Types of Interview Questions Employers Can Ask

Interview questions are used to help the selecting official of a business or company to make a decision on whom would be the best pick for a job position. There are many varieties of questions that may be asked to include: General questions, yes or no questions, part questions, Open – ended questions, scenario questions, and general questions.

General questions consists of simple informal information. Some examples of general questions are “What is your full legal name? Do you have any other alias you go by? Where do you live? What were your previous jobs?” These are simple questions that really have nothing to do with the interview itself.

Yes or no questions are normally asked in an written application form, such as the initial application. A yes or no question example is “Are you available for morning shifts? Do you have ample transportation? Do you have a passport?” All yes or no questions have an opportunity to be explained if need be. An example of a explainable yes or no question is “Are you a convicted felon? If yes, please explain your convictions.”

Part questions are the questions that have separate parts to them and are used to establish personality or behavior. A good part question example is “What is your definition of a leader and give an example when you were in a leadership role for an organization?  This could be a trick question, in the sense of seeing if you are being factual toward the information in your resume you provide. Or it could be way for the interviewer to get a better idea of how your professional mind works.  Either way, it is important to take your time answering these questions.

Open – ended questions are questions that give you an opportunity to explain how you may or may not handle a situation or event by telling a story of events. An open – ended question may help with seeing how you will handle stressful situations. An example of an open – ended question is “What do you feel would be a good resolution to an employee conflict?” or “Why do you believe you are the best candidate for this position?” These are just a few examples, which are used for open – ended questions.

Scenario questions are the most common, these questions consist of a series of questions designed to show your responses and how you would handle a series of events happening at one time. A good example of a scenario question is “Give me an example of a time where you had to handle a conflict situation? What was the conflict? Whom did the conflict happen with? What was your involvement? What did you do to resolve the conflict and how was the conflict resolved? Most of the time the interviewer will repeat the question if the candidate needs it repeated. It is recommended that the applicant write the questions down as they are being asked of them.

Happy Interviewing