Asking the right questions is crucial to the success of the interview and the hiring process. Below is a list of best practices and sample interview questions to help design an interview specific to your recruitment. If you would like further assistance developing interview questions or if you would like feedback regarding questions you have created, please contact your HR Recruitment Specialist.
- Ensure all interview questions are relevant to the position. When crafting interview questions, refer to the duties and qualifications that were listed in the posting to ensure relevance.
- Use open-ended questions to facilitate helpful responses and dialogue. Questions that only prompt a yes or no response are typically less helpful.
- All applicants should be asked the same core interview questions, though professionally relevant follow-up questions may vary.
- Avoid questions that could lead to candidates sharing personal information, as personal information cannot be considered as part of a recruitment process.
- Be sure that questions are framed in a way that only asks for professionally relevant information. For example, avoid “Tell us about yourself” as this can unintentionally lead candidates to share personal information that cannot be considered. Instead, ask “What about this position attracted you to apply?” to guide candidates toward only sharing professionally relevant information.
- If a candidate does share personal information during the recruitment process, particularly information that reveals they are part of a protected class, this information should not be documented or considered. Additionally, no probing follow up questions should be asked following any disclosure of personal information. Instead, direct the conversation back to professionally relevant information.
- What about this position attracted you to apply?
- Why are you interested in working for our department/JMU?
- Briefly describe your professional experience that relates to this position.
- Tell us about a time that you had to balance individual and team responsibilities.
- Give an example of a situation or project where a positive outcome depended on the work of people with a wide range of backgrounds and perspectives.
- Tell us about a time you worked successfully as part of a team.
- Tell us about a time when you had to adjust your work style to collaborate with someone with a different work style than you. What was the outcome?
- Give an example of a time when you had to deal with a conflict within your team. What did you do to help resolve the situation?
- Give us an example where you worked in a dysfunctional team. Why was it dysfunctional and how did you attempt to change things? What was the outcome?
- How do you build relationships with other members of your team?
- How do you build relationships with those outside of your team?
- Describe a situation where you were working on a project and your team members disagreed with your ideas. What did you do?
- Tell us about a work situation or project that depended on excellent communication skills.
- Tell us about a time you had to communicate bad news to a stakeholder. How did you handle the situation? What was the outcome?
- Give us an example where your listening skills proved crucial to an outcome.
- How do you decide if written or verbal communication is the best form of communication to use in a situation? What factors do you consider when making this decision?
- Describe a time you had to provide constructive feedback to a team member or colleague. How did you approach the conversation? What was the outcome?
- What is your approach to delivering complex ideas or explaining complex processes to someone with limited knowledge on the topic?
- How do you adapt your communication style to effectively work with different stakeholders?
- Tell us about a time when you went out of your way to help a customer.
- Tell us about a time you could not accommodate a customer’s request. What was the customer's response? How did you handle the situation?
- Describe a time when you had to deal with a difficult situation with a customer or co-worker. How did you handle the situation and what was the outcome?
- Give us an example of a project or task that caused you a great deal of stress. How did you approach the project or task and remain motivated? What was the outcome?
- How do you deal with stress in the workplace?
- Give us an example of a professional situation where you worked well under pressure.
- What makes you frustrated at work?
- Tell us about the biggest professional challenge that you have encountered. How did you navigate the challenge?
- Describe a time when you presented an innovative idea to your team or supervisor. How was it received?
- Tell us about a time when you had to produce a creative solution to solve an issue. What steps did you take to create the solution? What was the outcome?
- Describe a time when you have implemented a process improvement that had a positive impact. What steps did you take to implement the improvement? What was the outcome?
- Please define integrity and describe a time when your integrity was challenged.
- Tell us about a time at work when you showed integrity and professionalism.
- Tell us about a time in the workplace when someone asked you to do something that you were uncomfortable doing. How did you handle the situation?
- Tell us about a time you did not meet a project deadline or other professional goal. How did you react, and what did you do?
- Tell us about an unpopular decision you had to make. Did you seek feedback or opinions from others when making the decision? Why or why not? How did your employees react to your decision?
- What type of responsibilities do you delegate? What factors do you consider when deciding what tasks you should delegate?
- How do you ensure compliance with policies in your area of responsibility?
- Tell us about a situation where you had to motivate a team to improve performance. What were the problems and how did you address them?
- Give us an example of how you celebrated an individual’s or your team’s success in the past.
- Describe a time you had to lead your team through change. What obstacles did you face? What was the outcome?
- Describe a project or situation where you had to use different leadership styles to reach your goal.
- Tell us about a time when you were not as successful a leader as you wanted to be.
- What strategies do you use to stay organized?
- Attention to detail is critical for this position. How do you ensure your work is error free? How would you handle a mistake after it left your desk?
- Describe a time when you were responsible for creating, implementing and managing a large project at work.
- Give an example of a time when you had to handle multiple priorities. How did you meet all your responsibilities?
- How do you prioritize your time at work?
- How would you handle the following situation: You are working on a project with a strict deadline of 5:00pm today. Your supervisor just gave you another assignment that must be completed by 3:00pm today. You also have multiple emails and voicemails that you need to respond to because the department has a 24-hour response time expectation. How would you prioritize your time to ensure you do not miss any deadlines and your work is completed error free?
- What is the most complex assignment you have had? What was your role? How would you improve the assignment if given another chance?
- Describe a recent problem you were asked to solve. How did you approach the problem? What was the outcome?
- Describe a task or project that you were responsible for that best demonstrates your ability to analyze information.
- Describe a time you had to identify problems within a process or system based on feedback. How did you determine which issues were systemic and which were isolated?
- What do you do on an ongoing basis to keep your professional skills up to date?
- What have you done recently to expand your professional knowledge?
- How do you identify potential areas of improvement in your professional knowledge?
- If we asked your colleagues to be critical of your performance, what two or three improvement areas would they identify? Why?
- If you were hired into this position, in what areas could you contribute immediately, and in what areas would you need additional training?
- What do you see as the biggest challenge to your success in this position?
- Describe your level of expertise with Microsoft Office, primarily with Word, Excel and Outlook. Provide examples of how you have used the software.
- What types of tasks would you use Microsoft Word and/or Excel for? What functions are you familiar with and use daily? Which functions do you use occasionally?
- Give an example of the time when you had to learn a new software program. How did you become proficient in its use?
- Tell us about a time you struggled to learn a new software program. What steps did you take, and what was the outcome?
- What is one question you had prepared for that you thought we would ask you, but didn’t? What was your response?
- What makes you the best candidate for this job?
- What questions do you have for us?
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