Interviews: SHOULD I BUY A DRINK?

T26E4
Thu, 17 Nov 2011 09:14:10 +0000

This is not a dumb question as this is often a young person’s first encounter with an interview/meeting w/some social protocols in place. This is applicable to other business mtgs as well.

1) If you arrive early and want one, get yourself a drink. When the interviewer (clearly your senior) arrives, he/she may or may not get a drink. You do not offer to buy him/her one. If he/she wants one, he/she will purchase one.

2) If you both arrive simultaneously or the interviewer is there already, he/she may offer to buy you a drink. If so, accept if you wish to do so. If not, you can delince politely and have a seat.

If he/she does not offer you a drink and you want one, ask if you can excuse yourself to get one. Nothing wrong with this whatsoever. Again, you don’t offer to buy them one.

This is the typical situation when a junior and a senior meet (interviewee & interviewer, student & professor, job applicant & hiring person, etc.) – the senior knows to offer to buy a drink for the junior or at least allow junior to buy himself/herself a drink; the junior does not offer to buy a drink for senior.

If both parties are more equal (say classmates or student & grad assistant), then the mutual offering of drinks is more common.

In most circumstances, it’s inadvisable to order food/snacks unless you know, in advance, that this is a business meal (i.e. both are having breakfast, lunch or dinner). You don’t want to be chatting w/food in your mouth if at all possible.

Good luck, interviewees!

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