keigoLesson 1

Self-Introduction in an Interview — Senior colleague

Situation

Where
A job interview
Who
You (candidate) and the senior colleague
Goal
To give a concise self-introduction at the start of an interview.

Conversation

Show

A

So, first, please introduce yourself.

B

My name is Tanaka. In my previous job, I was in charge of web application development.

B

For three years, I gained broad experience from design to operations.

A

Thank you. How large was your team?

B

It was a small team of about five, and we worked closely together.

Vocabulary (10)

jikoshoukai

self-introduction

The opening of nearly every interview.

zenshoku

previous job

前職では… = "in my previous job…"

tantousuru

to be in charge of

開発を担当する = "to be in charge of development."

sekkei

design (engineering)

From design 設計 to operations 運用.

un'you

operation / running

Keeping a system running in production.

habahiroku

broadly / widely

幅広く経験する = "to gain broad experience."

kibo

scale / size

チームの規模 = "the size of the team."

otsukaresamadesu

thank you for your work

The all-purpose workplace greeting, used like hello and goodbye between coworkers.

yoroshikuonegaishimasu

thank you in advance

Closes most requests and emails; sets a cooperative tone.

kakunin

confirmation / check

Daily-use word: ご確認お願いします means "please check."

Grammar

Verb te-form + おりました

Humble past continuous: 担当しておりました.

Noun + から + Noun + まで

From … to …: 設計から運用まで.

Number + ほど

Approximately: 五人ほど = "about five people."

Cultural Notes

Workplace etiquette

Keep the self-introduction to about a minute: name, recent role, key experience. Detail comes from follow-up questions.

Formality level

Full keigo with humble おります. Interviews are the most formal everyday setting.

Common mistake

Don't recite your whole résumé. Lead with your most relevant experience and let them ask for more.

Quiz

What does "自己紹介" mean?

What does "前職" mean?

What does "担当する" mean?

What does "設計" mean?

What does "運用" mean?

What does "幅広く" mean?

How is the pattern "〜ております" used?

How is the pattern "〜から〜まで" used?

How is the pattern "〜ほど" used?

What is the goal of this conversation?

Flashcards

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Save all 10 vocabulary items to your deck and review them later with spaced repetition.