What to do before and after an interview

Job interviews are the high point of the recruiting process. These meetings are valuable for both the job seeker and the company to better understand one another and assess how they could work together moving forward.

If you have a job interview approaching, there are certain steps to take before and after that can help you stand out from other candidates and boost your chances of moving on to the next interview round or receiving an offer. With some planning and just a little bit of time, you can put your best foot forward. Our infographic "What to do before and after an interview" offers five practical, actionable pieces of advice for everyone in the process of or considering the next step in their career search.

The importance of an early arrival

Knowing exactly when and where your interview will take place is vital. It's entirely possible that you haven't visited that specific city or part of town recently, which means reviewing how to get there and ensuring you will make it on time even if you encounter an unavoidable delay is even more important. You can turn to free tools like Google Maps to check distance, travel time and even traffic patterns for the specific time of day. Planning a route there as well as an alternate path is much easier when sitting at home than while driving or taking public transportation to the interview.

If you have a virtual interview scheduled, make sure you have the link or phone number and any necessary software installed on your computer or smartphone. If you will use a videoconferencing program, see if the platform offers a test call feature to ensure everything is working - or ask a friend or family member to also download the software to try it out yourself.

Find these and four more valuable tips in our infographic: