Students with Disabilities | How-to Interview Videos

Disclosure on Your Terms
Whether to disclose a disability is a personal decision, and there is no single right answer. After Matt is offered the job, his future manager asks if he has any concerns before the paperwork starts. Matt says that he is legally blind and asks for large-print materials and a large-print computer setup. The manager thanks him and promises to work with HR, showing how disclosure can explain how you do your best work.

Know Where to Draw the Line
Showing your personality matters in an interview, but oversharing can sink you. In a catch-up with colleagues, one employee rambles about getting lost at the zoo, missing appointments, an injury and missed work. Each detail moves further from anything about the job and ends with him admitting he may hide unfinished work from his boss. The lesson is to keep personal stories connected to how you do the job and who you are at work.

The Unprepared Interview
Employers want to know how you manage your time, handle pressure and solve problems, so preparation is essential. Asked about time management, this candidate describes a to-do list he uses only sometimes. He says he doesn’t really handle stress, and his answer about weaknesses turns into excuses about a broken-down car and running late. The interviewer ends the meeting politely, and it’s clear the answers never showed that he could do the job.

The Prepared Interview
This video gets the same three questions as the bad interview, but the candidate answers each one with clear purpose. Zach shows up on time and explains how writing down and ordering his tasks keeps him on track. He handles stress by pausing to center himself and asking someone else for input before he acts. When asked about weaknesses, he names his discomfort with confrontation, says he is working on it, and turns a hard question into proof that he is growing.

Unprepared and Unprofessional
For any candidate, and especially for job seekers with disabilities, poor professionalism leaves a lasting impression. During a high-stakes team meeting about an important client account, one employee arrives with no idea what’s going on. He hasn’t read the briefing, can’t find the email, and brushes off his colleagues’ urgency with “I can’t make any promises.” His team has to stop and call for more professionalism, and the meeting shows how one unprepared person can slow everyone down.

Owning the Moment
Preparation, teamwork and personal ownership show that you’re willing to get the job done. An employee arrives late to a client meeting, apologizes right away, and gives a short reason. He then shows that he has read every email and has the client’s price points ready. He offers to hand over his notes after the meeting, which proves that a slip like being late can be recovered when you come prepared.

Camera On, Mic Off
Virtual interviews are now hard to avoid, and technical slip-ups can take attention away from a strong candidate. In this interview the candidate first has to be reminded that her camera is off. When she’s invited to ask questions at the end, she starts speaking while her mic is still muted. She recovers with a sharp question about how success is measured in the role, but the takeaway is clear: check your tech, slow down and pause before you answer.

Asking the Right Questions
Your first job can set the tone for your whole career, and the questions you ask in an interview say a lot about you. Given the chance to ask something, a soon-to-graduate candidate asks how much time off she can get for her upcoming wedding and vacation. The interviewer explains the six-month probationary period and says time off would be discussed only after an offer. The scene shows how a question about time off, asked too early, can push your qualifications out of the conversation.