in this video i'm going to clearly explain the difference between structured and unstructured
interviews i'll include examples of both types of interviews and cover the typical questions
the setting and the format so you know exactly what to look out for the pros and cons of each
and how to prepare for each type so that you can pass both structured and unstructured interviews
i'm Amrit Celeste a career coach with over 10 years hiring experience and i make videos on
how to help you secure the job that you want so if you're job hunting do like and subscribe it
really helps out this channel so first what is a structured interview a structured job interview
follows a predetermined structure throughout most or all of the interview an example of a structured
interview is one that follows a pre-planned set of questions also called an interview
framework that can include behavioral situational or competency-based interview questions now these
are fairly lengthy individual topics so if you want to know more about these i have separate
videos covering the top situational and competency based interview questions including strong example
answers so i'll link those in the description below for you for questions often a structured
interview will start with introductory questions such as talk me through your cv or resume tell me
about yourself what do you know about our company or fairly similar easy questions and then it will
move into more role specific questions depending on the job a structured interview will normally
include questions that will ask you to demonstrate that you have a certain skill by asking you to
give examples scenarios or situations where you've demonstrated that skill now if you do
get stuck on tough interview questions and answers like why should we give you the job what is your
greatest weakness how do you handle pressure at work really tough questions then you can
grab a copy of my 20 interview answers guide it's totally free i'll link it in the description below
and it covers answers to all of those questions plus it covers what you should be asking your
interviewers at the end of the interview so i'll link that in the description below this video
the setting for a structured interview it will normally be a formal setting like the company's
office likely the one you would be working in or possibly another branch but it could also be a
video interview like skype zoom or microsoft teams format as well as one-on-one interviews structured
interviews can also include panel interviews where you might be interviewed by three or four people
at once but they can also include group interviews or assessment centres which can include group
activities group assessments psychometric numerical or verbal testing so what is an
unstructured interview an unstructured interview is pretty much the opposite of the structured and
it would not follow a predetermined structure and it can include questions on a wide range of topics
and it can still include situational or competency based questions that i mentioned earlier but they
might not follow a cohesive order so you might get questions like where do you see yourself in
five years time or other questions that would more typically come up towards the end of the interview
questions the questions for unstructured interviews tend to be more informal
so there may possibly be more questions around hobbies or interests
questions to help the interviewer understand more about your character or personality
unstructured interviews are normally a preference of the interviewer's individual style and how they
like to get to know potential employees and make an assessment on whether that person would be
right for the role an unstructured interview is more about freestyling so the questions are more
geared around you you're fit with the company and culture your personality behaviors and character
if this is helping you understand the difference so far please leave a comment below and let me
know and do click like as it really helps out this video setting now regarding the setting for an
unstructured interview it can be in an office or a video conference like the structured interview
but it could also be in a more casual setting like a coffee shop a bar a cafe or a restaurant
that creates a more relaxed atmosphere and makes it feel more like a conversation rather than an
interview format as for the format an unstructured interview wouldn't normally include assessment or
psychometric testing as these are quite structured and they wouldn't normally be in a group or
assessment center unstructured interviews are usually one-on-one semi-structured interviews
you can also have semi-structured interviews which are a blend of the two some pre-planned questions
and some unplanned off-the-cuff questions to add more natural conversation and i find that this is
the most common one that managers tend to use but everything in this video covers a semi-structured
style because it's a blend of the two rather than a completely new style the pros and cons
of a structured versus unstructured interview some of the pros of unstructured interviews are
that it feels more like a natural conversation the questions aren't set and it's more relaxing so it
can create a better connection between interviewer and interviewee and therefore have a better
outcome as it doesn't create as much interview nerves for the candidates saying this however
i always recommend that interviewers should lean more towards structured or semi-structured
interviews why because of fairness and consistency the problem with unstructured interviews is that
because it doesn't follow a solid structure there's no way to know that all candidates are
being assessed in the same way so if you imagine yourself going for an interview and then finding
out that you were asked a lot more questions or a completely different set of questions
than somebody else and you were rejected on that basis it would feel very unfair essentially the
person who doesn't get the job was unsuccessful for reasons that can't be measured against other
applicants and not all candidates may have been asked core questions to make sure that they meet
the most important essential criteria for the job so i normally advise that there should be some
structure in an interview how to prep for and pass a structured and unstructured interview for both
structured and unstructured interviews you should be focusing your interview prep in three key areas
company research job research and tough interview questions and answers and making sure that you
can answer these in a confident way and this does improve the more that you practice i go into more
step-by-step detail on practicing properly in my interview prep checklist video which i strongly
recommend you watch if you're interviewing right now is it covers everything that you need to
pass your interview and you can also download my interview prep checklist this is a solid playbook
for how to prepare for your interview in a way that leaves an impact it includes what to research
where you should be looking and the questions that you should be asking your interviewer at the end
of your interview it's completely free and you can download yours in the description below this video
the main and most important difference in preparing for an unstructured interview
is that there may be questions that come up that are not typically asked in the average interview
so practicing a conversational style of answering questions related to the job will help massively
because even though it's a conversation you still need to show that you're passionate about the role
and also that you understand what's required and can show how you would be a great fit by linking
your key skills and experience to key skills in the role and it's important that you practice
working this into general conversation because the question why should we hire you
may not come up as a set question and then before you know it the interview will be over so you
need to practice working in these questions and answers now there are lots of different ways you
can practice it really helps if you have someone around that can ask you questions and you can
practice answering them but even if you don't you can practice on your own i've practiced on my own
for years and it really really helps with your confidence when you're in the interview and it
helps you to answer the question smoothly trust me it will make the world of difference thank
you so much for watching if you haven't already do like subscribe and tap the notification bell
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