Common Questions Asked by an Employer
While you can never be 100% sure what interviewers will ask you, it is always important to think about your answers to the most common questions. Once you’ve put some thought into how you would answer a particular question, write down the key elements of your answer, and then practice answering the question aloud with friends, family, or a career advisor.
During an interview, listen carefully to what the interviewer is asking. If the question is unclear, ask for clarification. While it’s important to keep your answers focused and on-topic, you also want some of your personality and passion for the job to shine through.
The most common interview questions are listed below. To build your skills, contact us to schedule a practice interview, or check out InterviewPrep to practice on your own.
Traditional Interview Questions
Traditional interview questions are general questions that are meant to get to know you as a person and as a professional. They are typically the first 1-3 questions you are asked, but some employers may only ask traditional questions. Examples include:
Tell me about yourself.
Why should we hire you rather than another candidate?
Why did you choose to interview with our organization?
What do you know about our organization (products or services)?
Describe your ideal job.
What do you consider to be your greatest strength?
What is one weakness that you have?
What is your definition of success?
What is one accomplishment that you are most proud of?
Describe your ideal supervisor.
What are your salary expectations?
Why did you choose your major?
Why did you choose to attend your college or university?
In which campus activities did you participate?
Which classes did you like best? Least?
What plans do you have for furthering your education?
What job-related skills have you developed?
Did you work while going to school? If so, in what position?
What have you learned from your work (or internship or co-op) experiences?
What has been your most significant lab or project?
Have you done any volunteer work? What kind?
What did you enjoy most (and least) about your last job (or internship or co-op)?
Have you ever quit a job? Why?
How do you think your former supervisor would describe you?
Would you be able and willing to work overtime/flex-time if necessary?
Would you be able and willing to travel for this job?
Would you be able and willing to relocate if necessary?
The best way to answer these questions is to be honest but strategic in the way you represent yourself. Two of the most common questions are going to be “Tell me about yourself” and “What are your strengths and weaknesses?”
To answer “Tell me about yourself,” you should describe a bit about your past, present and future by answering these questions:
- Why did you decide to pursue this career path?
- What are you doing now to work towards that?
- How do you see this role as your next step toward your goals? (Talk about this role and company specifically)
Behavioral Interview Questions
Behavioral questions are designed to help your interviewer understand how you’ve handled certain situations in the past to understand how you might respond to a similar situation in their workplace. They usually start with, “Tell me about a time when,” and prompt you to tell a story. While there’s no way to predict exactly what kinds of behavioral questions you’ll be asked, they are typically designed around the skills and competencies noted in the job description. Examples include:
- Tell me about a time when you failed at something. What did you learn?
- Give me an example of a time when you provided a solution to an employer.
- Tell me about a time when you worked under deadline pressure.
- Tell me about a time when you worked on a team where there were disagreements about how to meet goals and objectives.
- Describe a time when you had to deal with a difficult customer.
- Give me an example of a time when you needed to work on several assignments or tasks simultaneously.
The best way to answer behavioral interview questions is to follow a particular format when answering. One of the best methods is known as the STARK method, which helps to thoroughly describe a situation in which you demonstrated the skill the question is asking about. Following a structure in your answer allows you to go into detail and tell a story without rambling and over-explaining. An average answer might look like this:
Interviewer: “Tell me about a time that you assumed a leadership role when working on a team.”
Candidate: ” I feel that I always contribute to a team in different ways. I’m never content to sit back and wait to be told what needs to be done. In my senior year, I worked on a team project for a marketing class that required research, a class presentation, and a 20-page paper. There were for of us on the team. We all contributed and I took the lead in presenting our work to the class.”
This answer does tell the interviewer about a leadership role, but it does not do the story justice. Instead, use the STARK method to describe the Situation, Task, Action, Result, and Knowledge gained.
“When I was attending UMass Lowell, I was in a marketing class during my senior year. Our final project was to design a marketing campaign for a fictional wellness company’s new product launch, including market research, product design, and an implementation plan. I was grouped with 3 other classmates that I had never worked with before, so we had to learn how to collaborate with each other.”
“The project required a great deal of work, including research, a 20-page paper, and a class presentation. From the beginning of the project, nobody on my team fell into a clear leadership role. I recognized the lack of leadership, so I stepped up and made a few suggestions on how we should proceed.”
“I suggested that we identify our strengths and weaknesses as individuals to properly plan out our group action items and delegate the work. We discussed the essential elements of the project and developed a timeline with milestones to reach each week, so we did not fall behind on our progress.”
“My classmates seemed relieved to have structure and a clear goal. This ended up being the best team project I was part of at UML because we were all on the same page. We were able to capitalize on each other’s strengths and support the team goals. Our professor was thrilled with our work and we received the highest grade in the class.”
“In reflecting on my role in this team, I’ve realized that I feel very comfortable stepping into a leadership role when needed. As I’m looking to move into my next step, I am eager to learn and support team goals, but I am confident that when a situation demands it, I will be ready to lead, just as I was in my class project.”
This answer is thorough and walks the interviewers through your experience, providing a visual that will help them to see your skillset applied to a real-life scenario.
Technical Interview Questions
Technical questions are designed to test your knowledge of the subject matter you’ll be working with. These are questions that are less predictable, as they will vary depending on the position you are applying for. However, the job description typically references required technical knowledge. Here are some examples of what these references could look like:
- Strong understanding of the basic principles of accounting practices
- Proficiency in Python, Java, or Kotlin, with demonstrable knowledge of object-oriented programming
- Must be able to describe the four types of financial statements
- Successful candidate will have a strong understanding of chemistry principles
The best way to prepare for these types of questions is to carefully read the job description and ensure that you can successfully answer questions regarding the technical knowledge required in the posting.
Some technical interview questions may be asked in a standard interview. Other times, there will be a separate technical interview. This is often seen in fields like software engineering, where candidates must complete a full interview where they answer coding questions, often conducted by a full time software engineer rather than a recruiter.
To succeed in a technical interview, remember to stay calm, explain your thought process step-by-step, and ask questions when necessary. These questions are designed to test your problem-solving ability, and asking for help or further information is part of that process.