When the interview panel is younger than you ...

[Twirlbitesruinedmylife]

... Do you find you are more or less likely to get the job?

Just curious because I have a pretty good strike rate if at least one member of the panel is older than me (I'm 45) but on the two occasions all the panel were younger the interview was a car crash in slow motion. I'm wondering if the techniques I learnt in my teens and twenties which I still use just seem wrong when I'm older than the panel.

I'm in my mid-twenties and am a good bit younger than the majority of staff I oversee and interview. It's never an issue and if anything, I can be a bit more biased towards older interviewees as they tend to have more experience, common sense and are more confident within themselves

Do you think that younger panels may feel threatened by your experience? Are you perhaps applying for roles for which you're overqualified?

Thanks for your comments.

I don't think the panel feel threatened. For the last interview one of the panellists read the same subject at the same university and another had the same professional qualification. I suspect I've always played on being really hard working like a slightly swotty school girl and that this just feels wrong when I'm older than them. I guess I need to find a new persona but what?...

Oh definitely don't do that! Be yourself; aside from anything else, they'll have hired that person, not the true you. Hard-working is one of the most important qualities to have but just make sure you are giving strong examples of how you are rather than just repeatedly stating that you are.

I'm early 30s and routinely interview a lot of people who are MUCH older than me (often twice my age), for contracting roles. Age itself is not an issue, but I do sometimes find that older candidates are not as well versed in the S-T-A-R approach and can be a bit more descriptive about what they have done, rather than focusing on the results and how. It can usually be dealt with with some probing. But I'm sure you're doing all that. Maybe just bad luck (or they were less experienced interviewers who didn't manage the situation well? Poor interviewers can lead to a car crash too).

Please can someone explain what the S-T-A-R approach is?

I'm in my early 50s and I've had 9 interviews in the last 6 years. For every one of those jobs the panel were younger than me. I have however had three jobs offered.

When I apply for a job I make sure I never put anything in my CV or covering letter that I can't back up. I also do lots of interview preparation, making sure I can answer questions about the job they've advertised and researching the company. By that I mean how may employees, what they specialise in, where they are based and If I can their reputation.

I also take the view that every interview is a two way thing. That is, I am interviewing the prospective employer as much as the panel are interviewing me.

Chottie

The STAR method is for competency based interviews. You:

set the context for your story - the Situation

say what was required of you - the Task

Then set out what you actually did - the Action

Before finally explaining how well the situation played out - the Result

Lots of public sector roles use this method. Amongst other things it is meant to be more inclusive although in my experience as an interviewer it rewards big picture thinkers over detail people.

Yes , definitely think that's true. I've worked in voluntary and public sectors which is why we use it. Organisations that have a competency framework go big on it.