Situation
Yamada-san is applying for a job at an IT company in Tokyo. Tanaka-san is the hiring manager conducting a formal interview in the company's conference room. It is Yamada-san's first interview here, and he uses his most polite Japanese throughout.
Both speakers maintain formal speech (keigo) from start to finish — a non-negotiable in Japanese interviews. Two terms are worth memorizing before you walk in: 御社 (onsha, your company) and 弊社 (heisha, our company). Getting these right signals cultural awareness, not just language ability.
Dialogue
田中: どうぞ、おかけください。今日はよろしくお願いします。
Tanaka: Dōzo, okake kudasai. Kyō wa yoroshiku onegai shimasu.
Tanaka: Please have a seat. Thank you for coming today.
山田: ありがとうございます。山田と申します。よろしくお願いいたします。
Yamada: Arigatō gozaimasu. Yamada to mōshimasu. Yoroshiku onegai itashimasu.
Yamada: Thank you very much. My name is Yamada. It is a pleasure to meet you.
田中: 山田さん、まず簡単に自己紹介をお願いできますか。
Tanaka: Yamada-san, mazu kantan ni jikoshōkai wo onegai dekimasu ka.
Tanaka: Yamada-san, could you please give us a brief self-introduction first?
山田: はい。私は大学を卒業してから、二年間、販売会社で働いています。
Yamada: Hai. Watashi wa daigaku wo sotsugyō shite kara, ninenkan, hanbai kaisha de hataraite imasu.
Yamada: Yes. Since graduating from university, I have been working at a sales company for two years.
田中: 弊社を志望した理由を教えてください。
Tanaka: Heisha wo shibō shita riyū wo oshiete kudasai.
Tanaka: Please tell me why you applied to our company.
山田: 御社のITサービスにとても興味があります。将来、IT分野で働きたいと思っています。
Yamada: Onsha no IT sābisu ni totemo kyōmi ga arimasu. Shōrai, IT bunya de hatarakitai to omotteimasu.
Yamada: I am very interested in your company's IT services. I hope to work in the IT field in the future.
田中: 今までにどんな仕事をしたことがありますか。
Tanaka: Ima made ni donna shigoto wo shita koto ga arimasu ka.
Tanaka: What kinds of work have you done up until now?
山田: 接客の仕事をしたことがあります。それから、パソコンを使う仕事も少し経験があります。
Yamada: Sekkyaku no shigoto wo shita koto ga arimasu. Sorekara, pasokon wo tsukau shigoto mo sukoshi keiken ga arimasu.
Yamada: I have done customer service work before. I also have some experience in work that uses computers.
田中: 残業することができますか。
Tanaka: Zangyō suru koto ga dekimasu ka.
Tanaka: Are you able to work overtime?
山田: はい、できます。ただ、週に二、三回なら大丈夫だと思います。
Yamada: Hai, dekimasu. Tada, shū ni ni, san-kai nara daijōbu da to omoimasu.
Yamada: Yes, I can. However, I think two or three times a week would be fine.
田中: いつから働き始めることができますか。
Tanaka: Itsu kara hataraki hajimeru koto ga dekimasu ka.
Tanaka: When can you start working?
山田: 来月からでよければ、働くことができます。現在の会社に一ヶ月前に知らせなければなりません。
Yamada: Raigetsu kara de yokereba, hataraku koto ga dekimasu. Genzai no kaisha ni ikkagetsu mae ni shirasenakereba narimasen.
Yamada: If next month is okay, I can start working. I must notify my current company one month in advance.
田中: わかりました。何か質問はありますか。
Tanaka: Wakarimashita. Nani ka shitsumon wa arimasu ka.
Tanaka: I understand. Do you have any questions?
山田: はい。入社後のトレーニングについて教えていただけますか。
Yamada: Hai. Nyūsha go no torēningu ni tsuite oshiete itadakemasu ka.
Yamada: Yes. Could you please tell me about the training after joining the company?
Key Vocabulary
面接
mensetsu
— job interview
自己紹介
jikoshōkai
— self-introduction
弊社
heisha
— our company (humble form used by the speaker)
御社
onsha
— your company (respectful form for the listener's company)
志望
shibō
— desire to apply; aspiration
卒業
sotsugyō
— graduation
経験
keiken
— experience
接客
sekkyaku
— customer service; attending to customers
残業
zangyō
— overtime work
将来
shōrai
— future; one's future prospects
興味
kyōmi
— interest
入社
nyūsha
— joining a company
質問
shitsumon
— question
分野
bunya
— field; area; domain
Grammar Notes
- 〜てから (〜te kara): "After doing ~". The first action must be fully complete before the second begins — not just happening in sequence, but truly finished. In the dialogue: 大学を卒業してから、二年間、販売会社で働いています (After graduating from university, I have been working at a sales company for two years). Compare: 食べてから薬を飲みます (Take medicine after eating).
- 〜たことがある (〜ta koto ga aru): "Have done ~ before". Used to report past experience, not to describe a specific event. In the dialogue: 接客の仕事をしたことがあります (I have done customer service work before). The negative form, 〜たことがない, means you have never done something: 日本に行ったことがない (I have never been to Japan).
- 〜たいと思っている (〜tai to omotteiru): "I am hoping / planning to do ~". The addition of と思っている softens 〜たい into an ongoing intention rather than a direct wish. This indirectness is valued in formal speech. In the dialogue: IT分野で働きたいと思っています (I am hoping to work in the IT field). Saying just 働きたいです in an interview can sound abrupt.
- 〜なければなりません (〜nakereba narimasen): "Must do ~". A polite expression of obligation. In the dialogue: 会社に一ヶ月前に知らせなければなりません (I must notify the company one month in advance). The casual equivalent is 〜なきゃ, but avoid that form entirely in formal settings.
- 〜ことができる (〜koto ga dekiru): "Can do ~ / Be able to do ~". More formal than the plain potential form (e.g., 働ける). Preferred in written Japanese and business speech. In the dialogue: 残業することができます (I am able to work overtime).
- 〜について教えていただけますか (〜ni tsuite oshiete itadakemasu ka): "Could you please tell me about ~?". Combines 〜について (about / regarding) with 教えていただけますか, a very polite request form. In the dialogue: トレーニングについて教えていただけますか (Could you please tell me about the training?). Swap in any topic: 給料について教えていただけますか (Could you tell me about the salary?).
Cultural Notes
A Japanese 面接 (mensetsu) runs on keigo from the moment you walk in. Applicants switch into humble forms (謙譲語, kenjōgo) for anything they do themselves, and respectful forms (尊敬語, sonkeigo) for anything involving the interviewer or their company. In the dialogue, Yamada says 申します (mōshimasu) instead of 言います (iimasu) when giving his name — a small detail interviewers notice immediately. He also uses 御社 (onsha) rather than the everyday 会社; the hiring manager mirrors this by referring to his own firm as 弊社 (heisha). Spend most of your prep time on a clean 自己紹介 (jikoshōkai): your background, a line or two of work history, and one specific reason you applied to that company.
Body language matters as much as vocabulary. Bow when entering and leaving the room, sit straight without crossing your legs, and hand documents over with both hands. Silence before answering is not a problem — interviewers read a pause as careful thinking, not hesitation. Arrive 5 to 10 minutes early and dress conservatively: a dark suit, minimal accessories. All of this connects to three values that run through Japanese professional culture: 敬意 (keii, respect), 謙遜 (kenson, humility), and 和 (wa, harmony).
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Practice
Ways to drill this conversation:
- Role-play both sides: Swap roles each round — one session as Yamada-san, the next as Tanaka-san. Hearing the exchange from both seats makes the responses feel less like memorized lines.
- Substitution drill — job field: Replace IT分野 (IT bunya, IT field) with: 医療分野 (iryō bunya, medical field), 教育分野 (kyōiku bunya, education field), or 金融分野 (kin'yū bunya, finance field). Practice the full sentence: 〜分野で働きたいと思っています.
- Substitution drill — work experience: Replace 接客の仕事 (sekkyaku no shigoto, customer service work) with: 事務の仕事 (jimu no shigoto, clerical work), 営業の仕事 (eigyō no shigoto, sales work), or 教える仕事 (oshieru shigoto, teaching). Use the pattern: 〜をしたことがあります.
- Substitution drill — availability: Replace 来月から (raigetsu kara, from next month) with: 二週間後から (ni-shūkan go kara, starting in two weeks), 三ヶ月後から (san-kagetsu go kara, starting in three months), or すぐに (sugu ni, immediately).
- Variation scenario: Extend the dialogue so Yamada-san asks about salary (給料, kyūryō) or working hours (勤務時間, kinmu jikan). Practice the pattern: 〜についても教えていただけますか (Could you also tell me about ~?).