English in Interviews

Feedback and Tips

Based on feedback from mock interviews with natives/teachers, here are the main tips to improve your performance in English interviews:

1. The “Show, Don’t Tell” Rule

Instead of simply stating “Yes, I know Node.js”, demonstrate your knowledge through real examples from your experience. Provide context on where and how you used the tool (e.g., “I used Node.js to build a serverless architecture…”). The interviewer evaluates your technical proficiency much better when you tell a story associated with the technology.

2. Control “Hesitation Markers”

It is normal to hesitate and look for words, but doing it too much harms communication fluency.

• What to avoid: Elongating vowel sounds (e.g., “soooo…”, “and aaaa…”) or using filler words (“like”, “you know”).
• What to do: Replace these hesitations with silence. A half-second to one-second pause sounds natural, shows confidence, and gives your brain time to formulate the sentence correctly.

3. Important Grammar Points

• Tools don’t have gender: When talking about AI (ChatGPT, Copilot, NotebookLM), never use him or her. Always use it.
• Simple Present for Routines: When describing continuous processes in your current job, use the simple present (“I use this AI agent”, “I write specs”) and avoid unnecessary gerunds (“I’m using”, “I like to developing”).
• Relative Clauses: Use where or which/that for environments (e.g., “environments where I can create…”), never use who, as it is reserved only for people.
• Regular Plurals and Articles: Words like people and children are already plural. Do not say “a different people”. Just say “different people” or “some different people”.

4. Technical Vocabulary — Pronunciation and Usage Pitfalls

Feedback from the mock with Augusto Bretas (English coach, 7/7/2026):

• Harness, not “harmless” or “harmony”: When talking about AI guardrails, the correct word is harness (or guardrails). “We set up guardrails so the AI doesn’t commit code directly.”
• Harnesses (plural) works equally: “The harnesses I’ve built prevent hallucinations from reaching production.”
• Don’t use him/her for AI tools — repeated because it’s a very common mistake. “NotebookLM is great for discovery — it ingests documentation and helps me map dependencies.” (not: “he reads the docs”)

5. Rhythm and Fluency — What Works Well

Augusto’s feedback was mostly positive with specific refinement points:

What you do well:

• Illustrating answers with examples: When asked about Node.js, you brought a real project. When asked about CI/CD, you brought a concrete example. This “Show, Don’t Tell” pattern is highly valued.
• Pacing: Speed and clarity were appropriate for interviewers who don’t have English as their first language.

What to improve:

• Hesitation markers (see section 2): the level was acceptable but can improve with practice.
• Verb tense for routines: use the simple present, not the gerund, to describe habitual workflows.

Context: Sphise Interview (ended due to fluency)

In the interview with Sphise (7/3/2026, 9 minutes), the process was terminated early because the position required fluent English (C1/native level) for integration with a mostly American team.

Lesson: When a role specifies fluent English as a requirement, clarify in the initial screening whether your B2 level is sufficient — it avoids awkwardness and saves time for both sides. That said, the interviewer appreciated the honesty in declaring your actual level.

Relacionadas: entrevistas-moc · entrevista-pitch-historias · entrevista-postura-e-entrega