So you’ve secured the long-sought-after interview and the hiring manager is set to fire one question after another to you to see if you’re the best one for the job.
You’re well rehearsed on the typical questions. Finally, one of them comes at you with some intrigue: Why are you the best candidate for the job?
Before you wrap and follow up on your job interview, you need to nail your answer. How will you answer that question? What is the hiring manager or recruiter getting at by asking it?
How To Answer ‘Why Are You The Best Candidate For The Job?’
The best way to achieve an answer that moves you further along in the hiring process is to lean upon your experience as well as the needs of the company as specifically mentioned in the job posting.
Don’t Get Too Comfortable
First of all, don’t let the question go to your head. It’s not a time to go off the rails or drop your respective guard.
Technically speaking, you may not even be a job candidate yet. For the recruiter’s standpoint, you’re an “applicant,” or someone who simply applied for the job. If you want to take the next step to reach the status of “job candidate,” how you answer interview questions is vitally important.
Your Reply Should Show Research
Answering the question of why you are the best job candidate is a chance to show that you have researched the company’s values and are aligned with them.
You should sound like you know what you’re talking about when it comes to company culture, even down to the small details. Make sure you mention only the personal things about yourself that fit well with what you know about the firm.
Download a free resume template to get your job search kicked off right.
Use Key Words
Nothing says “I don’t know what I’m talking about” like not honing in on the verbiage in a job description. You should regard the company’s job posting as a script that you should stick to. The way to do that is by saying the same words you read.
Use key words that show that you grasp the mission of the business as well as the particular position you’re applying for.
What To Say
To answer the question, remember to lean on your resume and marry it with what you know about the position. Here are some sample sentences that you can start with and tweak as you see fit:
I do feel that I am qualified for the role, as my resume brings out, my (X) years of experience in my previous position has given me a unique depth of understanding for the intricacies associated with this particular job.
As you look at my resume more closely, you’ll see that I am uniquely qualified based on my education, number of years in the industry and collaborative skills I’ve acquired along the way.
I am confident that with my training/skills, I can learn your system in a relatively short period and begin contributing immediately to your bottom line.
Final Word
Finally, answering a question of how qualified you are has to be rooted in truth. If you are not qualified for the specific role, you should not have applied for it. Questions asked by an interviewer are a way to find this out.
Check out more of our interview tips to find employment right now.
