Office of Graduate Affairs

How to Answer: "Tell Me About Yourself"

So, the first question you’re probably going to get in an interview is, “Tell me about yourself.” Now, this is not an invitation to recite your entire life story or even to go bullet by bullet through your resume. Instead, it’s probably your first and best chance to pitch the hiring manager on why you’re the right one for the job.

A useful formula for answering this is the Present-Past-Future formula.

1. First you start with the present—where you are right now.
2. Then, segue into the past—a little bit about the experiences you’ve had and the skills you gained at the previous position.
3. Finally, finish with the future—why you are really excited for this particular opportunity.

Example: If someone asked, “tell me about yourself,” you could say:

I’m currently a doctoral student in neuroscience at Brandeis, where I am researching XXXX. Before that, I worked for the Michael J Fox Foundation where I was a Research Partnerships Intern and conducted industry research on companies involved in Parkinson’s disease research and therapeutic development. I also assisted the Clinical Operations team on projects aimed at increasing best practices for Parkinson’s disease clinical research.

Now that I’m finishing my PhD, I’d love the chance to focus on researching Parkinson’s full time, which is why I’m so excited about the Associate Scientist position at Biogen.

Remember throughout your answer to focus on the experiences and skills that are going to be most relevant for the hiring manager when they’re thinking about this particular position and this company.

Source, Adapted from: www.themuse.com/advice/a-simple-formula-for-answering-tell-me-about-yourself