5 Questions to Ask Your Interviewer

Interviewing can be stressful, so doing all you can to prepare in advance will serve you well! This includes researching the office you're interviewing for and preparing your own questions for the interviewer. At the end of each interview you'll be asked, "What questions do you have for me?" and you'll set yourself apart by having a couple of these questions in your back pocket.

Typically, some of them will be answered in the interview, but if they aren’t, those are the ones you should ask and why!

1. Ask about the office culture, and mention something that you saw on their website that piqued your interest. Example: "I saw Accelerated Academy's core values on the website. Can you tell me more about these and how you feel your employees embody them?"
2. What attributes or soft skills does your ideal hire have? This is a chance for you to gauge whether you'd be a good fit, and also to affirm that you have what they're looking for!
3. How will I be sure that I'm a successful dental assistant? This is an important question for any job, to see what kind of employee review or feedback process the office has. Do you require regular check-ins to be sure you're doing a good job?
4. What types of patients do you see here? If you’re interviewing at a pediatric office, this isn’t the question to ask because you know you'll be seeing children. However, this is a great way to better understand the employee/patient dynamic in other offices.
5. How long do dental assistants typically work here? Asking about job turnover can feel sticky, but this is a good way to uncover an office that may not be a good workplace! Industry average for Dental Assistant job turnover is 1-3 years. If the interviewer says that DAs stick around for under 1 year at a time, this is a red flag!

If you ask one or two of these questions, you'll find yourself coming away with a better understanding of this workplace as a whole! Now, here are some questions you may want to avoid and some ways to rephrase them: 

1. What are the requirements of the job? This will make the interviewer think you didn't read the job description, and will not look good.
2. How long is lunch? We get it, breaks are extremely important! Instead, try asking, "What does a typical workday look like?" This will help you find any indicators of being overworked or getting burnt out.
3. Will you monitor my social media? This question comes off a little shady. Your career coach, Ashley, has an entire module on creating a professional online presence in the Career Services course! If you want more info, check out our Career Services blog.
4. What type of health insurance do you offer? OR How much vacation do I get? Both of these questions can be discussed at a later time, while you're working out a hiring agreement or have an offer!

Overall, interviewers are looking for a positive attitude and a willingness to learn! Whatever you can do to plan in advance will leave you feeling prepared and allow your personality to shine through.

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Have questions about our school? Call (844) 727-3755 or email admissions@acceleratedacademy.us for more info!