8 Things You Must Bring To Every Job Interview

When thinking about what to bring for an interview, a lot of things come to mind, but the mentioned eight things below are the most essential that a candidate should carry to the interview. These might seem simple, but it’s important not to forget them as they really make a difference on the day of your interview.

1. Directions and Contact Info

Smartphones have become an essential part for us, it is easy to rely on them to provide directions to any location, but make sure to always keep your battery full before going out for any interview. It’s important to take an extra five minutes before you leave the house to check the direction to your interview location on your map, and you can also save it on your homescreen for convenience. If you don’t have a smartphone with GPS navigation, you can take the directions printed on a paper. The worst thing for an interview is to get late. Also on your phone’s notepad app or on the directions you’ve printed out, write out the name and contact information of your interviewers on the notepad on your phone or on a paper. So, if something goes wrong on your way to the interview, you can let them know.

2. Identification – Carrying a photo and address proof is common nowadays, but many interview candidates forget their identification at home on interview day. Almost every office building or every tech parks have security desks and require some photo identification.

3. Notepad and Pen – People are used to taking notes on their laptop or phone, but in interviews, it definitely looks better if you have a paper and pen to note down things like people to contact, addresses or anything else mentioned in the interview that you want to remember later. Be prepared with your own stuff to write important information that your interviewer provides you.

4. Resume – You need to take a few copies of the most updated version of your resume. You should also have extra copies just in case you need to refer it during the interview or if interviewers show up.

5. References – Always take an updated list of your references. The list should have at least three professional references with their name, relation with you and the contact number.

6. A Portfolio – If you work with a company and have a collection of work, you should carry a small collection from that. It can be on an app, a binder or even on a website on your tablet. Your portfolio should be organized in such a way that makes it easy to refer during your interview.

7. Questions – In the end when the interviewer asks you that if you have any queries, you should never say no. Always have a list of questions ready to make the interviewer know that you’re prepared. These questions can be about the hiring process, company culture or anything related to the job position for which you gave the interview.

8. Business card – For a job seeker business cards are great for networking and interviewing. A business card should include name, job title, email, phone number, and address. You can give your card to the interviewer, or to anyone else with whom you had a conversation.