Behavioral Interview Questions

Behavioral based interview questions are the most popular among recruiters. The purpose of behavioral questions is to identify how a potential new employee would act in future situations. Behavioral questions are often open ended, leaving the interviewee to fill in the blanks. To answer these questions in the most effective way, follow the STAR method below. Remember to spend most of your time talking about the Result—that is what employers are most interested in hearing.

During the interview, your responses need to be specific and detailed. Tell them about a particular situation that relates to the question, not a general one. Briefly tell them the situation, what you did specifically, and the positive outcome or result (i.e. what did you learn). Your answer should contain these four steps:

Situation: Set up the situation in which you had a positive outcome or result that relates to the question asked. For example, it can be something from class, an internship or a volunteer experience.

Task: What goal were you working toward?

Action: What did you do specifically to make an impact? What was your role?

Result: Describe what happened as a result of your actions. What did you learn? The result is what they are really looking to hear in your response, so spend the most time talking about the result.

Let’s practice:

Now you try it!