Should You Go For an Interview While Pregnant Or Pull Out
Interviewing for jobs when pregnant is professional and you should not be worried about it. Your pregnancy status does not stop you from applying and actively interviewing for job prospects till you get one.
You should not think of interviewing when expectant as a bad idea or impossible. While some employers may discriminate against pregnant women who show up for interviews, there are many others who hire based on qualifications and value. You can successfully go through the interview process when pregnant and get a job.
You can interview for new jobs at any point in your pregnancy. You can interview for a job and get hired when in your first trimester at 1, 2, or 3 months or in your second trimester at 4, 5, or 6 months or even in the third trimester at 7 or 8 months.
As such, there is no reason to pull out of interviews because you are pregnant. Also, you apply and get invited for interviews but learn about your pregnancy later.
In both cases, you should still go ahead and continue with the interviewing process. The pregnancy should not make you drop interviews you have been invited for.
What to Wear/Appropriate Clothes for Pregnant Women when Interviewing)
When interviewing while pregnant, you may need to hide your pregnancy if it is not obviously visible. You should however ensure that you are looking professional during the interview despite the pregnancy being in 1st, the 2nd, or 3rd trimester.
Avoid flattering clothes and wear appropriate and official loose-fitting clothes. Some options of clothes to wear to interviews when pregnant in 1st, the 2nd or 3rd trimesters include;
1. High-waist Dresses or Skirts- Professional
Wear high-waist dresses or skirts as they are appropriate for pregnancy interviewing
2. Loose Coats and Sweaters – Appropriate for Interview
Loose coats and sweaters are also professional for wearing to interviews when pregnant
3. Scarfs – Hides Bump during Interview
Scarfs are also professional and take the attention away from the belly during interviews
4. Neck Accessories- Shifts Attention from Bump
Neck accessories are helpful for pregnant moms who are actively interviewing
5. Layering – Conceals Pregnancy when Interviewing
Layering helps conceal visible signs of your pregnancies. Wear layers over layers of clothing, especially on the upper body, to the interview.
Read: How to Hide Pregnancy Bump during Interviews and Get a Job
Proven Helpful Tips on Getting Ready for Interviews when Pregnant
1. Use a Career Coach- Helps you Get Ready
Use a career coach if you can afford it to help you prepare for the interview. They will guide you on how to sell yourself and leverage any skill or past experience you have to land the job despite being pregnant in 1st, the 2nd, or 3rd trimester.
2. Practice/Mock Interviews – Helps you Prepare
Use practice/mock interviews to prepare and get ready for interview questions. Friends and family will be willing to help stage a mock interview to help you get comfortable with interviews.
3. Prepare with Sample Interview Questions
Search for your job title interview questions on Google or YouTube. As you read through or watch the videos, pause and carve out your own answers to the interview questions. It is a great way of preparing for interviews when pregnant in 1st, the 2nd, or 3rd trimester.
4. Research the Interviewing Company
Research more on the company in preparation for the interview. Read recent research reports, interviews, annual reports, social media posts, websites, blogs, newsletters, and eBooks among others. The information will help you tie back your answers to questions.
5. Prepare your Own Questions to Ask Interviewers
Prepare for questions that you want to ask the panel. You are also interviewing them. Having that mindset changes how confident and relaxed you sound which makes you a more appealing candidate
Rules/Do and Don’ts During Interviews When Pregnant
- Get comfortable interviewing while pregnant. It is also important that you get confident in yourself. Everything that you say during the interview, say it confidently. Speak loudly and clearly for everyone to hear.
- Be strategic with how you answer questions or what you say during interviews when pregnant. Use the STAR (Situation, task, action, result) approach to interviewing when pregnant. It’s a way to frame your responses to behavioral questions in interviews.
- Think about your strengths and what you have accomplished so far and share this during the interview. Talking about this will help you leverage the value and worth you will bring to the company even when pregnant in 1st, the 2nd, or 3rd trimester.
- During the interview discuss examples from your previous employer; mention your experience with the industry and familiarity with competitions, as well as the internal processes and how things get done. An understanding of how to get stuff done is going to help you have a successful interview and get the job.
- The best way of helping the interviewers see your value is by showing them how transferable your previous experience is. Even if it’s not exactly the same, explain what key skills or talents were you able to develop that would be helpful for the new role.
- Do not disclose the news of your pregnancy during interviews. Do not say or discuss your pregnancy with your interviewers. You are not obligated to talk about your pregnancy. Your employer or interviewer cannot and is not allowed to ask you about your pregnancy.
- Don’t give your interviewers a reason to discriminate against you. If they offer the job that’s the time you can tell them about your pregnancy and negotiate for leave. A good company wouldn’t even want to know because it could give the appearance of discrimination or cause unintentional discrimination and it opens them up to legal issues.
- Opt for zoom interviews if possible. They are more comfortable for pregnant women and you can hide your pregnancy bump this way to get the job
Read: When and How to Disclose Pregnancy to Employer
Crucial Questions you Must Ask Panel During Pregnancy Interviews
It is important that while interviewing during pregnancy you learn more about the potential employer. You need information about the work environment that you will be working in and what policies affect you as a pregnant woman and breastfeeding mom.
Some important questions that you should ask employers or interviewers during interviews when pregnant include;
1. Ask about Maternity Leave during the Interview
Since you are already pregnant you may not qualify for maternity leave but your employer may have its own maternity or disability leave.
2. Ask about your Work Schedule during the Interview
You need to understand if the work will allow you to balance your personal life
3. Ask about Mom-Friendly Policies during the Interview
Ask the interviewers what policies they have in place to protect and accommodate pregnant women and breastfeeding moms such as breaks, a lactation room, an anti-discrimination policy, etc.
4. Ask your Interviewers about any Work Travel
You need to know if you will be expected to travel for work, especially now that you are pregnant and will have a young baby soon.
These questions will help you learn more and find out how the company is before you start working here. The answers will help you decide if you would want to work for this potential employer and if you should accept the job if you get an offer.
Read: Questions to Ask Employer about Maternity Leave
Tips & Secrets on Starting and Adjusting to New Job When Pregnant
Starting a new job when pregnant can be very hard. However, it is possible to do it. You may also start a job only to soon realize that you are pregnant. All are doable
- Plan to cover your maternity leave costs. Look up the other parental leave policies the employer has. But you may not qualify for state or company maternity leave. Therefore you need to have a safety net if you cannot get any maternity leave benefits.
- You need to plan your health insurance after starting the new job. If your new employer is offering health insurance, you need to switch and get everything ready as you wait for delivery.
- Have another job lined up when you start a job while pregnant. Depending on the company you risk losing your job after you deliver. Because you have not worked for over 1 year, you may not qualify for job protection while on maternity leave. As such you need to have another job lined up as an alternative if you lose your new job during maternity leave.
- Drop the self-imposed feeling of inadequacy. Aim to perform and give your job the best, even if short-lived. A good employer will want you back after maternity leave.
- When you start a new job when pregnant do not apologize for the inconvenience, or focus too much on pregnancy but on your value as a professional. You have an opportunity to give a strong positive impression so keep it professional, direct, and positive.
- Surround yourself with a support system of people who love you and care for you. They will help you adjust and navigate the changes of starting a new job when pregnant.
- Start preparing to get reliable free childcare in place. You need someone reliable to care for your baby as soon as baby arrives.
