A job interview in Hebrew
A small firm in Ra'anana, the manager's office in Hebrew. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «שלום. ספר על עצמך, בבקשה.» — Hello. Tell us about yourself, please; «אני עובד חמש שנים במשרד גדול. אני מחפש משרה חדשה.» — I have worked five years in a big office. I am looking for a new position.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a small firm in Ra'anana, the manager's office. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- שלום. ספר על עצמך, בבקשה.шалом. сапер аль ацмха, бевакаша.Hello. Tell us about yourself, please.
- אני עובד חמש שנים במשרד גדול. אני מחפש משרה חדשה.ани овэд хамэш шаним ба-мисрад гадоль. ани мехапес мисра хадаша.I have worked five years in a big office. I am looking for a new position.
- למה משרה חדשה?лама мисра хадаша?Why a new position?
- המשכורת שם נמוכה, והמשרה קטנה.ха-мишхорэт шам намуха, ве-ха-мисра ктана.The salary there is low, and the position is small.
- טוב מאוד. משהו עוד?тов меод. машеху од?Very good. Anything else?
- כן. מה המשכורת במשרה הזאת?кен. ма ха-мишхорэт ба-мисра хазот?Yes. What is the salary at this position?
- שמונה אלפים בחודש, ובונוס בסוף השנה.шмона алафим ба-ходеш, ве-бонус бэ-соф ха-шана.Eight thousand a month, and a bonus at the end of the year.
- מעולה. מתי אתם עונים?мецуйан. митай атэм оним?Excellent. When do you answer?
Lines one by one
| Hebrew | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| שלום. ספר על עצמך, בבקשה. | шалом. сапер аль ацмха, бевакаша. | Hello. Tell us about yourself, please. |
| אני עובד חמש שנים במשרד גדול. אני מחפש משרה חדשה. | ани овэд хамэш шаним ба-мисрад гадоль. ани мехапес мисра хадаша. | I have worked five years in a big office. I am looking for a new position. |
| למה משרה חדשה? | лама мисра хадаша? | Why a new position? |
| המשכורת שם נמוכה, והמשרה קטנה. | ха-мишхорэт шам намуха, ве-ха-мисра ктана. | The salary there is low, and the position is small. |
| טוב מאוד. משהו עוד? | тов меод. машеху од? | Very good. Anything else? |
| כן. מה המשכורת במשרה הזאת? | кен. ма ха-мишхорэт ба-мисра хазот? | Yes. What is the salary at this position? |
| שמונה אלפים בחודש, ובונוס בסוף השנה. | шмона алафим ба-ходеш, ве-бонус бэ-соф ха-шана. | Eight thousand a month, and a bonus at the end of the year. |
| מעולה. מתי אתם עונים? | мецуйан. митай атэм оним? | Excellent. When do you answer? |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Hebrew in this situation?
“שלום. ספר על עצמך, בבקשה.” (шалом. сапер аль ацмха, бевакаша.) — Hello. Tell us about yourself, please. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.