Odd job interviews
古怪的求职面试
求职面试是现代社会的一部分，总有一天我们都要经历的。通常，面试都是被提问一系列的问题或者要求做一个简短的介绍。
不过，有一些公司会进一步让面试者做一些和工作完全没有关系的尴尬的或者丢脸的事情。
Rob和Finn将会在节目中和我们一起聊聊那些奇怪的面试，还会聊到一个人在面试选拔时被要求表演跳舞的趣事。
本期问题：
以下哪一种是被成为驻场营养顾问的职业？是：
a) A waitress 女服务员
b) A school dinner lady 学校餐厅服务员
c) A petrol station assistant 加油站工作人员
让我们一起听节目，找答案吧。
听力内容：
Odd job interviews
NB: This is not a word-for-word transcript
Rob: Welcome to 6 Minute English with me Rob.
Finn: And me, Finn.
Rob: Finn, I'd like to start by asking you: How many job interviews have you had?
Finn: That's difficult. Maybe ten interviews in my life.
Rob: Ten. That's quite a few – and do you enjoy going to job interviews?
Finn: I absolutely adore them! No, I'm joking! Who does? Nobody does.
Rob: Well, for me, they are torture! I hate being grilled by a panel – or group – of people. I know I can do the job but I hate having to convince them! Today, we'll be discussing some odd job interviews and looking at some related vocabulary. So Finn, are you ready for your first interview question?
Finn: Yes Rob, I am raring to go!
Rob: Good to hear. Well, it's important to know what type of job you are being interviewed for. Some job titles are a bit exaggerated. So, what type of job has been named a 'Field Nourishment Consultant'? Is it:
a) A waitress
b) A school dinner lady
c) A petrol station assistant
Finn: I think that it's b) a school dinner lady.
Rob: An interesting choice. I'll let you know if you are wrong or right later on. Let's talk more about job interviews. A traditional interview usually involves being asked a list of questions, and sometimes you have to give a short presentation.
Finn: Yes, questions like: "Why do you want this job?" or, "Where do you see yourself in five years' time?"
Rob: Yeah, that's a tricky one to answer! But some interviewers – the people who ask the questions – go a bit further and ask the interviewees – the people being interviewed – to do some inappropriate things.
Finn: You mean they are asked do things are not really relevant to the job. Such as Alan Bacon, a university graduate, who last year was asked to do a dance as part of his interview.
Rob: Well, maybe the position – or job – was for a dancer or a children's entertainer?
Finn: No – it was actually for a job as a sales assistant in an electronics shop; so, someone who works on the shop floor, giving advice to customers about what to buy. There's no dancing involved.
Rob: Let's hear from him now. What did he do at the interview to look positive? And how did he really feel about doing a dance?
Alan Bacon, university graduate:
We all wanted the job, some of us are desperate, like myself, and the idea is just to keep smiling and go for it. On the surface I had to look positive, I was smiling, I was laughing along with it, but inside I felt degraded and humiliated especially.
Finn: Oh poor Alan. He felt degraded – so he lost respect from other people – and he felt humiliated – so he felt embarrassed and ashamed.
Rob: So that's how he felt on the inside but he wanted the job so he put on a brave face – a positive attitude and a smile on his face; he even laughed.
Finn: Well, later on, he did complain and he got an apology.
Rob: But experts say there are now too many candidates chasing too few jobs so companies are trying unorthodox – non-traditional ways of recruiting people - to see who stands out.
Finn: Yes, well, in any job interview it's good to leave a lasting impression – that means to get noticed and make people remember you. I suppose doing a dance is a good way of breaking the ice – making people feel relaxed – but being asked to do something outside your comfort zone also seems a bit unfair to me.
Rob: Yes, but I guess if you want that job, you'll do anything.
Finn: Well, almost!
Rob: I've heard about people who have had to sing at an interview and also, role playing – pretending to be someone else and acting out a situation.
Finn: I find just being asked odd or random questions in an interview can make me feel uncomfortable. And a US employment website carried out a survey about this and discovered some strange questions…
Rob: Yes they did, such as: "How would you cure world hunger?" and: "If you were a computer programme, which one would you be?" Here's one for you
Finn: "If you were a word in the English language, which word would you be?"
Finn: Which word would you be? Oh, come on, that's unfair. Just asking like that – that's outside my comfort zone Rob!
Rob: Indeed, but I'm trying to break the ice here Finn! Never mind, I'll give you the job anyway! Seriously, there's no perfect way to interview someone for a job. If you are having a job interview, my advice would be to keep calm, think before you speak and if you are asked to do something inappropriate, tell them how you feel about it!
Finn: And if all else fails you could use a bribe? What do you think? No?!
Rob: Not recommended. However you can bribe me to get the answer to today's question?
Finn: I don't think I need to. I think I've got the answer right.
Rob: OK, let's find out. Earlier I asked you if you knew what a 'Field Nourishment Consultant' really is.
Finn: I said b) a school dinner lady – but it could be a man. Is it right?
Rob: It has something to do with food but it's not school dinners. It's actually a waitress – or waiter. I wonder how we could describe our jobs – maybe we could be 'Educational Dissemination Executives'?
Finn: Oh yes, very grand. I like that!
Rob: We hope you've enjoyed today's 6 Minute English. Please join us again soon for another programme.
Both: Bye.
词汇学习：
1. grilled 盘问
2. interviewers 面试官
3. interviewees 面试者
4. position 职位
5. degraded 堕落
6. humiliated 丢脸的，使人感到耻辱的
7. put on a brave face 装作若无其事的样子
8. unorthodox 非正统的，异端的
9. recruiting 招聘
10. leave/ make a lasting impression 留下深刻印象
11. breaking the ice 打破僵局，打破沉默
12. role playing 角色扮演
13. bribe 行贿，贿赂