Interviewing: Moving Beyond the Resume

Dr. John Turbeville, Assistant Dean for Student Affairs and Director of Career Services at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, presented on Improving one’s interviewing skills on Wednesday, April 14, 2021 as part of SUNY ESF’s Perspectives of Career and Gender Spring Seminar Course. 

            Dr. Turbeville discussed interviewing statistics, common interviewing questions employers ask and how to answer them, tips for a successful interview and also highlighted on questions considered illegal during an interview. According to the statistics, 95% of employers say that they are still using resumes and cover letters as the primary medium for deciding who to interview. Dr. Turbeville stated that, employers actually google candidates to see what they learn and how what they are able to find influences negatively or positively, the perceptions of the candidate. During the seminar, we got to know most employers currently use Behavioral-based Interviewing (BBI). “BBI is a technique used in which the job candidate has the opportunity to demonstrate their potential for succeeding in the new job by providing specific examples of how they handled similar situations based on their past experience.” He emphasized the concept of “adaptability” and “creativity” is considered a great strength during interviews in this COVID-19 era. Students then shared their personal experiences with interviews.

Dr. Turbeville received his B.S. in Mathematics from SUNY Oswego, and his M.S. in Higher Education and Ph.D. in Higher Education from the Syracuse University, Maxwell School.  He serves as Dean for Student Affairs and Director of Career Services at the State University of New York- College of Environmental Science and Forestry.  He is the President of SUNY Career Development Organization and a member of The National Career Development Association.

Next in the Gender and Career seminar will be a discussion on Diverse perspectives on gender and science by Dr. Lizette Rivera, Office of Inclusion, Diversity and Equity at SUNY ESF. For more information about the presentation, contact Diane Kuehn, Associate Professor, at dmkuehn@esf.edu or Heather Engelman, engelman@esf.edu .

As part of the requirements of FOR 797 Perspectives on Career and Gender, students take turns summarizing class discussions, for more information, visit: https://www.esf.edu/womenscaucus/Seminar.htm.   The above was prepared by Akosua Asabere, a MS student studying Natural Resources Management in the Department of Sustainable Resource Management.