The 4 Types of Interview Questions
1. Behavioral Questions
“Tell me about a time when…”
These assess past performance as a predictor of future behavior. Interviewers believe the best indicator of future action is past behavior in similar situations.
Examples:
- Tell me about a time you failed and what you learned
- Describe a situation where you had to work with a difficult colleague
- Give me an example of when you exceeded expectations
2. Situational Questions
“What would you do if…”
These assess your judgment and problem-solving approach in hypothetical scenarios. Unlike behavioral questions, they don’t require a past experience.
Examples:
- What would you do if you discovered a critical bug on launch day?
- How would you handle conflicting instructions from two senior stakeholders?
3. Technical Questions
Role-specific knowledge and practical competence. These vary significantly by field.
4. General / Culture Questions
“Where do you see yourself in 5 years?”
These assess motivation, self-awareness, and cultural fit.
The STAR Framework
S — Situation: Set the scene (1–2 sentences, don't over-explain)
T — Task: What was your specific responsibility?
A — Action: What did YOU do? (Most important — focus on your contribution)
R — Result: What was the outcome? (Quantify if possible)
Weak STAR answer: “We had a project that was behind schedule and I helped get it back on track by working extra hours.”
Strong STAR answer: “Our Q4 product launch was 3 weeks behind due to a key engineer leaving mid-project (S). As the PM, my task was to reorganize the remaining team and re-scope to protect the launch date (T). I ran a risk assessment, cut 4 non-critical features with stakeholder buy-in, and brought in a contractor for the backend work (A). We shipped 5 days late — not on the original date, but still within Q4, and the core features received a 4.7/5 rating from beta users (R).”
Interview Preparation Checklist
- Research the company (mission, products, recent news, culture)
- Prepare 5–7 STAR stories that cover leadership, failure, conflict, achievement, and initiative
- Know your resume cold — be ready to elaborate on any line
- Prepare 3–5 thoughtful questions to ask the interviewer
- Know your salary expectations (use our Salary Negotiation Calculator)
- Practice out loud — not just in your head — ideally with a mock interview partner
[!TIP] Prepare a “greatest hits” list of 5–7 versatile STAR stories. Each story can be adapted to answer multiple question types. Quantity of stories isn’t what matters — depth, specificity, and impact are.