Typical job interview questions
Below is a list of typical job interview questions. Learn them, practice them, and know your general responses to most of them so that you can answer them well under the pressure of a job interview.
When you answer these questions, you must think about their structure. Use the acronym: S.T.A.R. – Situation, Task, Action, Result. By doing this you will clearly present well-structured answers to the interviewers questions.
List of typical interview questions by category
Personal job interview questions
- Tell me about yourself.
- How did you prepare for this interview?
- How did you become interested in this industry?
- What can you offer that is different from other applicants?
- How has your degree/work experience prepared you for a job with us?
- I see you’ve worked at Sainsbury’s for the last 2 years, would you say they worked well as a business? What improvements could you suggest?
- What do you do when you are not studying?
- If you had to drop one element of your life which would it be? i.e. University, tennis club, social life?
Company-focused job interview questions
- Why do you want to work for XXXXX?/How much do you know about our organisation?
- How could you help us build the business?
- What does staff want from their manager?
- What do you think you will be doing on a day-to-day basis at this job?
- Do you know anything about our competitors?
- Why this department and this company?
Commercial awareness job interview questions
- What recent world issue might affect the job role you are applying for?
- What do you do to keep up to date with current affairs?
- Give me an example of a business issue that has been of interest to you over the last 6 months?
Leadership job interview questions
- How would you deal with two members of staff that would not work cooperatively together?
- Could you tell us about a challenging situation that you have faced and how you approached it?
- Can you tell me about a time when you have had to persuade someone to do something they didn’t want to do?
Communication job interview questions
- Can you tell me about a time when you have had to speak/present to a large group of people? How did it go? Did you receive any feedback?
- Tell me about a time when you have had to work as part of a team. What was your goal? Did you achieve your goal? What would you do differently next time?
- What do you see as the differences between being a team leader and a team member? Which is your preference?
If you are still keen to learn more about job interview questions, consult our more general question page to read Joblers’ special interview question tips and tricks.
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