Though we live in the 21st century, and robotics and artificial intelligence are the buzzwords of the day, most final products and complex components still have to be assembled by hands, in factories and production plants all around the world. Working as an assembler, you will ensure all parts fit correctly and are suitable for the final product, which you will eventually assemble from them, either manually, or with the help of tool and machinery.
Assembler does not belong to the highest paid jobs in the US (and elsewhere in the world). You may earn about $30,000 annually. On the flip side, you typically do not need higher education to apply for the job, and you can succeed without having any previous experience in the field.
Let’s have a look at some questions you may face while interviewing for this job–the good news is that they won’t be difficult.
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Why do you want to work as an Assembler?
You probably haven’t dreamed of this job as a kid, and it makes no sense trying to convince the interviewers of the opposite. Honesty works the best in this case, plus you should explain how your skills and abilities match with the job description.
You can say that you have strong attention to detail, enjoy manual work, that you are precise and can keep your focus on the long shift. It makes you believe that you will at least somehow enjoy the job, and that you can perhaps be quite good at it, when it comes to quality.
What’s more, you weren’t lucky enough to earn a degree in your life, and maybe do not have much working experience under your belt. In this stage of your professional career and life, the job of an assembler seems like a good fit. That’s why you decided to apply, and hope they will give you a chance to prove your skills.
Another alternative is referring to a recommendation you got from someone in a company. Maybe your friends works for them. They told you great things about the working environment, conditions of employment, and employee benefits, and hence you decided to apply.
Can you tell us more about your working experience?
Mark my words: it doesn’t really matter for them what you did before. What matters, however, is how you narrate your former experience. Do you talk nicely about your former jobs and colleagues, focusing on the things you learned in work, and how you helped them? Or do you dwell on negatives, throwing dirt on your former superiors, complaining about everything?
Companies like to hire enthusiastic and hard working people, people who do not blame others for their mistakes. You should keep this on your mind while narrating your working experience in the interviews.
Of course, if you assembled something in one of your former jobs, you should point it out, saying that you hope the experience will help you in your new job. You should also have an explanation ready for the following question: “Why did you leave your last job?”
How do you imagine a typical day in this factory? What are your expectations on the job of an assembler?
The most important thing is to show realistic expectations. Typically you will stand on your feet for 8 hours a day, or more, next to the assembly line, trying to work quickly to meet the daily quota.
It certainly doesn’t sound like an idea of a perfect job, but it won’t be necessarily bad, once you learn your routines and get into the groove. When it happens the days may fly by, and before you realize it there’s a lunch break and you go home…
Read the job description carefully, and try to learn something about their company. This should help you understand the exact nature of the job. In any case, tell them that you expect to work hard and are ready to do so.
How to you feel about having quotas and targets to meet in work every day?
Again, it doesn’t matter much how you feel about it really. It’s a reality of the job. The factory has to produce certain quantity of components or complex products, and you play just one small (though important) role in the process, assembling the components.
Ensure them that you realize how things work in this business, and are ready to meet the goals and targets they set for you in work–as long as they are realistic, for example based on historical data, and work of other assemblers, the number of tasks they manage to complete in average during the shift.
* May also interest you: Warehouse worker interview questions.
This job is quite repetitive, and one may lose their motivation easily. What will you do to ensure this won’t happen to you?
You have a few options for a good answer here. First one is that you actually prefer repetitive jobs. You aren’t the most creative mind in town–if you were, you would be probably still studying at the University or applying for a different job. Thinking isn’t your greatest strength. But once you learn how to do your job–for example to assemble something, you can be pretty quick, and you enjoy the process.
Second option is referring to your goals, the reasons why you seek the job. Maybe it will be boring, for sure, but you know what gets you up in the morning, why you try to earn money–to pursue some goals you have outside of job, or to give your kids a chance to study, or anything else.
Most jobs for people with your qualification are boring. But you do not mind, and know that in order to retain the job you cannot afford to lose the motivation. Thinking about your goals, the reasons why you work, you think it won’t be difficult to stay motivated.
What will you do to ensure your safety in work, and the safety of your colleagues?
Ensure the interviewers that safety is your first priority. You will definitely wear protective helmet, gloves, or anything else that is required in the workplace. What’s more, if you spot that your colleague isn’t respecting the safety regulations, you will remind them to do so immediately. And if they do not oblige, you will report them.
Of course you won’t do anything to compromise the safety of your colleagues. You will avoid some useless chatter, or anything else that may distract them. Focusing on your job and respecting all safety rules and regulations, nothing should happen to you or to one of your colleagues.
Do you have any experience with this or that tool, this or that machine?
You can find yourself in two positions here. One is when you have experience. In such a case all you have to do is to explain where you worked with the tool, for how long, and how it helped you in your former job.
When you have no experience with the tool or machinery, your best bet is to say that you are a quick learner, and skilled with both your hands and eyes, and believe that you will learn to work with the tool quickly. You certainly won’t be the fastest or most productive assembler on your first shift, but once you learn the ins and outs and practice a bit with this or that tool, you will manage to meet the daily quota.
As long as you are confident that you will handle your job, there’s no reason why a lack of experience with some tool should be a showstopper in this interview…
* May also interest you: Machinist interview questions.
Other questions you may face in your Assembler job interview
- What do you consider your greatest weakness?
- Do you have any experience with reading technical blueprints and schematics?
- How long do you want to have this job?
- How do you manage your time in work?
- Would you mind working overtime sometimes, when the workload is heavy?
- Can you work under pressure?
- After everything we discussed here, do you want to add something, or do you have any questions?
Conclusion, next steps
Interview for a job of an assembler belongs to easy job interviews. Most factories and production plants struggle with labor. Unless you remain silent when they ask you the questions, or do some big mistake in an interview, they will give you a chance to prove your motivation, willingness to learn, and manual skills.
Try to learn something about your future employer, and prepare at least a short answer to each question from my list. And do not forget on a positive body language–they should not get a feeling that you apply for the job with them only because you have to, or have no other options. They should get an impression that you see also some positives about the job of an assembler…
May also help you succeed:
- 15 most common interview questions & answers – Not sure how to answer the questions about your strengths, weaknesses, motivation, and other common interview questions? Check the article and get ready for each one of them.
- Mover interview questions.
