It is important to be prepared to ask questions during your interview. Most interviewers allow time to ask questions at the end of the interview and they expect that you will have some things to ask. If you have no questions it says that you are unprepared, and may not be very interested in the position. It gives the interviewer the impression that you may have just sent out a lot of resumes, filled out a lot of applications and just showed up to the interview because you were called. If your interviewer does not believe you have a high interest level in their job and their company, you will not be hired.
There are questions that you do not want to ask and that includes pay and benefits. When the company is ready to hire you, they will tell you about benefits and pay. You do not want to ask how many days off you will get during the interview, so do not bring up sick days or vacations days.
Questions that you do want to ask should pertain to the company or to the job. Here are some good questions to ask:
* Why is this position open?
* What growth to you see for the company?
* Is there opportunity for advancement with the company?
* What are the requirements or expectations of the job?
* What is most challenging about the job?
* Is there formal training for this position?
* What is the company culture like?
* What do you like about working for this company?
* Who would be my supervisor?
* Is there a current project or problem that this department is working on?
Think about what is most important to you about your next job. If you were laid off, due to downsizing or the company you worked for went out of business, job security is an especially important issue for you. You would want to be sure to ask about the financial security of the company or the position. You could ask, "Is the company making a profit this year?" or "Is the company financially healthy?"
If you are most concerned about progressing in your career, then you would want to ask about the opportunities for development and advancement. You could ask, "Does the company provide on-going training and development?"
Have your questions ready and take them to the interview with you. When your interviewer asks you, "Do you have any questions?" you will be prepared to ask what you did not learn during your interview.