Frequently Asked Interview Questions

Questions About You and Your Work Style

Tell me about yourself?
Why are you leaving your current position/why did you leave your previous positions?
Describe the kind of boss you like to work with.
What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses?
What would your current/former boss say about you if I asked for a reference?
How would you describe your work style?
What do you like the most/least about your current/former job?
What led you to apply for this position?

Questions About Motivation and Business Knowledge

What do you know about our company?
What investments have you made personally in your own career?
What is your impression of our industry? Why did you choose this industry?
How does your experience relate to this job?
Tell me about your education.
How do you stay current?
Where do you see yourself in five years?
What motivates you?

Questions About Experience and Skills

Describe your last job.
Tell my about a typical day at your current/former position.
What software/accounting/management/customer service
(job related) skills do you have?
Tell me about some of the projects you have completed.
What are the accomplishments that make you most proud in your current/last position?
What is the most difficult part of your current/last position?
Are you a good problem solver? Can you give some examples?
How do you handle difficult customers? Give me an example.
Describe your company's organizational chart and where you fit?
How do you organize for a major project? Tell me the steps you take.

Stress Questions

How long will you stay here?
If you were stranded on a deserted island, what three things would you want to have with you and why?
When was the last time you were disappointed with your performance on the job. What happened?
What was the toughest work experience you ever faced?
What usually frustrates you?
When was the last time you said something you regretted?
Tell me about your least favorite manager.

Sample Questions for You to Ask the Interviewer

If I am hired, what is the first thing you would like me to accomplish?
Tell me about a typical week in this position.
What are some of the characteristics of the perfect candidate for this job?
Tell me about the structure of the department where I would be working?
Why is this position open?
What is the typical career path of someone who is successful in this position?
Would you mind telling me about your career path and what you like about working here?
What are the next steps in the interview process?

Situational/Behavioral Interview Questions

Tell me about a time when you had difficulty with a co-worker and how you handled the situation.
Describe a situation where you had to deal with a lot of pressure.
Describe a situation where you had to give your manager bad news. What happened?
Give some examples of your leadership skills.
Tell me about a time when you had to deal with a crisis at work.
Tell me about a situation where you were presented with a problem that you never faced before. How did you handle it?
Tell me about a time when...

The STAR Approach

Use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, and Result) approach to answer behavioral/situational questions. Describe a SITUATION from your past experience and the TASK you were asked to accomplish. Explain the ACTION you took to accomplish the task and the RESULT which it produced.

Situation — "I was asked to develop a new electronic filing system to replace the paper files."
Task — "To eliminate all paper files while retaining the information within those files to increase customer satisfaction."
Action — "I developed an Excel spreadsheet to log which files existed. I then prepared new electronic forms to replace the old forms."
Result — "The customers are now able to update the information on-line without filing a new form each time. All files were updated into the new system in a timely manner and customers expressed being more satisfied as a result."

Industry Specific Questions

Business, Accounting, Marketing, Sales, and Management

To what extent were you involved in collections?
You have been asked to prepare a bill for services. What information should be included in the bill?
Tell us about an invoice dispute that you were involved in. Describe your role in resolving the dispute.
Tell us about a marketing plan that you have developed and the result of implementing that plan.
Which marketing research tools and techniques have you used?
Tell us about a marketing questionnaire that you have developed. What did you learn from the questionnaire?
What steps do you take to overcome a prospect's sales resistance?
How do you motivate employees to provide exemplary service?
Please describe the current trends related to this field.
Do you have experience implementing and/or utilizing computerized systems for labor management, inventory management and POS?

Business School

Discuss your career progression.
Give examples of how you have demonstrated leadership inside and outside the work environment.
What do you want to do (in regard to business function, industry, location)?
Why the MBA? Why now?
What are your long- and short-term goals? Why?
Describe an ethical dilemma you faced at work?
How would co-workers describe you?
Describe a situation where you brought an idea forward, and it failed.
How do you define success?
What would you do if a team member was not pulling his/her own weight?

Communications, Arts and Entertainment, Public Relations, Journalism, and Advertising

How would you describe the pace at which you work?
How would you describe your writing style?
How do you handle stress and pressure?
Sell me an idea.
Tell me about a time when you did not meet a deadline. What happened?
What project are you most proud of and why?
What motivates you?
What can you contribute to this company?
What experience do you have writing press releases?
Give me an example of when you went above and beyond to meet a deadline or complete a project?
Give me an example of when you displayed "outside of the box" thinking?
What inspires you?
Practice, and be prepared to present your portfolio materials.

Education and Non-Profit

Tell me how your past experiences and educational background prepared you for this position.
Can you describe for me a difficult obstacle you had to overcome? How did you handle it? How do you feel this experience affected your personality or ability?
Do you work well on a team? Tell me about an experience when you worked with a team.
Describe your short and long-range goals. Where do you want to be in five years?
What do you regard as your strongest qualification for this job? Why?
What are you most passionate about and why?
Why did you choose this career?
Please describe what you plan to contribute to this position/organization?

Science

How has your degree prepared you to work in this industry?
Why did you choose to seek a position with this organization?
What motivates you to put forth your greatest effort?
In what kind of work environment are you most comfortable?
What courses or projects did you particularly enjoy while in college? Discuss them.
Give me an example of a project you worked on?
What functions of this position most interest you and why?
What are your key skills?
What transferable skills would you utilize for this position?

Engineering and Technology

Tell us about your experience in developing technical specifications.
Relate to us a challenging technical problem you have come across and how you addressed the problem.
In what ways can the Internet help public service agencies improve service to the public?
Name some methods for maintaining an accurate hardware and software inventory.
Under which circumstances would an organization consider migrating from an older version of software to the new version? What are the physical and electronic security considerations in supporting the information technology requirements of an organization?
What are the various tools and measures that can be implemented to secure data?

Medical School

Why do you think you will be able to succeed in medicine?
What exposure have you had to the medical profession?
Discuss your clinical experiences and volunteer work.
What do you think you will like most/least about medicine?
Expect questions concerning what you think about ethics and healthcare (i.e. abortion, cloning, and euthanasia).
Be prepared to discuss managed healthcare and changes in the US healthcare system.
Tell me about a time when you had to give somebody bad news? How did you handle the situation?
Tell me about a time when you had to make an immediate split decision?
Tell me about a time when you were faced with an ethical dilemma?

Government

Describe a time when you recognized a problem as an opportunity.
Tell me about a time when you developed a program and presented it to a group.
Describe your communication style when dealing with staff or coworkers.
What do you know about our agency?
Describe yourself in three words.
What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses?
Describe a situation in which you demonstrated an effective customer service skill.
Tell me about a time when you were faced with an ethical dilemma?

Social Sciences and Humanities

How do you plan to put your education to practice?
How do you plan to utilize your degree for this job?
How has your degree prepared you for a career in...?
Do you consider yourself successful?
Tell me about your ability to work under pressure.
Describe your management style.
What have you learned from mistakes on the job?
Tell me about a time when you helped resolve a dispute between others.
Describe your work ethic.
What key transferable skills would you bring into this position?
Describe a successful group project and your role within it.

Law School

In what area of law do you want to practice?
How have you prepared yourself for a career in law?
Describe a complex problem you have/have not solved.
Tell me about a recent team experience you had that was fulfilling.
What do you see as the biggest challenge facing the judicial system today?
What is the importance of screening clients before you decide on taking their case?
Tell me about a time when you were faced with an ethical dilemma?
What are the essential skills of being an effective lawyer?