your conversation alive. Be flexible. Forget about the words and terms, which are unfamiliar to you. Many outlanders use a dictionary to implement some great words and phrases to impress their interviewers. Nevertheless, a smart and attentive person always understands when you speak of things you don’t plainly comprehend.
Finally, add information, which is really important. It should be related to your personal and professional qualities as well as your anticipated job and responsibilities. Remain yourself.