Worried about academic interviews?

Here's how to handle

tricky questions
https://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/2014/mar/06/universities-careers-tricky-academic-
interviews-questions

Plenty of thinking ahead and clearly structured answers will help take the fear out of
interviews. You will always get unexpected questions. The trick is to take a deep breath
and let go of the anxiety that you need to find the "right" answer. Interview questions
have countless plausible and convincing answers, but what sets good candidates apart
is their ability to deliver structured answers, to articulate their thinking clearly, and to
speak to the concerns of their interviewers.

1) Why do you want this job?

It's amazing how many people struggle to give sensible answers, which creates a
dreadful impression – particularly if it's the opening question. Prepare your response,
which needs to be confident, specific, and well structured. For example, "There are
three main reasons why I see myself as a good fit for this role".

When it comes to the content, avoid being generic (saying the same as everyone else).
And don't sound selfish: the panel want to know how they will benefit from having you
on their team as much as, if not more than, how you will benefit.

2) What's your best paper?

This might be your highest-impact paper, but it doesn't have to be. What counts is that
you give a sound rationale for your choice. Perhaps you're proudest of the paper which
marks a transitional moment in your research or your career. Or perhaps it's the paper
that you know had a direct, positive impact on someone else's work. It doesn't matter,
as long as you've thought it through.

3) Why do you work on X? Surely, Y is more important

Try not to interpret this sort of question as an attack. Fundamentally, interviewers want
you to address their concerns. You work on gibbons – I work on gorillas, so how is your
work relevant to mine? You study Shakespeare – I study Marlowe, so what can I learn
from you?

Take a structured approach: "Let me break that question down into two. The reason
why X is an important topic is […]. I understand that what Y is trying to achieve is […].
What I think that the two studies have in common, therefore, is […]."

4) What will you do if something goes wrong?

What happens if your hypothesis is wrong? Your experiments fail? You can't get access
to the archive you need? Your grant is unsuccessful? Don't pretend that your research
is impervious to failure. Doing so will probably come across as denial or, worse, a lack
of self-awareness. What matters is how you handle setbacks, and how you plan to
overcome predictable hiccups.
5) Where do you see yourself in 10 years' time?
Lots of people tackle this question by naming the job title which they hope to have
attained, for example: "10 years from now, I want to be a professor." This is OK
(provided you can explain how you intend to get there), but it's awfully
predictable. Think about achievements rather than status. This question also gives
you an opportunity to show that you have a vision for where your field is going. What's
the next big question that, in a decade's time, you expect to be working on, or even to
have solved?

6) How does your work fit with the group/department/university?

Interviewers don't recruit candidates who see themselves in solipsistic isolation. So,
based on all your preparatory research into this employer, identify the specific ways that
your work aligns with their needs and priorities. Think about: particular specialisms,
research clusters, possible collaborations, undergraduate or graduate curricula,
interdisciplinary links with other departments, outreach initiatives, etc. Don't turn this into
a conceptual answer – ground what you say in a couple of specific, tangible
examples.

7) Describe a course or topic that you would teach

Too many candidates talk about prospective teaching as if its value were entirely self-
evident, or they simply lean on the intrinsic intellectual interest of the topic.
Instead, think in terms of outcomes and learning objectives, because evaluation is
integral to good teaching. What will the students get out of the course? What work will
you set, and how will it be assessed? What skills will they acquire? How will it
complement the rest of their studies?

8) What does collegiality mean to you?

Panels are recruiting someone to work alongside themselves or other members of their
institution, so it shouldn't be a surprise that working relationships are on interviewers'
minds. In truth, some people are simply not good colleagues. So, what kind of a
colleague do you intend to be? How are you going to help others to be successful?

9) If we offered you this job, would you accept it?

This isn't a trick question, and the best response isn't necessarily just to say yes,
without hesitation. There are innumerable factors that could have a bearing on what you
might say, not least the vexed issue of waiting to hear back about other applications.
But let's not assume that being honest is always a bad thing. The crucial point is that,
before you get in the room, you should take time to think through whether you would
accept the job, and to discuss it with peers and mentors.

10) Do you have any questions for us?

This will almost certainly come up and is generally taken as a measure of how
interested you are in the role. You should therefore be prepared with a couple of
questions. Bad types of question to ask are: essentially selfish (e.g. asking about
benefits, annual leave, sabbatical entitlement); ill-informed (i.e. things you could have
found out for yourself if you'd spent a few minutes on the employer's website); or
downright naive (e.g. "Would you say that the Research Excellence Framework is
important to this department?").

Steve Joy is careers adviser for research staff in the arts, humanities, and social sciences at the University of
Cambridge – follow him on Twitter  @EarlyCareerBlog

Commonly asked questions in academic interviews

https://www.vitae.ac.uk/researcher-careers/pursuing-an-academic-career/applying-for-academic-jobs/
commonly-asked-questions-in-academic-interviews

Be prepared to answer the sort of questions in this list (which will be tailored to your
research area) in addition to general interview questions. It is a good idea to prepare
and even rehearse your answers. If you are confident in answering all of these you will
be well-prepared.

About your research

● What is innovative about your research?

● How is your work distinct from your supervisor’s/principal investigator’s? How
intellectually independent are you? 
● What influences have you been exposed to?  Do you think you have enough
breadth of experience?
● Who has influenced you the most?

● What has been your role so far in developing research ideas and carrying them
forward?
● What do you think are your most significant research accomplishments?

● What do you consider to be your best paper/work and why?  What did it change
about the way people approach the field?
● What are your most important publications?

● What has been the impact of your research?

● What papers do you have coming through in the next year?
● If we gave you the position what might go wrong? How will you manage the risks

General research questions

● What do you see yourself doing in ten years' time? What are your professional
goals in the next five, and ten years?
 ● How will this job help you achieve your long term career plans?
● What would you do on the first day of the job?
● What are the big issues in your research area?
● Who are the key researchers in your area? How does your work compare with
theirs?
● Who are your main competitors?  What are they doing? How will you compete
with them?
● Why would someone come to work for you and not for your competitors?

● How does your work align with contemporary trends or funding priorities?
● How would you bridge the gap from your research to research users?
● The university is keen to serve the wider community and economy. Does your
planned research have any potential in these areas?
● How do you feel about translating your research into innovation or spin-outs?
Can you give an example of when you have been enterprising?
● Describe in layman’s terms why your research project is interesting in two
minutes.

 About you and your capabilities

● How have you managed your research project?

● How do you balance your time?  If several challenges came up at the same time
(grant deadline, pastoral care for a student, teaching commitments) how would
you prioritise?
● If you were starting your project again today, what would you do differently?

● Describe a research problem you have faced. What did you learn?
● What has been the most productive period in your research career and why?
● Why do you think you are ready for this position?
● If you get this position how will you run your research project?
● Why do you think you are the right person for this position?

 About your ability to gain funding

● What experience do you have of attracting funding?

● Previously, you have only brought in small amounts of funding: how can you
convince us you will be able to bring in larger amounts?
 ● Where will you apply for grants?  If your funding applications are unsuccessful,
what alternatives do you have in mind? (looking for knowledge of the funding
infrastructure)
● How would you convince a funding body that they should fund your research
rather than one of the other hundreds of proposals they receive?
● Who are you currently funded by, and why do you think they were interested in
funding your project? 

About your proposed research

● What will be your major focus as an independent researcher?

● In one sentence, what is the most important question you want to address?
● How does the work you propose follow on from what you are already doing?
● What will you focus on and what gives you a competitive edge in this area?
● What is the overall importance of this project?  How do you see this work
impacting the field?
● What will you do if your hypothesis is proved wrong?  Can you see any of your
research proposal failing?
● Why is the technique you have chosen more likely to succeed than other
approaches?
● Have you already done anything to test the feasibility of your project? 

● If you could only do one aspect of this project, which one do you think is key?
● If we gave you unlimited resources, what would you do with them?
● If we gave you X amount of money, what would you do with it?
● What resources will you need?
● How would you deal with the more limited resources or facilities compared to
what you anticipate for the project?
● How do you plan to manage this project on a day-to-day level?

About your role as supervisor/ teacher

● Describe your teaching experience. How do you feel about teaching?  What is

your teaching philosophy?
● Do you have any experience in curriculum development?   

● Have you supervised doctoral candidates, and how did you find this experience?
How did you manage them?
 ● What advice would you give to a new researcher about supervising
undergraduate or masters students?
● How would you go about interviewing a prospective postgraduate researcher?

● How would you induce a new doctoral candidate into their research project?
● How would you go about motivating a researcher who is going through a low
point?
● How would you deal with a weak researcher?

● How would you deal with any conflict/disagreement within the research group?
Do you have an example of when you have had to deal with a disagreement? 
● Do you anticipate building a research group?  How many people would you like
for it to be optimal?

About your ‘fit’ with the department

● Why do you think you are the right person for this position?
● Why do you want to come here?
● What will you bring to the institution?
● We are keen to develop collaborations between departments. What opportunities
for multi-disciplinary work does your research offer?
● How would you fit with the existing activities in the department?  Who do would
you expect to collaborate with in the institution?  Why do you want to collaborate
with them?
● What committee work have you done and what challenges has it presented?

● In what ways, other than research and teaching could you contribute to this
department?