Interviews are a chance for an employer to find out more about you, beyond what is stated on your resume. The nature of the questions asked during the interview will depend on the level of the job you are being interviewed for but expect to talk about various things related to your previous experience and suitability for the role.
Preparation is the key to success when it comes to interview questions. While it is impossible to predict everything an interviewer will ask, you can make an educated guess as to the types of questions you will face, as well as some of the more obvious ones.
Read on for a guide to common styles of interview questions, and how to handle them. There are four main categories of interview questions, some easier to answer than others.
Closed Questions
Closed questions such as, “would you be happy working from home” or, “how long did you work for your last employer” are straightforward and rarely require more than a simple yes/no. These are classed as informational questions and an interviewer will ask them to learn some basic information about you.
Open-Ended Questions
Open-ended questions are behavioral questions, also known as competency or situational questions. They are designed to focus on specific skills, such as conflict resolution, leadership, or an ability to work well in high-pressure situations.
This type of question comes in many forms, but all of them require the interviewee to relay information in greater depth than a yes/no. Some questions are easier to answer than others. These include, “why do you want to work for the company?” or, “where do you see yourself in three years?”.
Other open-ended questions are more closely related to core competencies and require that you think about a specific situation you may have been in, which relates in some way to the job you are being interviewed for.
One example of an open-ended, competency behavioral question is, “describe a difficult task you were faced with and how you addressed it.”. Placement’s guide to answering this question covers the type of answer you should give in more detail. It provides a useful framework so you can be prepared and are ready to ace your interview.
There is a right way to answer behavioral questions. The STAR method lets you structure your answers in a certain way. First, you describe the situation or task (S/T), next you explain what action (A) you took and why. Finally, discuss the results (R) of your actions. To answer these questions appropriately, make sure the situation and how you handled it relates to the role.
It is useful to prepare for these kinds of questions. Have a friend ask you competency questions so you can practice your answers using the STAR method.
In the actual interview, take your time when formulating a response. Try not to feel pressurised into blurting out the first thing that comes to mind. Keep a mental list of situations and tasks from previous jobs or events in your head, and try to apply the most appropriate one to the question.
Common openers for this style of question include:
- Tell me about a time…
- Give me an example of…
- Describe a situation…
- How do you…
It is useful to review a list of questions most closely related to the competencies the interviewer is looking for. For example, an interview for a job in customer service will probably want to know about a time you dealt with a difficult customer, and a managerial job will have questions that focus on leadership scenarios.
Brainstorm challenging situations and tasks in previous jobs. Always try to be positive in your storytelling, so even if a situation or task didn’t quite work out, you still learned from the experience. For example, if you were asked to manage a last-minute project or cover a presentation for a staff member who was sick.
Whatever you do, don’t make it up on the hoof. Interviewers can normally tell when an interviewee is winging it.
Hypothetical Scenarios
These questions aim to put you in an imaginary situation to see how you might react. The interviewer isn’t really interested in the answer; they are keener to see how you might handle the hypothetical situation. For example, the questioner might ask you how you would spend a department budget for employee welfare. In this instance, they will probably be looking to see that you allocate money appropriately and carefully.
Curveball Questions
These questions are designed to glean insights into your creativity and ability to think quickly and outside the box. Don’t be frightened of them; there isn’t usually a right or a wrong answer. Do try to relate the answer to the role where possible and don’t get stressed, as this is something the interviewer is watching for. Explain your reasoning and tell the interviewer why you are gravitating to a particular answer. Use a site like glassdoor to research possible interview questions. People who have interviewed with many large and small companies often leave interview feedback on the site.
