Mock interview practice with your own AI

What they are checking: Whether you can sum up your background in two minutes and link it to this job.

Cover:

• What you do now, in one sentence
• Two or three things from your past that matter for this job
• Why this role is the next step

Avoid:

• Walking through your whole resume in order
• Personal life story
• Going past two minutes

Shape: Present → past highlights → why this job

What they are checking: Whether you read the posting and want this job, not any job.

Cover:

• One or two things in the posting that match what you have done
• What you want to learn or build here
• Something specific about the company

Avoid:

• Only talking about pay or location
• Words that could fit any company

Shape: What drew you → how it fits your experience → what you want to do here

What they are checking: Whether you prepared.

Cover:

• What the company does and for whom
• Something recent: a product, news or growth
• Why that interests you

Avoid:

• Reading the About page back
• Guessing facts you have not checked

Shape: What they do → something recent → why it matters to you

What they are checking: Whether you know what you are good at and can prove it.

Cover:

• Two or three strengths that the job needs
• A short real example for each
• A result where you have one

Avoid:

• A list of adjectives with no examples
• Strengths the job does not need

Shape: Strength → example → result, two or three times

What they are checking: Honesty and whether you improve.

Cover:

• A real weakness that is not central to the job
• What you are doing about it
• Progress so far

Avoid:

• A strength in disguise ("I work too hard")
• A weakness that rules you out for the job

Shape: Weakness → what you do about it → progress

What they are checking: Whether you and the job want the same things.

Cover:

• The kind of work you want
• The kind of team or company
• How this role matches

Avoid:

• Only listing benefits
• Describing a different job

Shape: Work → environment → this role

What they are checking: Whether they can hire you, and whether you are upfront.

Cover:

• A clear yes or no
• Which pass you would need, if you know
• When you could start once it is approved

Avoid:

• Avoiding the question
• Saying no when the answer is yes

Shape: Clear answer → what is needed → start date

What they are checking: Whether you fit the budget.

Cover:

• A range or number you have thought about
• What it is based on (market, your experience)
• Openness on the total package

Avoid:

• A number far from the posted range without a reason
• Refusing to give any figure when asked twice

Shape: Range → what it is based on → open to discuss the package

What they are checking: A benchmark for the offer.

Cover:

• The figure, honestly, or that you are self-employed
• Currency and whether it is monthly or yearly
• Point back to your expectation for this role

Avoid:

• Inflating it
• Mixing currencies without saying so

Shape: Figure with currency → context → your expectation

What they are checking: Timing.

Cover:

• How soon you can start
• Anything that affects it (visa, current contract)
• Whether the date can move if they need you sooner

Avoid:

• Saying immediately when you are not free

Shape: Start date → anything that affects it

What they are checking: Whether there is a red flag.

Cover:

• The honest reason in one or two sentences
• What you did since
• What you are looking for now

Avoid:

• Blaming the old company or manager
• A long story

Shape: Reason → what you did since → what you want now

What they are checking: Whether the gap was used well.

Cover:

• What you did: building, learning, freelancing
• Something concrete you made or learned
• Why you are ready for this job now

Avoid:

• Being vague
• Apologising for the gap

Shape: What you did → proof → why now

What they are checking: Logistics.

Cover:

• A clear answer
• Any conditions
• When you could move

Avoid:

• Saying yes and taking it back later

Shape: Answer → conditions → timing

What they are checking: What you build, how, and what you count as success.

Cover:

• The problem and why it mattered
• What you did yourself
• The result, with a number if you have one
• What you would do differently

Avoid:

• Saying "we" for everything
• No result

Shape: Situation → your part → result → lesson

What they are checking: How you think when stuck.

Cover:

• Why it was hard
• What you tried, including what did not work
• How you found the answer
• The result

Avoid:

• Picking something easy
• Skipping the dead ends

Shape: Problem → attempts → breakthrough → result

What they are checking: Ownership and learning.

Cover:

• What went wrong
• Your part in it
• How you fixed it
• What you changed afterwards

Avoid:

• Blaming others
• A failure with no lesson

Shape: What happened → your part → fix → what changed

What they are checking: How you handle conflict.

Cover:

• What the disagreement was about
• How you listened and argued your view
• How it ended
• What you learned

Avoid:

• Making the other person the villain
• A story where nothing was resolved

Shape: Disagreement → how you handled it → outcome → lesson

What they are checking: Prioritising under pressure.

Cover:

• What was at stake
• What you cut or reordered
• How you kept people informed
• The result

Avoid:

• Only saying you worked late

Shape: Stakes → choices → communication → result

What they are checking: How fast and how well you learn.

Cover:

• What you had to learn and why
• How you learned it
• What you delivered with it

Avoid:

• Claiming expertise you do not have

Shape: Need → how you learned → what you delivered

What they are checking: Whether you ask, decide and move.

Cover:

• What was unclear
• Who you asked and what you decided
• How it turned out

Avoid:

• Waiting for someone else to decide

Shape: Unclear → questions and decision → outcome

What they are checking: Whether you take feedback well.

Cover:

• The feedback
• What you changed
• The difference it made

Avoid:

• Feedback you ignored

Shape: Feedback → change → effect

What they are checking: Communication with people outside the team.

Cover:

• What the problem was
• How you handled the person
• How you solved the issue
• The result

Avoid:

• Complaining about the client

Shape: Problem → handling the person → fix → result

What they are checking: Whether you really built what you claim.

Cover:

• What the system does
• The main parts and how they talk to each other
• Which parts you built
• One decision you made and why

Avoid:

• Staying at the buzzword level
• Not knowing details of parts you claim

Shape: Purpose → architecture → your parts → one decision

What they are checking: Judgement.

Cover:

• The options
• What you chose and why
• What it cost
• Whether you would choose the same today

Avoid:

• Pretending there was no downside

Shape: Options → choice → cost → hindsight

What they are checking: Method.

Cover:

• Gather evidence: logs, metrics, reports
• Narrow it down
• Form and test a guess
• Prevent it next time

Avoid:

• Random changes until it works

Shape: Evidence → narrow → test → prevent

What they are checking: Whether you can think in systems.

Cover:

• Ask what it must do and at what scale
• The main parts
• Where data lives
• What could break and how you would know

Avoid:

• Jumping to tools before the problem
• Over-designing

Shape: Questions → parts → data → failure and monitoring

What they are checking: Testing, deployment and monitoring habits.

Cover:

• Tests you write and why
• How code is reviewed and deployed
• How you watch it once live

Avoid:

• Only saying "I test it"

Shape: Tests → review and deploy → monitoring

What they are checking: Hands-on AI experience, not hype.

Cover:

• What the AI did for users
• How you checked its output
• Cost, speed or reliability limits you hit
• What you would improve

Avoid:

• Only naming models and frameworks
• Claiming production use you did not have

Shape: Use case → checks → limits → next

What they are checking: Practical cloud and DevOps experience.

Cover:

• Which platform and services
• How you deploy (CI/CD, infrastructure as code)
• Security and access
• Monitoring and alerts

Avoid:

• Overstating years with a tool you just learned

Shape: Platform → deploy → security → monitoring

What they are checking: Your pitch.

Cover:

• Two or three things you bring that this job needs
• Proof for each
• Why you want this job in particular

Avoid:

• Putting other candidates down
• Generic claims

Shape: What you bring + proof → why this job

What they are checking: Whether you will grow here and stay.

Cover:

• The skills or role you want to grow into
• How this job helps
• Something realistic

Avoid:

• Wanting the interviewer's job
• Plans that have nothing to do with this job

Shape: Direction → how this job fits

What they are checking: Honesty about gaps.

Cover:

• Say plainly how much experience you have
• Something close that you have done
• How you would get up to speed, with a time frame

Avoid:

• Overstating
• Saying it does not matter

Shape: Honest level → closest experience → plan

What they are checking: Whether your claims hold up under pressure.

Cover:

• How it was measured
• Your share of it
• What it would be without the best case

Avoid:

• Getting defensive
• Changing the number

Shape: How measured → your share → caveats

What they are checking: Interest and judgement.

Cover:

• Two or three questions about the work, the team or how success is measured
• Something you could not find online
• A question that shows you read about the company

Avoid:

• No questions
• Only asking about pay or leave

Shape: Work → team → success

What they are checking: Whether you anchor with a range you can explain, and keep room to talk.

Cover:

• A range you worked out, with the currency and monthly or yearly
• What it is based on: the posted range, pay data you checked, your experience
• That you will look at the whole package, not only the base

Avoid:

• Naming the lowest number you would accept
• A figure with nothing behind it

Shape: Range → what it is based on → whole package

What they are checking: Whether you hold your position calmly and find out more.

Cover:

• Stay calm and polite; do not drop your number on the spot
• Ask what the budget is and what it includes
• Say briefly what you bring to this role
• Ask what else can move (bonus, start date, a pay review after six months)

Avoid:

• Agreeing at once
• Getting defensive or making threats

Shape: Thanks → ask about the budget → what you bring → what else can move

What they are checking: How you take an offer without accepting or refusing in a rush.

Cover:

• Thank them and say you are interested
• Ask for the full offer in writing: base, bonus, leave, benefits, start date
• Ask when they need your answer

Avoid:

• Accepting on the call before you see the details
• Countering before you know the whole package

Shape: Thanks → ask for it in writing → when they need an answer

What they are checking: Whether you check the probation terms before you sign.

Cover:

• How long it is, and whether it can be shorter (for example three months)
• The notice period during probation and after it
• Whether pay, bonus, leave or insurance are lower during probation
• How passing is decided, who decides, and whether you get it in writing

Avoid:

• Accepting without asking anything
• Demanding no probation at all
• Not asking what changes after you pass

Shape: Length → notice → pay and benefits → how you pass

What they are checking: Whether you can ask for one specific change, with a reason.

Cover:

• One specific ask (a figure or one item), not a list of complaints
• The reason: the posted range, pay data you checked, or what you bring
• That you would accept if it is met, only if that is true

Avoid:

• Asking for more without a number
• Making up another offer to push them

Shape: Specific ask → reason → what happens if they agree

What they are checking: Whether you know what else is in a package.

Cover:

• Accept the limit without arguing it again
• Ask about other parts: sign-on bonus, annual bonus, leave, start date, a date for a pay review, relocation or visa costs
• Ask for what you agree in writing

Avoid:

• Repeating the same salary ask
• Taking it as a no on everything

Shape: Accept the limit → ask about other parts → in writing

What they are checking: Whether you stay honest under time pressure.

Cover:

• The truth about your other applications (where they stand; you need not name companies)
• Ask for the time you really need, and why
• What you still need to know to decide

Avoid:

• Making up an offer
• Saying yes only because of the deadline

Shape: Honest answer → time you need and why → what you need to decide