Know which format you are in
Ask the recruiter what to expect. A behavioral interview is stories about your past work. A technical interview may be a live problem, a whiteboard design discussion, or a take-home. A case interview is a business problem worked out loud. Panel and one-on-one need different energy. Preparing for the wrong format is the most common avoidable mistake.
Behavioral questions and the story bank
Most "tell me about a time you…" questions are checking for the same handful of things: teamwork, conflict, failure, initiative, leadership. Write six to eight real stories in a Situation–Task–Action–Result shape and practice saying them in two minutes. One good story can answer three different prompts.
Technical interviews
Practice out loud, not just in your head — narrate your thinking, state your assumptions, ask clarifying questions before you start. It is fine to be stuck; how you get unstuck is what they are watching. For a take-home, scope it, do it well, and include a short note on what you would improve with more time.
Your questions matter
The "any questions for us?" part is graded. Ask about the actual work: what a first project looks like, how the team gives feedback, what makes someone successful in the role. Skip questions you could answer from the website. Not having questions reads as not caring.
Logistics and nerves
Test your tech the day before for a video interview. Arrive early, dress one notch above the team’s norm, bring copies of your résumé for in-person. Nerves are normal; a mock interview at Career Services turns down the volume because you have said the words once already.
After
Send a short, specific thank-you within a day — reference something you actually discussed. If you do not hear back by the date they gave, one polite follow-up is appropriate. A rejection is worth a two-line reply asking to be kept in mind; people move roles and remember graciousness.
Fictional information
UW–Porter Falls is a work of parody. Every office, person, building, phone number and statistic on this page is invented; nothing here describes a real institution or a service you can actually contact.