Practice Interview Questions

Read over these practice questions or have a friend ask you them to help prepare for your interview.

  • Tell me about yourself.
  • What are your major strengths/weaknesses?
  • What would your former employers say about you?
  • What community activities are you or would you like to be associated with? Why?
  • What qualities do you admire in others?
  • What are some personality characteristics you find undesirable in people?
  • Describe your ideal job.
  • What five adjectives best describe you?
  • What recent accomplishment are you most proud of?
  • Are you more energized by working with data or by collaborating with other individuals?
  • Describe your ability to listen and be responsive. Can you give me an example?
  • Describe the last book you read.
  • How much time do you spend on the Internet each week?
  • Why did you choose this career field?
  • What are your career goals?
  • Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
  • What does success mean to you?
  • What do you do to improve your knowledge and skills in the field?
  • Tell me about your last job position and what you did.
  • What was the last mistake you made and how did you correct it?
  • Why were you unemployed for such a long period of time?
  • Why did you quit your last job?
  • What has made you stand out among your peers in your past work experience?
  • How did you prioritize multiple projects in your last job?
  • Tell me about a change that occurred in you last workplace. How did you handle it?
  • In what areas of work have you had the least amount of patience?
  • How do you prioritize multiple projects?
  • Do you prefer a structured or unstructured work environment?
  • How do you work under pressure?
  • What kinds of decisions are most difficult for you?
  • What type of position are you most interested in and why?
  • Why do you want to work for _______ company?
  • How has your previous work experience prepared you for this position?
  • What skills would you bring to our company?
  • What important trends do you see in _______ industry?
  • Why should we hire you for this position?
  • Tell me about a time you were especially creative in solving a problem.
  • Describe a situation when you had to convince your peers of your opinion. Tell me what you said to convince them.
  • Tell me about a time you were frustrated with the performance of a group that you belong to. What did you do? What was the outcome?
  • Tell me about a time you had to make an important decision quickly even though you did not have all the information you wanted.
  • What motivates you? Provide an example of a time where motivation was an issue for you.
  • Tell me about a time you utilized your leadership ability to gain support for an idea that initially had strong opposition.
  • What kind of information have you been required to analyze? Tell me about the most difficult analysis you’ve ever engaged in.
  • What is the most complex topic you have explained to a group? How did you handle it?
  • Tell me about a time when you were unable to sell your idea to a key person.
  • How do you schedule your time and set priorities. Give me a specific example of how you have done so in the past.
  • Describe a situation where you demonstrated initiative. What was the outcome?
  • Tell me about a time you were disappointed in your performance. What did you do?
  • Give an example of how you have handled criticism in the past.
  • Give me an example of a time when you asked someone to complete a task and they did it incorrectly. What did this experience teach you?
  1. What diversity, inclusion and or cultural competence training have you received and how have you applied what you learned on the job?
  2. Describe how your career has been enhanced by exposure to diverse people, places, or experiences. Please provide a specific example.
  3. Share with us what diversity, equity, and inclusion mean to you and why they’re important?
  4. In your opinion, what is the most challenging aspect of working in a diverse environment?
  5. How would you advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion with colleagues who don’t understand its importance?
  6. Tell us about a time that you adapted your style to work effectively with those who were different from you.
  7. How has your background and experience prepared you to be effective in an environment that holds diversity as core to our mission and values?
  8. How would you describe your current thinking about diversity and how has your thinking changed over time?
  9. What are some concerns you have about working with diverse populations or communities?
  10. What areas of diversity do you think you have to learn more about and how you would go about doing it?
  11. Have you ever realized you had said or done something that may have been offensive to another person? How did you respond to that realization and what was the outcome?
  12. If you were hired, how would you use this position to increase or enhance diversity at our company?
  13. Why do you think it’s important to address diversity and equity issues in this position and what are some ways you might do that?
  • Why are manhole covers round?
  • If you were an animal, which one would you be and why?
  • If you don’t get a job in (this field), what will you do?
  • Describe the top of your desk.
  • Tell me about something you are proud of that you’ve never told anyone before.
  • Imagine you could trade places with anyone for just a week. The person could be famous or not famous, living or from history, real or fictional. With whom would you trade places?
  • What kinds of Internet sites do you most frequently visit?
  • Why should we hire you instead of someone else?
  • Do you have any questions for me?
  • Is there anything else you want me to know about you before we end?

For more specific questions click the links below!

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