This article is a guest contribution from the team over at TheHireUps, a career advice blog that teaches its readers how to find more job opportunities and pass their job interview.

Did you just land yourself a government job interview? Not sure how to prepare to maximize your chance of securing the position?

Not to worry, this article will discuss the best ways to prepare for your government job interview, covering everything from the initial research to the end-of-interview questions.

Let’s get into it.

Research The Organization

When applying for a government job, it’s important to research the organization you’re applying to.

Not only will this give you some insight into the type of person they’re looking to hire, but it will also help will you answer some of the more difficult interview questions.

In particular, questions like:

• What do you know about this organization?
• Why do you want to work here?
• Why makes you qualified for this position?
• Why should we hire you?
• What is our mission statement?

A good first step is to look on the organization’s website or Wikipedia page, where you’ll find most of the facts you need regarding their origin story, mission statement, and other general background information.

Google can also help you source other platforms used by the same government organization or other information written by third parties, such as news outlets.

Finally,  you can also visit sites like Glassdoor and Indeed for reviews of the company from the perspective of current and past employees.

Dress the Part

When you walk into that interview room, the first thing an interviewer will take into consideration is how you present yourself.

Dressing for the position you want is an old-school rule that works well even today, so studying the dress code of the organization you’re applying to work for can provide valuable insight.

In any case, the look you’re trying to achieve is one that is conservative, mature, and experienced.

As a more general rule of thumb, a conservative, business-like attire will always help you achieve this.

Here are some safe suggestions:

• For men: Wear a dark or navy blue conservative suit along with a dress shirt and tie. Top it off with brown or black dress shoes, such as a pair of oxfords or loafers.
• For women: Wear a navy or dark blue suit, skirt or dress pants, and a pair of dress shoes. Avoid wearing anything that is too revealing. Wear makeup but don’t overdo it.

Prepare Answers to Likely Questions

Government job interviews aren’t all that different from regular job interviews, and the series of questions they use is no exception.

With that being said, government positions tend to focus a little more on questions around things like leadership, communication, loyalty, attention to detail, and problem-solving.

You don’t need to prepare word-for-word answers, but having a general idea of the questions to expect can help you get ahead of them, and make some mental notes about what points to touch on.

Here are some of the most common questions:

• Why do you want to work for the government?
• What makes you qualified for the job?
• What are your major strengths?
• What are your major weaknesses?
• What is your work experience like?
• What does leadership mean to you?
• Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
• Why should we hire you over other candidates?
• What is a typical day like for you?
• What is your desired salary?