Interview Question Examples

Where can you use the S.T.A.R. method to help you tell a story in response to these questions?

Interview questions

  1. General Q’s
    • Tell me about yourself?
    • Tell me about your educational background.
    • How did you hear about this position?
    • What are your salary requirements?
    • How do you stay connected and current with industry peers?
  2. Self-Perception (self-regard, self-actualization, emotional self-awareness)
    • How would you describe yourself in one word?
    • Tell me one strength, and one weakness of yours?
    • What can you offer us that someone else can not?
    • What’s the one thing your former manager would like you to improve on?
    • Tell me about an accomplishment you are most proud of.
  3. Self-Expression (emotional expression, assertiveness, independence)
    • Explain a time when you went above and beyond the requirements for a project.
    • Tell me about a time that you disagreed with a rule or approach.
    • Tell me about a time you stepped up and lead with an idea you had?
  4. Interpersonal (interpersonal relationships, empathy, social responsibility)
    • What kind of boss and coworkers have you had the most and least success with, and why?
    • Can you give us a reason someone may not like working with you?
    • Tell me about a team project when you had to work with someone difficult.
  5. Decision Making (problem solving, reality testing, impulse control)
    • Tell me about a time when you solved a tough problem.
    • Why do you want to leave your current job?
    • Why was there a gap in your employment between [insert date] and [insert date]?
    • What do you like the most about working in this industry?
  6. Stress Management (flexibility, stress tolerance, optimism)
    • Tell me how you handled a difficult situation.
    • Tell me about a time you made a mistake.
    • What would you look to accomplish in the first 30 days/60 days/90 days on the job?
    • What do you like the most and least about working in this industry?
  7. Motivators (autonomy, mastery, purpose, progress, social interaction)
    • What is your dream job?
    • Why are you looking for a new job?
    • Why do you want to work here?
    • What motivates you or gets you excited to face the workday?

Questions to ask the interviewer

Questions to ask the interviewer (it’s better to bring too many questions to an interview than too few.)

  1. What is the history of this role? Is it a new position, or was there someone in the job before?
  2. What would you say is the overall purpose of the job?
  3. How does this position help your department achieve it’s goals?
  4. How does your department fit into the organization overall?
  5. Who are the internal customers for this position (by job title) and how would I support them if I were in this role?
  6. What are the major metrics or yardsticks for the person in this position?
  7. What are you hoping for your new hire to accomplish in the first three months on the job?
  8. How do you envision your new hire stepping into the role? Will they jump in and ask a lot of questions to learn the job, or do you expect them to follow a week-by-week or day-by-day training plan, or something else?
  9. What do you see as the major goals for the person in this role over the next year?
  10. How do you anticipate interacting with your new hire — do you have a weekly one-on-one meeting, or do you mostly rely on email, or something else?
  11. How does your department communicate? Do you meet as a group, or communicate another way?
  12. What are the working hours, and your expectations for overtime?
  13. What sorts of technology will your new employee use in the job?
  14. You are interviewing me, an external candidate. Often job openings are filled from within the company. What made you think about interviewing external candidates like me this time?
  15. What are the items you’d most like to see your new employee take care of and check off your list right away?
  16. How will the arrival of your new employee make your life easier?
  17. What are your thoughts on working from home — for example when there’s bad weather, or in general?
  18. What are your expectations around arrival and departure times, and taking work home?
  19. How did you get to the company, and to your current position?
  20. How do you like working here?
  21. What are the company’s senior leaders like? What do they care about and talk about most?
  22. When are you hoping for your new hire to start?
  23. What are the values of the company?