In this episode I discuss the ins and outs of being a skilled interviewee. Starting with what to do before the interview, and covering the interview itself and the post-interview process, I give tips and tricks to help you find success (and a job).
Here are some sample interview questions for you to practice with:
- Tell me about your ensemble experiences.
- Why are you interested in working at (school/company/district)?
- How do you teach an ensemble to perform in tune?
- Describe to me the proper method for tone production?
- How would teach beginners?
- Do you perform yourself? If
so, tell me a little bit about that.
- What is your philosophy of teaching?
- Do you have a system of counting you prefer? If so, why?
- Describe your techniques for teaching sightreading.
- How would you
characterize your teaching style?
- (Choir)
Describe your piano training and background.
- (Band) How
comfortable are you with your opposite instrument group and why do you feel
that way?
- (Orchestra)
How would you go about rehearsing a full orchestra?
- (Choir) do
you prefer moveable or fixed ‘do’ and why?
- How would
recruit students to the program?
- (Elementary)
How familiar are you with Kodaly/Orff methods?
- What do you
think is the role of music in the overall campus?
- How will you
help to raise test scores on this campus?
- This campus
is a Title I school, how will you approach teaching music effectively in this
environment?
- How do you
assess students?
- What do you
consider your strongest assess as a teacher?
Weakest?
- What rules to
have in your classroom?
- What is your
philosophy of classroom management?
- How have past
jobs prepared you for the position you are now seeking?
- If you were
developing a curriculum, what topics would receive the most attention?
- If a parent
called you to say that their child could not attend a very important
performance because the child would be out of town to attend a grandparent’s 50th
Wedding Anniversary, what would you say or do?
- Describe an
unpleasant, stressful, on-the-job situation in the past and how you dealt with
it.
- Do you feel
that your college grades reflect your ability?
Why or why not?
- What kind of
people rub you the wrong way?
- What does success
mean to you?
- How do you
define success for your students?
- Where do you
see yourself in five years?
- What time
demands would you make on students outside of the school day?
- What role
does competition play in school music?
- Why did you
decide to become a music educator (choir/band/orch director or general
specialist)?
- What are the
main purposes of music education?
- What about
teaching do you most enjoy?
- What role
would you like parents to play in your program?
- Describe your
personality to me.
- What are your
goals for the program here?
- How should
your position fit into the overall campus faculty/staff?
- What are your
hobbies outside your job?
- What are you
reading?
- (Band/Choir)
What are your feelings about musicals?
Should they be part of a middle school curriculum?
- How do you
handle scheduling conflict with other school groups/events?
- Do you
believe students can be involved in more than one activity? If so, how do you navigate sharing students?
- What are your
plans for future self-improvement?
- How do you
feel about the time commitments necessary to run a successful music program?
- What are the
top three things that influence your selection of instructional repertoire?
- Tell me about
a situation where a student challenged your authority and how you handled that
situation.
- Describe a
time when you had a disagreement with a colleague and how you resolved the
situation.
- Describe a
particularly rewarding experience in music/music education.
- (Choir) What
are your feelings about pop or swing groups?
- (Band) what
are your feelings about jazz band/mariachi?
- How do you go
about planning lessons for the year?
- What about
teaching do you enjoy the most? The
least?
- If a parent
came to you and complained that you are not meeting the needs of their child,
how would you respond?