Most characters in the world of anime have lofty goals or ambitions, such as becoming pirate king or winning a martial arts tournament or escaping Hell itself, but other characters have more mundane interests and goals in mind. A number of slice-of-life and drama characters live in a realistic setting, and they need real-life skills to succeed.
Characters in high school anime series are determined to ace their college entrance exams, while working-age characters need to find gainful employment, and that means acing a job interview. It takes skill to pull off a job interview and wow the interviewer with their qualifications and charisma, and not everyone is up to the task. Who's going to ace it, and who will go home emptyhanded?
10 COULD ACE A JOB INTERVIEW: Misaki Ayuzawa Has Worked Hard To Come This Far (Maid-Sama!)
Misaki Ayuzawa is a tough but fair student council president, and she is used to juggling paperwork and dealing with other people's problems. That, in addition to her good study habits and dedication to her maid cafe job, all makes it clear that Misaki is a highly responsible person.
Although Misaki sometimes loses her cool around Takumi Usui, she'd be just fine at a job interview and would put her best foot forward. She's highly motivated to get a good-paying job, and the final Maid-Sama! manga cheaper depicts her as a successful diplomat. No doubt she aced that interview.
9 WOULD FLUB A JOB INTERVIEW: Kazuma Sato Has Nothing To Offer (Konosuba)
Kazuma Sato is a petty and creepy NEET who got a chance to start over his life in Konosuba's isekai realm, only to become a broke and hapless adventurer. He has a good Luck stat, but otherwise, Kazuma has little to offer to anyone, though he is somewhat responsible with money.
Either in real life or in the isekai world, Kazuma would fail to impress an interviewer since he has few qualifications and a less than savory personality. If he felt that things were going wrong, he would panic during the interview or just blubber and plead with them for the job. He'd be going nowhere fast.
8 COULD ACE A JOB INTERVIEW: Futaro Uesugi Is Smart & Practical (The Quintessential Quintuplets)
Futaro Uesugi is in a roughly similar position as Misaki Ayuzawa. His family is only barely making ends meet, so he needs to earn cash and find success as an adult with his own two hands. Futaro must work hard to get ahead, and his tutoring job with the Nakano quintuplets is a fine start.
Futaro has a bit of a temper, but it's mostly Nino Nakano and sometimes her sister Itsuki who rile him up. He could easily keep his cool in a job interview, and he is smart enough and determined enough to ace it and land a cushy job to support his family.
7 WOULD FLUB A JOB INTERVIEW: Naoto Hachioji Isn't Assertive Enough (Don't Toy With Me, Ms. Nagatoro!)
Naoto Hachioji is a meek and unassertive boy who rarely flaunts his talents. He is quite good at sketching, which is probably what drew Hayase Nagatoro the troublemaker to him, but rarely does Naoto talk himself up. He should have a little more confidence than this, even if sketching isn't a terribly unique hobby to have.
Naoto is a decent student and has no serious personality flaws, but there are plenty of other good artists out there, and they could use their confidence, charisma and people skills to play themselves up and impress job interviewers. Naoto would seem boring and weak by comparison, and would make a bad impression.
6 COULD ACE A JOB INTERVIEW: Hanako Koyanagi Is Tough & Knows What She's Doing (Wotakoi: Love Is Hard For Otaku)
Hanako Koyanagi likely already aced one job interview, since she landed a cozy office job with her high school friend Taro Kabakura in Wotakoi: Love Is Hard For An Otaku. Although she's a bit sloppy at times, she is still a fine employee overall. Hanako is also confident and cheerful without being arrogant or obnoxious in the workplace.
All of this works in Hanako's favor, and she also has relevant job experience and a college education to match. If she wanted to switch to a new company, she could pull it off, and make a strong, compelling impression to any job interviewer.
5 WOULD FLUB A JOB INTERVIEW: Katarina Claes Is Too Silly & Unskilled For Job Interviews (My Next Life As A Villainess)
Katarina Claes is an otome game heroine, taking the place of the original Katarina Claes. This new Katarina is far kinder than the original ever was, and she can easily make friends and inspire them without even trying. My Next Life As A Villainess fans joke that Katarina can add people to her harem simply by looking at them.
This is amusing enough in an otome isekai setting, but Katarina is woefully unprepared for a real job interview, since she grew up as a noble lady who doesn't need to do such things. She's also carefree and goofy, and would go on digressions about desserts and snacks during the interview.
4 COULD ACE A JOB INTERVIEW: Takumi Aldini Is Professional & Cool When Soma Isn't Around (Food Wars!)
Takumi Aldini has a fierce rivalry with Soma in Food Wars!, and Soma's teasing tends to bring out Takumi's worst side. Fortunately, Takumi isn't usually like that. Instead, he is confident, outgoing and friendly, and he is always eager to show off his skills and delight customers with his Italian cuisine.
After graduating from Totsuki, Takumi will need to have some interviews to get a good kitchen job, and he has the smarts, confidence and charisma to pull it off. If Soma's not around, Takumi can channel his intense spirit constructively and assert himself as a great job candidate.
3 WOULD FLUB A JOB INTERVIEW: Bolin Tends To Get Tongue-Tied (The Legend Of Korra)
Bolin the Earthbender is a good person, but he sometimes struggles to prove it and make a good impression on others. He tends to impress others with his earthbending, and if it's time to talk business, he'll fall behind and make a fool of himself.
Bolin has street smarts, but limited book smarts, and he tends to get nervous and blurt out silly nonsense during a serious conversation. He's put his foot in his mouth many times already during The Legend of Korra, and it would happen again during an important job interview. He'll need Mako and Asami Sato to coach him.
2 COULD ACE A JOB INTERVIEW: Uryu Ishida Is Smart & Professional (Bleach)
Uryu Ishida is a man of two worlds, just like his friend and rival Ichigo Kurosaki. On one hand, Uryu is a Quincy, a spiritually talented archer and fighter, and he knows all about Hollows and Soul Reapers. But he also has one foot planted in reality, in Karakura Town.
Uryu is an ace student and the son of a hospital director, and he knows how to handle real-life paperwork and business just fine. After all of Bleach's fighting is done, Uryu can easily reintegrate into mundane society and go to college, ace a job interview, and launch a robust career.
1 WOULD FLUB A JOB INTERVIEW: Taiga Aisaka Can't Force Her Way Into A Job (Toradora!)
At school in Toradora!, Taiga Aisaka is widely respected and even feared as the "palm-top tiger," a tough girl who can stare down or pummel anyone who crosses her. She has a solid reputation at school, but her life outside of it isn't so glamorous. In fact, she's struggling a bit.
Taiga lives alone, she can barely take care of herself, and her interpersonal skills are limited. During a job interview, she'd be out of her element, and her sheer anxiety and insecurity would be clear to the interviewer. The interviewer might take pity on her, but not offer the job. Taiga needs to build her skills some more.