When interviewing for a new job, you might encounter questions that ask you to reflect on your value as an employee. One popular question that interviewers can ask is why you believe you deserve the job you’re applying for. This question can give you the opportunity to showcase your personality as well as your expertise and skills. In this article, we explore how to answer the question, “why do you deserve this job?”
Why do you deserve this job? Best Answer
Tips for Giving the Best Answer
Research the company ahead of time. Interviewers will be listening for a response that shows youve done research on the company. Make sure you know some basic information about both the company and the job. You might want to read some recent articles on the company to get a sense of their current goals and projects. Also, be sure to reread the job posting. This way, when you answer the question, you can mention specific aspects of the company and position that appeal to you.
Be specific about why you’re a good fit. Be specific about what makes you a good fit for this role. To prepare your answer, make a list of the requirements of the job (as explained in the job listing), and then note which requirements fit your skills and experience. In your answer, highlight a few of the abilities that qualify you for the job and include successful examples from your previous jobs.
Emphasize what you can contribute. Your answer should also emphasize what you can contribute to the company – what will you bring to the position? Mention any skills or work experience that makes you a unique, strong candidate for the job. If possible, use numbers to express how you can add value to the business. For example, if you saved your previous company a certain amount of money, mention this, and say that you want to do the same for this company.
How to Answer, “Why Do You Want This Job?”
Use this question as an opportunity to “sell” yourself to the employer. In thinking about your answer, first focus upon and list the employer’s strengths (which you will know if you have researched the company): what training and growth opportunities do they provide for someone in your career field? Why do other candidates want to work for them instead of for their competitors? How has the employer contributed to their industry or to their community?
After establishing the context for your answer—the desirability of the employer—you should then highlight what you can bring to the table that will fulfill their needs.
A good way to brainstorm this question is to fill in the following blanks: “Working for you would give me the opportunity to build upon my experience and skills in ___, ___, and ___ as part of what I know would be a really inspiring and rewarding environment, based upon what I’ve heard about your company.”
Once you’ve customized your answer to this question, be sure to practice saying it out loud. It may help to have a friend or family member pretend to be the interviewer who asks you the question. In fact, this is a great way to prepare for a variety of interview questions.
Watch Now: How to Answer “Why Do You Want to Work Here?”
What the Interviewer Wants to Know
Upon first hearing this question (especially if you are unprepared for it), you might think that the hiring manager wants to learn more about what you want in your next job. To some extent, this is true; the employer definitely has to ascertain whether your career goals are aligned with the organization’s needs.
However, this question is actually more about gauging how much you know about the company, its mission, and its operations. It’s basically just a different way of asking, “Why do you want to work here?” The interviewer wants to know if you have taken the initiative to learn about the company and to think about what attracts you to working for them.
Emphasize your passion for the industry
Discuss why youre passionate about joining the employers industry. Enthusiasm for the field can be especially valuable to an employer, as people typically want to hire candidates who are excited about the job theyre applying for. Highlighting your passion for your industry can show an employer that you have extensive knowledge of the industry and a genuine interest in the work you want to perform.
This can tell an employer that you deserve the job by identifying you as a candidate who cares about the work you do and sees work as a positive experience due to your excitement about the industry. You can emphasize your passion by discussing elements of the industry that you enjoy or telling about how you first became interested in your field.
Reference your professional experience
Mention some of your previous work experiences. Work experience is one of the most important things to consider in a job interview, as your previous experiences can inform the work you might do in your new job. Showcasing professional experiences you have that are relevant to the job youre applying to can show interviewers that you deserve the position by identifying job duties and responsibilities that you already know how to fulfill. This can tell an employer that youre ready for the work that the new job entails and that you have the necessary knowledge to succeed in the position.
Example 3: Electrical engineer
“I believe my previous experience as an electrical engineer and the skills I have learned on the job make me deserving of this position.I have held two different apprenticeships before entering the field, where I learned engineering techniques and gained a thorough knowledge of how to use electrical wiring. I also think my strong organizational skills and attention to detail will fit in well with the culture I observe at your company, as everyone always seems busy and focused.
Electrical engineering has been my passion for years, and I hope to continue helping clients that I would be connected with through working at your company.”
How to answer the question “Why do you deserve this job?”
You can answer this question using the following steps:
Both questions – “Why do you deserve this job” and “Why should we hire you?” – are often asked to assess the interviewee’s confidence, meaning confidence in his skills, experience and ability to answer a tough question, Indeed says. And as long as you’re setting out to convey confidence, remember that it shouldn’t be confused with arrogance. A confident person is a self-assured person, but an arrogant person conveys an offensive attitude of superiority.
It’s one thing to be asked why you want a job; the question should be easy to answer if it’s a job you really want. But it’s quite another to be asked why you deserve a job. The word “deserve” strongly implies that you’re worthy – that you should rightly receive it. You may be able to wing some interview questions, but if someone asks why you deserve a position, you should be ready to give an impressive answer because your words may be dissected carefully, as much for what you say as for what you don’t.
Of course, there can be a big difference between reading words on paper and reading them aloud, which is why it’s a good idea to practice your pitch to hear how it sounds. Then tweak your words or modify your approach if you find yourself doing a few things that could sabotage your best efforts, including:
Your level of confidence should benefit from brainstorming the company and the job description, Big Interview says. Read about both, looking for matches between your behaviors, values and attitudes – otherwise known as its culture. (As Wood Personnel Services notes, a good cultural fit doesn’t necessarily mean you “deserve” a job, but it could get your answer off to a relational start and swiftly give you an advantage over other candidates.) For example, if the company website boasts about its “can-do employees,” and you’re a motivated self-starter, make note of it. Anything and everything that enables you to point to similarities between you and the job description will enable you to explain why you deserve the job.
Jotting down these similarities will help you prepare a four-point sales pitch – a term you shouldn’t find offensive if you remember that all interviews are essentially sales pitches. In this case, the product or service “for sale” is you.
How to Answer “Why Do You Want This Job?”
I’m going to show you the exact 3 steps to answer this interview question. Then, we’ll look at two example answers after that. Here are the steps to follow for the best answer…
When answering the “why do you deserve this” question, think about what 2-3 experiences or qualifications you have that make you hands-down the best person for the position. Think about it this way – if you had an elevator ride with the CEO of the company you are applying for, what are the 2-3 things you would tell him or her in the 30 seconds you have together in the elevator?
Just to polish off your answer, add a one-liner about your work ethic and how passionate you are about the position. The combination of your professional experience, skillset, work ethic, and passion should help you answer the “why do you deserve this” question. And remember, the last thing you want to do is fit the stereotype of sounding “entitled” so make sure to sound grateful during the interview, thank the employer for their time after the call, and maintain your sense of politeness and professionalism throughout.
A good exercise to help you answer these questions is to write out your top 5 qualifications – this could be an amazing past internship, a relevant course you took in school, an award you were given, or a skillset you have. Go through each item you write down and rank them – take items 1-3 and those are the items you focus on when answering this question.
Last week on Twitter, a student sent me this question. They said, “How do I answer the – why do you deserve this – internship question?” I wanted to make sure I took some time to think on this one and craft a thoughtful response. I looked up the word deserve on dictionary.com. Here’s what the actual definition says:
Good luck, you got this! For more interview advice, check out my internship book, ALL WORK, NO PAY.
FAQ
Why are you deserving to be hired?
My strong communication and interpersonal skills allow me to help any customer I encounter with enthusiasm and attention to detail, which I believe are important for effective customer service.”
Why do you deserve this job over other candidates?
How do you answer why did you apply for this job?
- Explain something specific that you’re looking for in your job search. …
- Tell them something you noticed about THEIR job that you liked. …
- Recap what you’ve said to show exactly how their job fits what you’re looking for.
