Interview Sarthi
US job interviews for Indians: how to answer the American way
For Indian students on F-1 OPT, H-1B workers changing jobs, and anyone interviewing with a US employer from India.
Short answer: US interviews are mostly behavioural. Expect a 20–30 minute recruiter screen, then rounds that ask “tell me about a time…”. Answer with short stories (situation, task, action, result), talk about what you did, give salary as an annual base in dollars, and answer the work-authorisation question in one honest sentence.
Use live help only where the interview's rules allow AI assistance.
The usual process
- Recruiter screen (phone or video, 20–30 minutes): your background, why this role, work authorisation, salary range and timing.
- Hiring manager: your experience in depth and a few behavioural questions.
- Skills rounds: technical, case, portfolio or take-home work, depending on the role.
- The “loop” or final round: several interviewers in one day, each assessing different skills.
Every company runs its own version, so ask the recruiter: “What are the next steps, and who will I meet?” It is a normal question in the US.
“Tell me about yourself”, US style
Present, past, future, in about a minute. No family background, no 10th and 12th percentages.
Example: data analyst, MS in the US, on STEM OPT
“I'm a data analyst at a logistics start-up in Dallas, where I build the dashboards our operations team uses every morning. Last quarter I found that 14% of late deliveries came from two warehouses' scheduling, and the fix cut late deliveries by a fifth. Before my master's at UT Dallas I spent three years at an analytics firm in Bengaluru. I'm looking for a role where analysis feeds directly into product decisions, which is why this position caught my eye.”
One current job, one number, one line of history, one reason for this role. Replace every detail with your own.
Behavioural questions and the STAR method
“Tell me about a time you disagreed with your manager”, “…missed a deadline”, “…had to learn something fast”. Interviewers score these against the skills in the job description. Answer with Situation, Task, Action, Result, and spend most of the time on the action.
“Tell me about a time you disagreed with your manager.”
“Situation: my manager wanted to launch a new pricing page before the holiday sale. Task: I owned the A/B test results, and they showed the new page converting worse on mobile. Action: I asked for fifteen minutes, showed the mobile numbers next to desktop, and proposed launching on desktop only while we fixed the mobile layout. Result: we did that; desktop revenue rose 6% during the sale and mobile caught up two weeks later.”
Say “I” for your part. Indian candidates often say “we” out of politeness, and US interviewers then cannot tell what you did.
Prepare five or six stories that cover the common themes: a conflict, a failure, a deadline, leading without authority, a decision with incomplete data and learning something new. One good story can answer several questions. More worked examples are in the STAR guide, and Amazon's version is in the Leadership Principles guide.
Salary: annual base, researched, in dollars
- Research the role, company and city. Levels.fyi and Glassdoor help, and the US Department of Labor publishes the wages employers file for H-1B workers, which several free sites let you search by company and job title. It is the closest thing to real pay data for sponsored roles.
- Look at the posting. Several states and cities, including California, Colorado, New York and Washington, require a pay range in job adverts.
- You may not be asked your current salary. Many states and cities ban salary-history questions. If you are asked, you can answer with your expectation instead.
Script
“Based on what I've seen for this role in Austin, I'm looking at a base salary in the 95 to 105 thousand range, depending on the full package. What range has the team budgeted?”
An example figure only: use your own research. More on anchoring a range in the salary expectations guide.
Small things that matter more in the US
- Small talk at the start is normal. A friendly line about your week is enough.
- Ask questions at the end. “What does success look like in the first 90 days?” and “What is the team working on next quarter?” work in almost any interview. “No questions” can read as low interest.
- Send a thank-you email within a day: two or three sentences that mention something specific you discussed.
- Work authorisation: one honest sentence. See the sponsorship guide for OPT and H-1B scripts.
Indian-English phrases that confuse interviewers abroad
These are normal at home and in Indian offices, but they slow down an interviewer in New York, London, Toronto or Dubai. Swap them before the call:
| Instead of | Say |
|---|---|
| “I passed out in 2024” | “I graduated in 2024” |
| “I have a doubt” | “I have a question” |
| “I will revert” | “I will get back to you” |
| “Can we prepone it?” | “Can we move it earlier?” |
| “Please do the needful” | Say the actual request: “Could you send the offer details?” |
| “My CTC is 18 LPA” | “My base salary is about … a year” (convert, and say base and bonus separately) |
| “I was out of station” | “I was travelling” |
Speak a little slower than you do at home and finish sentences clearly. Nobody expects you to change your accent; they need to follow your examples.
Two ways Interview Sarthi helps
Practise before the interview, or get suggested answers during the call. Both start free.
Before the interview
Prep Sarthi
- A spoken AI mock interview from your CV and the job you want
- Follow-up questions, then feedback with a stronger answer
- Phone or computer, nothing to install
- Free 7-minute demo, then ₹99 for 30 days
During the interview
Live Sarthi
- Suggested answers from your CV on your screen during Teams, Zoom or Google Meet calls
- Hidden from supported Windows screen sharing; no bot joins your meeting
- Windows 10 (2004 or later) or Windows 11, with your own free Gemini key
- 30 minutes free, then ₹99 for 2 days
Use live help only where the interview's rules allow AI assistance. Looking for roles abroad? Apply Sarthi lists jobs worldwide, free. See how to practise from your resume.