The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
  • World Expo 2030
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
  • World Expo 2030
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
  • Login
  • Register
  • Login
  • Register
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
  • 1

    Hybe's new boy group Boynextdoor aims to be 'one and only' presence in K-pop

  • 3

    Brave Girls to restart activities under new name

  • 5

    Rapper Mino attends sister's wedding in U.S. amid military service

  • 7

    Running convenience stores becomes popular among people in 20s, 30s

  • 9

    Actors' off-screen chemistry enthralls fans

  • 11

    Anti-corruption watchdog set to investigate crypto assets of lawmakers

  • 13

    Seoul resident clashes with authorities for raising dogs to nab 'North Korean spies'

  • 15

    Doctors, pharmacists to receive 30% bonus for offering telemedicine service

  • 17

    NATIONALKorea likely to face pressure over imports of Fukushima seafood

  • 19

    Directors thrive on streaming platforms amid sluggish film industry

  • 2

    Seoul city erroneously sends emergency alert after NK launch

  • 4

    NK's attempt to launch 1st spy satellite fails after 'abnormal' flight: S. Korean military

  • 6

    Korea to ease immigration rules to attract more medical tourists

  • 8

    Big businesses face growing union pressure to extend retirement age

  • 10

    Sluggish exports behind weak Korean won

  • 12

    Naver suffers shrinking online search market share

  • 14

    Seoul city takes flak for emergency text alert on NK's rocket launch

  • 16

    Pyongyang may have delayed spy satellite launch due to technical issues

  • 18

    'Elemental' director on bringing his personal story of immigration to cinema

  • 20

    Rude cabbies in Seoul face stricter penalties

Close scrollclosebutton

Close for 24 hours

Open
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
Opinion
  • Yun Byung-se
  • Kim Won-soo
  • Ahn Ho-young
  • Kim Sang-woo
  • Lee Kyung-hwa
  • Mitch Shin
  • Peter S. Kim
  • Daniel Shin
  • Jeon Su-mi
  • Jang Daul
  • Song Kyung-jin
  • Park Jung-won
  • Cho Hee-kyoung
  • Park Chong-hoon
  • Kim Sung-woo
  • Donald Kirk
  • John Burton
  • Robert D. Atkinson
  • Mark Peterson
  • Eugene Lee
  • Rushan Ziatdinov
  • Lee Jong-eun
  • Chyung Eun-ju and Joel Cho
  • Bernhard J. Seliger
  • Imran Khalid
  • Troy Stangarone
  • Jason Lim
  • Casey Lartigue, Jr.
  • Bernard Rowan
  • Steven L. Shields
  • Deauwand Myers
  • John J. Metzler
  • Andrew Hammond
  • Sandip Kumar Mishra
Thu, June 1, 2023 | 01:11
Jason Lim
Job interviews in English
Posted : 2015-03-06 16:45
Updated : 2015-03-06 16:45
Print PreviewPrint Preview
Font Size UpFont Size Up
Font Size DownFont Size Down
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • kakaolink
  • whatsapp
  • reddit
  • mailto
  • link
By Jason Lim

Being a longtime columnist for The Korea Times, I am used to receiving emails with comments (mostly negative) about my opinions. However, I occasionally get emails from desperate students or job seekers who are looking for some secret to quickly improve their English speaking skills, mostly because many of them are facing a job interview in English.

Apparently, more and more companies in Korea finally realized that TOEIC and TOEFL that scores do not accurately predict English performance in real situations.The urgency over the situation has become so dire that industry CEO's have been publicly pressing for English education reforms so that college graduates become ''hirable" in today's global environment.

A few years ago, they even demanded a new testing system that would accurately reflect the English skills of a potential hire. This is understandable since it costs money to hire someone only to find out that they are not ready to do the job and have to be further trained. But if TOEIC and TOEFL do not accurately measure a candidate's English proficiency, then what are the options for companies?

Then several years ago, someone came up with a brilliant idea that brought about an audible groan from all the college campuses in Korea: what about job interviews in English? So, now some Korean companies have apparently been conducting job interviews in English to see if the candidate can actually perform work-related tasks in English when inserted into a global-business environment. Therefore, in addition to TOEIC and TOEFL, Korean students are now burdened with the necessity to study conversational English in order to get a job in a respectable company.

Some are so desperate that strangers have even reached out and asked me to help them prepare for upcoming job interviews in English, looking for some magical English job interview template that they can study to ace an exam. I don't have a magical template, but here are some common sense recommendations.

What is a job interview? Job interview is not a test of your English proficiency. It's also not just any conversation. Just because you are fluent in English doesn't mean that you will have a successful job interview that will lead to an offer. In essence, job interview is about persuasion. Speaking English well enough to function in a global business environment is just the minimum criteria – selling yourself in English as someone who can contribute positively to their bottom-line is the real key to getting a job offer.

It's about persuading companies to hire you because you have convinced them that you are better qualified and more enthusiastic than other candidates. It's about persuading companies that you will be a leader in the future, whether leading them out of a global recession or leading them toward greater market share in the world. Leadership is what they want, and leadership is about persuasion and engagement.

First and foremost, this means that you need to know who you are speaking to. In a job interview situation, this means that you have to know something about the company that you are applying to. If it's a public company, you have to be familiar with its latest revenue and cost figures, main initiatives, future direction, and more that you can find out that will allow you to talk intelligently about how your skills and experiences will help the company. The more you know, the more you can speak positively about the state and future of the company, and the more the interviewer will be impressed by your preparedness and commitment to the company.

You also have to know something about the person interviewing you. Since you can't do a background check on the person beforehand, make sure you get his business card before you begin so that you have an idea who you are speaking with. Offer your own business card as a way of getting his. Make sure that you have professional business cards made for yourself, even if you are student or temporarily unemployed. Based on the information in the business card, ask him directly what his position is, what he does, and how many people does he manage? Always know that interview is not a one-way process. It's a conversation, albeit a conversation with a specific purpose.

By asking these questions, you are reinforcing his Confirmatory Bias about the importance of his own role in the company. You make him feel good about himself. And you are also taking him out of his outer shell and engaging him as a person. This is important because, by personalizing the interviewer to yourself, you become personalized to the interviewer as well. You escape the impersonal interviewer–interviewee paradigm and redefine the relationship based on personal knowledge of one another.

In short, you have taken your own share of leadership in the dialogue, instead of becoming a passive follower to whatever direction the interviewer sets.

Jason Lim is a Washington, D.C.-based expert on innovation, leadership and organizational culture. He has been writing for The Korea Times since 2006. He can be reached at jasonlim@msn.com, facebook. com/jasonlimkoreatimes and @jasonlim2012.

 
wooribank
Top 10 Stories
1Seoul city takes flak for emergency text alert on NK's rocket launchSeoul city takes flak for emergency text alert on NK's rocket launch
2Rude cabbies in Seoul face stricter penaltiesRude cabbies in Seoul face stricter penalties
3[INTERVIEW] Asia expected to be key driver of ESG growth: Deloitte ESG Partner INTERVIEWAsia expected to be key driver of ESG growth: Deloitte ESG Partner
4Retailers adopt generative AI to offer personalized products, services Retailers adopt generative AI to offer personalized products, services
5North Korea's spy satellite launch fails as rocket falls into sea North Korea's spy satellite launch fails as rocket falls into sea
6Committee calls for lowering requirements for foreigners to teach English online Committee calls for lowering requirements for foreigners to teach English online
7LS chairman appears in YouTube commercial LS chairman appears in YouTube commercial
8Chinese account for 54% of foreign-owned homes in Korea Chinese account for 54% of foreign-owned homes in Korea
9AMCHAM stresses S. Korea-US ties after NK fires 'space launch vehicle' AMCHAM stresses S. Korea-US ties after NK fires 'space launch vehicle'
10Samsung Sharing Kiosk raises $174,000 to help children in need Samsung Sharing Kiosk raises $174,000 to help children in need
Top 5 Entertainment News
1[INTERVIEW] Lee Jun-hyuk unrecognizable in 'The Roundup: No Way Out' INTERVIEWLee Jun-hyuk unrecognizable in 'The Roundup: No Way Out'
2'Elemental' director on bringing his personal story of immigration to cinema 'Elemental' director on bringing his personal story of immigration to cinema
3SHINee celebrates 15th anniversary of debut: 'It feels surreal' SHINee celebrates 15th anniversary of debut: 'It feels surreal'
4ENHYPEN reaches new career high with latest album 'Dark Blood' ENHYPEN reaches new career high with latest album 'Dark Blood'
5'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' raises bar with epic battle scenes 'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' raises bar with epic battle scenes
DARKROOM
  • Turkey-Syria earthquake

    Turkey-Syria earthquake

  • Nepal plane crash

    Nepal plane crash

  • Brazil capital uprising

    Brazil capital uprising

  • Happy New Year 2023

    Happy New Year 2023

  • World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

    World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

CEO & Publisher : Oh Young-jin
Digital News Email : webmaster@koreatimes.co.kr
Tel : 02-724-2114
Online newspaper registration No : 서울,아52844
Date of registration : 2020.02.05
Masthead : The Korea Times
Copyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.
  • About Us
  • Introduction
  • History
  • Contact Us
  • Products & Services
  • Subscribe
  • E-paper
  • RSS Service
  • Content Sales
  • Site Map
  • Policy
  • Code of Ethics
  • Ombudsman
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Service
  • Copyright Policy
  • Family Site
  • Hankook Ilbo
  • Dongwha Group