How to Recognize Top Talent for Entry-Level Positions

Every year, more entry-level candidates join the job market looking to start their career. Many of them have held part-time jobs and completed internships so they have skills, experience, and ambition that could benefit your company. But sifting through applicants to find your perfect fit can be more difficult than you realize. Even with six months to a year of experience to consider, it can be hard to determine if a candidate will be successful.

Here are five interview questions that can help you recognize top talent for entry-level positions.

What experience do you have that will translate to the responsibilities you will have here?

Candidates applying for entry-level positions will have limited work experience, but keep your eye out for individuals who can take a small role and gain valuable, transferrable skills. Teamwork, time management, and communication are all soft skills that are important in most entry-level roles.

Listen for specific examples that show that the applicant can perform the day-to-day responsibilities of the position. If the job requires answering telephone calls, your ideal candidate will have customer service experience and communicate well in person. For a general labor role, look for relatable experience such as maintenance work, job site clean-up, or light construction.

How would you approach a manager or coworker that you had an issue with?

Collaboration is important, especially for entry-level workers who typically don’t work alone. To succeed at work, they must be able to deal with conflict professionally, because it will arise at some point.

At the same time, stay away from anyone who handles issues aggressively as they could pose a problem down the line. An example of an ideal answer could be, “I would address the issue right away so that it didn’t get bigger. I would calmly ask that we sit down and discuss the problem.”

Why do you want to work for this company?

Entry-level workers have the potential to grow into your company’s future leaders. They won’t be in an entry-level role forever, so recruit candidates for the company, not just for the position. If they have a vested interest in what your company does and see room for growth, they’re more likely to stick around long-term.

Check to see if they did some research on your company before the interview and know a bit about the company’s history, mission, and goals. Don’t settle for “it seems like a good place to work.” If they don’t know specific details about your company, you can assume that they just want a job and have no preference if it’s with your company or not. Other red flags: talking only about the job benefits or how high the compensation is.

What are your long-term career goals?

Most individuals won’t know exactly where they want to be five years from now—and that’s okay. Entry-level positions are usually where they determine what their interests are. But a good candidate will detail how they want to be challenged and express interest in growing within the industry.

If you’re interviewing for an open warehouse assistant position and the applicant responds that they are looking to become a registered nurse, they clearly aren’t invested in the job. This question will also help you to measure their ambition and whether or not they have realistic goals.

What do you hope to learn from this job?

With little experience, they should be hungry to learn, whether it be specific tasks or soft skills. Use their answers to see where they’re looking for guidance and determine if the position and company can help them meet those goals.

Finding the perfect fit in a group of applicants who share similar experiences and skills can be tricky. If you need help sorting through candidates, consider outsourcing your recruitment needs.