Do not forget to research the school district before your teacher or school administrator job interview. Investigating the school district to uncover information about the academic community and its needs is one of the most critical preparation steps.
Knowing as much information as possible about the school district will help ensure you can tailor your responses to interview questions.
School hiring representatives expect you to come prepared for the interview, including finding out information about them. Doing homework on the school will let the interviewer know you are interested and serious about your career and job search.
The best information about the school district will come from any friends or colleagues you know who already work there or have worked there. First-hand accounts are always the best. Schools and school districts may welcome phone calls from individuals to ask pertinent questions regarding hiring procedures.
When you call, you can ask about obtaining any school literature that could provide you with valuable information about the district. Most school districts and individual schools have a website which you can gather relevant, useful information. Perform a Google search to see if there are any related articles written about the school or district.
Researching the school district is essential to interview success. It is very unwise to walk into a teacher or school administrator job interview not knowing anything about the school or school district where you hope to become a new employee.
If you don’t research the prospective school, you may not realize whether you would like to work there.
Know the Answers to the Interview Questions
Don't walk into a teacher or school administrator job interview without knowing the answers to these questions. #Education Click To Tweet1. What are the demographics of the school population?
2. What is the district’s mission/philosophy?
3. How many employees does the school district have?
4. What area does the district cover, and how many schools are in the district?
5. How is the district’s standing with standardized testing as compared to the national average?
6. Does the school district offer any new teacher support programs?
Knowing these answers will provide you with a wealth of information that you can discuss during the interview. For instance, if the school is very concerned about raising their literacy scores and having a literacy endorsement, this will be a tremendous asset.
If you can tailor your interview answers to address important issues to the school, your chances of securing the position will grow exponentially.
If one of the school district’s focus areas is integrating technology, which is one of your strongest assets, you communicate this throughout the interview.
On the other side of this, you need to find out what the school is offering its employees.
Does the district provide professional development opportunities?
Are you required to complete many professional development hours each year?
Will you be expected to take on extracurricular responsibilities?
These are all important things you should find out, either before the interview or at the meeting, to determine if the school will be a stable fit for you.
