Not Kenny Rogers!

When going for a job interview, do not walk in with a script of precisely what you are going to say. If you do too much rehearsal, you will sound like a robot that has been fed stock answers.

What you do need to do is to anticipate common interview questions and think up ways to answer them without sacrificing spontaneity. You need strategies that will allow you enough versatility to accommodate the unexpected twists and turns that accompany all job interviews.

One of the first things to keep in mind is that you must answer the question that has been asked. Sounds basic, doesn’t it? Yet, many people who turn up for interviews do not answer some of the questions asked of them! This is a real disaster and does them no good in eyes of the interviewer. Just listen carefully to what is being asked (as opposed to what you think is being asked) and respond to that. Never mind if your response is not quite perfect according to your perceptions.

Secondly, do not give yes or no answers to interview questions, while at the same time, avoiding the pitfall of being long winded. Think of how copywriters work. When composing an advertisement, they know that they have a very limited space within which they need to get their message out persuasively. In such a situation, every word counts. Take the same approach in job interviews.

When preparing for job interviews, managing your time well is essential for success. Mastering a few good techniques and approaches to students time management will pay you excellent dividends. Of course, time management is critically important to your job search irrespective of whether you are a student or a busy working professional.

Finally, do not get obsessed over the actual wording of your answers. In particular, avoid memorizing answers to interview questions. That can make you sound canned and artificial, which considerably lowers your chances of landing the job you want.

Spending a summer season fruit picking is hard but satisfying work. As many European studies have found over this and the previous summers Broadwater farm is a great place to earn some money and use as a base to explore the UK.

Broadwater Farm in England is a traditional UK Fruit Farm, set in the beautiful Kent countryside. The farm produces crops of Bramley and Gala apples, pears, cherries and plums. This top quality fruit is supplied to retailers throughout the UK. During the summer months (June, July, August, September and October) students arrive from many European countries to spend their summer holiday fruit picking and experience living and working in the UK.

Accommodation is provided in well-appointed mobile homes. For evening entertainment there is a television lounge and a broadband internet connection. The farm is one hour by train from London and 10 minutes’ walk from the town of West Malling for supermarkets, pubs and restaurants. Nightclubs and shopping in Maidstone are a short train or bus journey away.

Broadwater Farm has invested in a fruit picking train – a system which has proved popular with the farmers and workers, following a trial in 2007. To attract students to farm work a website has been set up which enables potential applicants to see what apple picking in the UK is all about. Photos of current and previous harvesters, their accommodation and the farm itself illustrate the opportunities far more clearly than words.

Their website does more than attract students to the summer farm work. It provides useful checklists of things to do before leaving home and on arrival at the farm in the UK. After a summer of fruit picking and apple harvesting they can reminisce over photos of their colleagues and read up-to-date news of activity on the Farm.