You walk into the interview room. You knock, step through the door, make eye contact, exchange a quick greeting, and sit down. Then the interviewer asks the first question.
By the time you begin answering, an impression is already forming. Not the verdict. Not the hire-or-no-hire decision. But a meaningful first read. One study found that strangers who watched only the entrance, greeting, and first few seated seconds of 59 job interviews gave ratings that correlated with trained interviewers' evaluations after the full conversation.
The opening did not determine who advanced, and the study did not prove that it anchored everything that followed. But it gave observers a meaningful preview of how candidates would be judged.
What the researchers tested
The researchers recorded structured interviews that lasted about 15 to 25 minutes. Trained interviewers rated each candidate on attributes including likability, confidence, intelligence, and professional competence.
Then 47 new observers saw a short clip from each interview. Each clip began when the candidate knocked and ended ten seconds after the candidate sat down. The clips lasted 20 to 32 seconds and included sound, so observers could hear the greeting as well as see the entrance.
This paper was presented at an academic conference. It was not published in a peer-reviewed journal.
What they found
The brief-clip ratings correlated with the trained interviewers' final ratings for:
- Likability: r = .46
- Self-assuredness: r = .43
- Competence: r = .39
- The combined global evaluation: r = .45
These moderate correlations show agreement between two sets of observers. They do not prove that the greeting caused the later rating.
The short clips also did not predict which specific candidates the trained interviewers selected to advance. That is an important limit. The study supports “the opening is informative,” not “the opening decides the job.”
The audio matters
This was not a silent body-language study. The observers heard the candidates speak during the greeting.
The paper does not separate the contribution of voice, words, clothing, posture, handshake, and movement. It therefore cannot tell us which single cue produced the agreement. It can tell us that the complete opening interaction contained useful social information.
The researchers also reported that ratings of how well candidates were dressed correlated with the full-interview evaluations, while ratings of physical attractiveness did not. Again, those correlations do not establish cause.
How to prepare the opening
Rehearse the transition into the interview
Practise entering, greeting the interviewer, sitting, and becoming ready for the first question. The goal is not choreography. It is to remove avoidable uncertainty.
Prepare a simple greeting
A clear “Hello, I’m [name]. Thank you for meeting with me” is enough. You do not need a clever opening.
Start the first answer directly
Many interviews begin with a broad prompt such as “Tell me about yourself.” Prepare a concise first sentence so you do not spend the opening searching for your point.
Keep the result in perspective
A weak greeting is recoverable. In this study, the brief observers did not predict the candidates who advanced. The rest of the interview still mattered.
The bottom line
Twenty to 32 seconds of an interview entrance and greeting were enough for strangers to form impressions that moderately matched trained interviewers' later ratings.
That makes the opening worth practising. It does not make the opening destiny.
Put this into practice
Use AI interview practice to rehearse your first answer. Start with a direct sentence, then add the detail that supports it. A steady opening gives the interviewer useful information instead of unnecessary uncertainty.