Prepare for success with a mock interview

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8 min read. Updated on June 03, 2025

Jen David (TCV)

Ooze confidence in your next interview by practicing with a mock

Pulse racing – hands sweating – mind blank… it’s not the ideal state to be in when you walk into an interview, but it’s the reality for many of us. Interviews are known for reducing even the most capable among us to a nervous wreck, especially when there’s a job at stake. But practice makes perfect, they say, so a mock interview might be just the thing to help you hold those nerves at bay.

What is a mock interview and why is it useful?

A mock job interview is simply a practice interview. The idea is to give you the opportunity to practice common interview questions and hone your answers. Your interviewer will be able to give feedback on your performance – not just on how you answer the questions verbally, but also on your body language and general presentation.

A mock interview can be done informally, with a friend, but for maximum benefit they should resemble a real interview as closely as possible. That means an interviewer you’re not familiar with, a formal interview outfit, an office environment, and well-researched interview questions.

Often, colleges and universities will provide a mock interview service to support students heading out into the world of work for their first job.

Common mock interview questions and answers

Worthwhile mock interview practice will always include questions you’re likely to be asked in a real-life interview. Of course, there’s no way of predicting exactly what will come up, as you’re likely to get questions relating to the specific job and industry you’ve applied for. However, expect some common job interview questions and go prepared with answers.

We’ve listed some of these questions, so that you can give them some thought and practice your answers.

Question 1: tell me about yourself

Why it’s asked: Many, many interviews start like this. It’s a good ice-breaker that lets you ease into the conversation naturally. You can set the tone for the rest of the discussion by focusing on how your experience aligns with their requirements.

What not to say: “I was born in 1965 in a small town in the North…” Instead, focus on your career, experience, key skills, and achievements, positioning yourself as a great fit for the role, rather than wasting time narrating your life story or repeating every detail of your CV.

Example answer: “When I finished my degree in Marketing, I secured a place on a graduate scheme at a leading multinational and have since worked my way up through the ranks. In my current role as Marketing Manager, I launched a new snack product which surpassed its year 1 and year 2 targets and also relaunched an existing brand with new packaging and promotions. It has since nearly doubled its profits. I know you have similar products in your portfolio and am sure that I can deliver similar results for you.”

Question 2: why do you want to work here?

Why it’s asked: Interviewers want to see that you have the right motivation, have a genuine interest in the role and the business, and have done your research.

What not to say: “I hate my current boss,” “I’m not paid enough at the moment.” Avoid bad-mouthing your current company, role, and colleagues. It’s not a good look and doesn’t show that you have a real interest in their vacancy.

Example answer: “My experience in the logistics sector is very relevant to this position. I have worked in similar companies, which I’ve enjoyed greatly and where I’ve been able to contribute to key improvement projects. This role would be the next logical step up in my career and I’ve heard fantastic things about the work culture here.”

Question 3: what are your strengths and weaknesses?

Why it’s asked: Being able to answer this question shows your self-awareness and also gives the interviewer an idea of whether your skills will meet their needs.

What not to say: “I’m good at most things and I don’t have any weaknesses”. Interviewers will see right through such an answer, as no-one is good at everything and everyone has weaknesses.

Example answer: “I’d say one of my key strengths lies in my ability to identify problems at an early stage and develop workable solutions. I’m also good at teamwork as I like to consider the input of other people and I have excellent attention to detail. I’m sure these are all qualities that will help me to succeed in this role. In the past, I’ve struggled with completing my work within deadlines. As a result, I’ve started using apps and planning my time at the beginning of the day and am now much better organised.”

Question 4: when have you faced a problem at work?

Why it’s asked: To evaluate how you react under pressure and how you approach solving problems.

What not to say: “I try to avoid problems.” This doesn’t give your interviewer any insight into how you tackle issues.

Example answer: “We were getting a lot of food products returned as they had gone off. As the department manager, I had to reduce the rate of returns. I investigated which products were most affected and noticed that we were getting a disproportionate amount of returns to the dairy section. I realised the problem must be with the storage, so did some observations in the warehouse and noticed that there was often a lag between when the products were delivered and when they were put into cold storage. I delivered a whole-team training session and continued to monitor deliveries and within a month we’d completely eliminated returns in that area.”

Question 5: what are you particularly proud of?

Why it’s asked: This question can help interviewers to understand how you define success and learn about your work ethic.

What not to say: “There’s nothing in my career so far that I’m proud of,” or “I haven’t had the kind of job yet where I can have an impact.”

Example answer: “When I had just started my current role, I noticed that some of the processes were a bit unstructured and we were spending a long time looking for documents we should have had to hand. I took some time to understand what we were trying to achieve and what was needed, and made some recommendations on changing a few processes to be more efficient. My suggestions were taken on board and the new system is working well for everyone, which means we work more productively now.”

Question 6: can you tell me about a time you were part of a team?

Why it’s asked: So that the interviewer can evaluate how well you work with others.

What not to say: “I work better on my own.”

Example answer: At university, we were put into teams to work on a group project. At our first meeting, I suggested getting a plan together that showed who was responsible for what parts and what deadlines we would work towards. Not everyone met their first deadline so I offered to be their accountability buddy and do regular check-ins with them to keep up momentum. One person was particularly struggling due to family issues, so I arranged for one part of their work to be split among the rest of the team. We achieved the top result in the class, which I’d like to think was partly due to my coordination and support.”

Question 7: do you have any questions for us?

Why it’s asked: To give you the opportunity to air questions for the employer, make sure the role is right for you, and assess your interest in it.

What not to say: “No.”

Example answer: “Yes, I have a few. Could you tell me what the onboarding process looks like? I’m also interested in who I’ll be working with and the culture here, so could you tell me a bit about the team I’ll be working with?”

Who can do a mock interview?

You can do a mock interview with anyone! The more you do, the more practice you’ll get and the more your confidence will grow, so take any opportunity you can. These may be good places to start:

Friends and family members: Free and have your best interests at heart, but may not have the industry insight you need
Colleagues: Have insight into the role, but you may not want to advertise your job search to them
Mentors: A great choice as they’ll likely understand the role and industry and be invested in your success
Careers advisors: Able to provide generalist support, advice and feedback, as well as additional careers resources
Interview coaches: A paid option, but they have the background to help and the expertise to provide constructive, actionable feedback

If all other avenues fail, you can even do a mock interview online or using AI, through various platforms, so there’s really no excuse for not getting your practice in!

Tips to prepare for a mock interview

Just because you’re attending a mock interview rather than a real one, it doesn’t mean you need to prepare less. You’ll build confidence to excel in a real interview by doing well in the mock, so a bit of planning will work wonders. Use our top tips to make sure you’re ready to impress:

Search for common interview questions online and prepare your answers ahead of time
Review your CV so that your career story, skills, and achievements are clear in your mind and take a copy with you for reference
Think about what you offer that’s relevant to the role you’re targeting and be ready to highlight this during the interview
If you’re doing mock interview training with a particular company in mind, research the company culture and their latest news online – including its About pages, press releases, and LinkedIn posts
Write down some questions to ask employers at the end the interview
Dress appropriately
Maintain a professional demeanour, even though it’s not a real interview
Pay attention to your non-verbal communication, as well as your verbal responses
Use the STAR interview method to answer questions whenever possible
Try to record the interview, if possible, so that you can watch it back and identify anything you’re not happy with
Listen closely to your feedback and work to address any areas of concern – do another mock interview, having taken on board your feedback, if possible

Walk into your next real interview with confidence

With practice from your mock interviews and constructive feedback to improve your performance, you should be ready to walk confidently into your next interview prepared with strong answers and the knowledge that you know exactly what you’re doing.

If you’re not getting the calls to interview that you expect, your CV could be the problem. Why not send it for a free CV review? Our experts can advise you on how to improve this important document and help you land the interviews you deserve.