Speaking Pairwork 17: Role-play a Job Interview

Click here for ‘The Basic Method for Speaking Pairwork’

Tell the students to imagine a super-store is opening in the local area soon and looking to hire many new staff. Ask them to think of all the different jobs that could be available and help them along until you have written on the board something like:

accountant
baker
butcher
check-out counter staff
I.T. staff
manager
sales clerk in the _______ department
secretary
security guard
staff trainer

Ask each student to choose one job from this list. Then write on the board some typical job interview questions like:

What experience have you got?
What skills have you got?
What was your last job and salary?
What salary and benefits do you expect here?
Why do you think you’d be good for this job?
What can you offer this company?
What are your good points and bad points?
Tell me about a time you dealt with a difficult situation at work
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Give the students 10 minutes to prepare answers to all these questions for their particular job and then get them talking in pairs, with one person playing the interviewer and the other the interviewee. When that conversation is finished, they can swap roles.