With resignation date recently passed, schools up and down the country are turning to supply agencies to support with their staffing requirements for long-term positions in September.
To ensure they get the right fit for their school, most settings will conduct interviews or trial days for supply staff. Whilst these can be daunting, particularly for newly qualified early career teachers, they’re also a great way for you to gain some interview experience and get to know the type of environment you’ll be working in.
In this blog, we’ll talk you through how supply interviews and trial days work and what you can do to improve your chances of securing the role.
Trial day vs interview
If you’re offered a trial day with Source Supply, you’ll need to have completed all our vetting checks and be ready for work. If you find formal interviews intimidating, trial days are a great option – they’re often more relaxed and allow you time in the classroom doing what you do best, plus you’ll get paid for your efforts.
You’ll usually work for a morning or afternoon and the class teacher or senior leaders will pop in to observe you. Once your trial is complete, they’ll give us feedback and we’ll let you know if you’ve been successful.
On the other hand, interviews for long-term roles can be conducted while you’re still going through the clearance process with us. Often held after school, they’re a chance for you to meet senior leadership, get to know the school and decide if the role is right for you. They’re usually less formal than interviews for permanent roles, but it’s still important to prepare well.
Preparation is key
Regardless of whether you’re doing a trial day or an interview with us, it’s important that you prepare properly. This will include:
- Researching the school, so you understand their ethos, structure and goals.
- Rehearsing some commonly asked interview questions so you can answer any queries confidently. Topics that usually come up include behaviour management, teaching style and safeguarding.
- Gathering evidence of your experience and professional development. You need to showcase how your knowledge will benefit the school.
- Preparing any questions you might have about the role or the school
For trial days, we’ll always let you know if you need to plan or if lessons plans will be provided, but it’s a great idea to have some well-rehearsed sessions up your sleeve that you know will impress on the day.
The beauty of working on supply is that, even if you’re unsuccessful at trial or interview, there will always be more opportunities. We’re here to support you, so where we can we’ll always get feedback from schools so you can keep developing professionally.
