Tell us something about yourself in Serbian
A job interview at a company, a candidate and an HR officer in Serbian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Добар дан. Конкурисао сам за посао преко огласа на сајту.» — Good afternoon. I responded to the vacancy through the ad on your website.; «Изволите, седите. Испричајте нам нешто о себи.» — Please sit down. Tell us something about yourself. Every line can be played right on the page. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a job interview at a company, a candidate and an hr officer. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- Добар дан. Конкурисао сам за посао преко огласа на сајту.Dobar dan. Konkurisao sam za posao preko oglasa na sajtu.Good afternoon. I responded to the vacancy through the ad on your website.
- Изволите, седите. Испричајте нам нешто о себи.Izvolite, sedite. Ispričajte nam nešto o sebi.Please sit down. Tell us something about yourself.
- Завршио сам економију и имам четири године радног искуства.Završio sam ekonomiju i imam četiri godine radnog iskustva.I have an economics degree and four years of work experience.
- Зашто сте дали отказ у претходној фирми?Zašto ste dali otkaz u prethodnoj firmi?Why did you leave your previous job?
- Нисам дао отказ. Био сам технолошки вишак кад су затворили одељење.Nisam dao otkaz. Bio sam tehnološki višak kad su zatvorili odeljenje.I didn't quit. I was laid off when the department was closed.
- Разумем. Имате ли препоруку бившег послодавца?Razumem. Imate li preporuku bivšeg poslodavca?I see. Do you have a reference from your previous employer?
- Имам, послаћу вам је на мејл. А какав је пробни рад код вас?Imam, poslaću vam je na mejl. A kakav je probni rad kod vas?I do; I'll send it to you by email. And what's your probation period?
- Три месеца, плаћен као и редован рад. Понуду за посао шаљемо до петка.Tri meseca, plaćen kao i redovan rad. Ponudu za posao šaljemo do petka.Three months, paid like a regular job. We'll send the job offer by Friday.
Lines one by one
| Serbian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Добар дан. Конкурисао сам за посао преко огласа на сајту. | Dobar dan. Konkurisao sam za posao preko oglasa na sajtu. | Good afternoon. I responded to the vacancy through the ad on your website. |
| Изволите, седите. Испричајте нам нешто о себи. | Izvolite, sedite. Ispričajte nam nešto o sebi. | Please sit down. Tell us something about yourself. |
| Завршио сам економију и имам четири године радног искуства. | Završio sam ekonomiju i imam četiri godine radnog iskustva. | I have an economics degree and four years of work experience. |
| Зашто сте дали отказ у претходној фирми? | Zašto ste dali otkaz u prethodnoj firmi? | Why did you leave your previous job? |
| Нисам дао отказ. Био сам технолошки вишак кад су затворили одељење. | Nisam dao otkaz. Bio sam tehnološki višak kad su zatvorili odeljenje. | I didn't quit. I was laid off when the department was closed. |
| Разумем. Имате ли препоруку бившег послодавца? | Razumem. Imate li preporuku bivšeg poslodavca? | I see. Do you have a reference from your previous employer? |
| Имам, послаћу вам је на мејл. А какав је пробни рад код вас? | Imam, poslaću vam je na mejl. A kakav je probni rad kod vas? | I do; I'll send it to you by email. And what's your probation period? |
| Три месеца, плаћен као и редован рад. Понуду за посао шаљемо до петка. | Tri meseca, plaćen kao i redovan rad. Ponudu za posao šaljemo do petka. | Three months, paid like a regular job. We'll send the job offer by Friday. |
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 it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.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 Serbian in this situation?
“Добар дан. Конкурисао сам за посао преко огласа на сајту.” (Dobar dan. Konkurisao sam za posao preko oglasa na sajtu.) — Good afternoon. I responded to the vacancy through the ad on your website.. 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.