This is one of the most important questions in your interview. Good answer can win you a job contract, and a bad one can send you home immediately.
First of all, you should prepare a portfolio of your best works, and bring it to the interview. Every responsible designer–who is serious about their job search– will have a portfolio with them.
It can be a simple one, but it should be nice. Do not economize. Use quality printer and colors, so your works look good on the paper (if you do not prefer a digital portfolio).
Your portfolio should include a goal of each project, your target audience, and programs/techniques you used to complete the project. It is good to have a few copies of your portfolio with you, so you can leave one to the interviewers (or borrow them one, for their consideration).
Focus on relevant projects
If you apply for a position of product packaging designer, it will make no sense to talk about your mobile application design. You should pick the most relevant works.
But if you have not completed any relevant projects, talk about any projects you have completed, trying to find similarities with the projects you’d work on in their company. And you should talk with enthusiasm while narrating what you have designed lately.
Do not forget to answer the entire question
The question has two parts. In the first one, you should show the employer the value and creativity you brought to the project, ideally with a help of your beautiful portfolio.
But there is also a second part. They inquire about the challenges you faced when working on your design projects.
In this case, you should speak about challenges with enthusiasm, saying that they helped you to become a better designer. Everyone of us failed to meet the expectations of their clients at least once in life. We had to learn a lot of things to eventually design our masterpieces… Tell the interviewers about the challenges you faced, and how they helped you to refine your design skills.
The best do not stop here
Great job, great salary, and a feeling of satisfaction. All of that waits for you at the end of the interview–if you succeed and get a job.
If you want to be sure that you did your very best to turn this opportunity into a new job contract, you should have a look at my I Will Get a Job recording, an audio which will teach you the winning interview strategies. And since January 2018, I added brilliant answers to 30 most common interview questions as a free bonus. Not bad, is it?
Sincerely,
Matthew Chulaw, author of the website
