CMU Career Guide Central Michigan University Career Guide | Page 31

sample interview questions General Interview Questions • • • • • • • • • • Tell me about yourself. Why did you choose Central Michigan University and your area of study? How would you define leadership? What do you consider to be your greatest strengths? Weaknesses? How has your college experience prepared you for a career? Why are you interested in our organization? Why are you the best candidate for this position? What is your greatest work-related accomplishment? How would your previous supervisors describe you? Are you willing to relocate? Travel? Behavioral Interview Questions • • • • • • • Think about a complex project or assignment you have been given. What approach did you take to complete it? Tell me about the riskiest decision you have made. Tell me about a time when you worked with a person who did things very differently than you. How did you get the job done? Can you tell me about a complex problem that you solved? Describe the process you utilized. What leadership positions have you held? Describe your leadership style. Give an example of when your persistence had the biggest payoff. How have you most constructively dealt with disappointment and turned it into a learning experience? Questions to Ask the Interviewer • • • • • What does a typical day look like? What personal qualities, skills or experience would help me do well in this position? What is your favorite thing about your job? What types of professional development opportunities would be available to me? Can I tour the facility? For a full list of sample interview questions, please visit www.careers.cmich.edu. Using the BAR Method for Structuring Your Answers Background: Establish when and where you used the skill Action: Introduce what it is that you did to demonstrate the specific skill set Result: Give the outcome of your actions to show what you did was successful Example interview question: When have you demonstrated strong customer service? Background: I work part time at Tim Horton’s and a customer was upset because she was given ice cream instead of milk in her coffee. Action: I immediately apologized and prepared a new coffee for her, enquiring what kind of milk she preferred. I also gave her a coupon for a free coffee, and reiterated our apologizes for our mistake. Result: The customer thanked me for being so nice about fixing someone else’s mistake, and she said she’d be back tomorrow for her free coffee. 31