Education paper by Petersburger, Joe
Institute of Transdisciplinary Discoveries/Medical School/University of Pécs

Sell Yourself at Job Interviews: understanding employer's perspective

Type of Abstract (select): Book Presentation

Abstract (max. 250 words):
There is an ongoing, intense request from students to receive training about job interview situations. Unfortunately, most university curriculums are not containing such education.
However, statistics show that a decision is made within the first 2-3 minutes in case of 80% of the interviews are longer than 30 minutes in general...

On top of it, most of the applicants fail because they do not get the main point: almost every question is asking for something else than the question means grammatically.

We could create a clear format that is understandable for all students:
1. We discuss what does the actual question really mean? What the recruiter really wants to know?
2. Typical mistakes, what everyone should avoid both professionally and culturally
3. Tips for a well-structured, proper answer.
4. Concrete examples are the next, which reflect real-life situations.
5. What this situation teaches us? - what recruiter can learn from the answer?

Even though this course is proposed for medical school, we accept students from other faculties. The curriculum became so fortunate that we have success stories from medical doctors through graphic designers to soccer coaches.

Hungary, especially Budapest became a multinational environment, providing plentiful opportunities for people abroad. However, foreigners don’t understand Hungarian culture in-depth and make terrible mistakes without even recognizing them. Just like Hungarians if they go abroad. We teach students how to act and react properly in such life-determining situations both if they stay as an alien or if they leave as a Hungarian.


Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Joe Petersburger is a photographer and publicist for National Geographic, a biologist Ph.D., and public speaking specialist. He has over 10 years of experience in recruitment and over 20 years in training students, employees, and employers all around the globe. The material included in this book is part of his "Sell Yourself!" course family, where one particular course series is focusing exclusively on job interview situations, motivational letters, and CV writing.