[Grad-postdoc-assn] Preparing for situational interview questions

[Valerie Sloan]

Good morning everyone,

One of the most common interview questions out there is this one: "Tell us
about a situation where you dealt with a challenge in the past and how you
dealt with it."  Below is a helpful mini-article from the Harvard Business
Review on a framework to use in answering it. It is worth giving this
question some thought before an interview, and thinking about situations or
challenges in different realms. For example, the employer might ask about a
challenge you have faced in the past or in a specific context, or how you
would deal with a hypothetical situation in future. Different areas they
might ask about might include:

- Project management - e.g. when an external factor delayed or halted
progress, when the results were unexpected or the experiment failed.
- Collaborating with others - e.g. dealing with competitive people,
colleagues not meeting deadlines.
- Interpersonal conflict - e.g. dealing with a colleague whose behavior is
difficult to deal
- Teaching situation - e.g. the students are not engaging, using AI in ways
that are problematic, or being more demanding than is is acceptable.

The real tip is to prepare a response - that outlines the situation, your
action, the outcome, and what you learned from it. Preparing for interviews
is a great idea in general.

Hope you are having a good day.  - Val
Be Prepared for Situational Interview Questions. Situational interview
questions—open-ended prompts where you’re asked to describe how you solved
a particular problem, aligned stakeholders on a project, or influenced
someone to think a certain way—are an opportunity to show how you’d
approach a new role. Here’s how to set yourself apart from other candidates.

Read online
<https://link.hbr.org/view/654a686e13ddf415281e0140kifo7.1mou/732b738a>

Manage email preferences
<https://link.hbr.org/click/34452439.76062/aHR0cHM6Ly9oYnIub3JnL215LWxpYnJhcnkvcHJlZmVyZW5jZXM_dXRtX21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbCZ1dG1fc291cmNlPW5ld3NsZXR0ZXJfZGFpbHkmdXRtX2NhbXBhaWduPW10b2RfJmRlbGl2ZXJ5TmFtZT1OTF9NVE9EXzIwMjQwMjI4/654a686e13ddf415281e0140B40a47ad3>
[image: Harvard Business Review | The Management Tip of the Day]
<https://link.hbr.org/click/34452439.76062/aHR0cHM6Ly9oYnIub3JnLz91dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9zb3VyY2U9bmV3c2xldHRlcl9kYWlseSZ1dG1fY2FtcGFpZ249bXRvZF8mZGVsaXZlcnlOYW1lPU5MX01UT0RfMjAyNDAyMjg/654a686e13ddf415281e0140Bdf17e022>

*Today’s Tip*

*Be Prepared for Situational Interview Questions*

Situational interview questions—open-ended prompts where you’re asked to
describe how you solved a particular problem, aligned stakeholders on a
project, or influenced someone to think a certain way—are an opportunity to
show how you’d approach a new role. Here’s how to set yourself apart from
other candidates.



*Use a proven format.* When discussing a past experience, structure your
answer using the STAR(T) or CARL method. STAR(T) stands for Situation,
Task, Action, Result, and Takeaways. CARL stands for Context, Action,
Result, and Learning.



*Tailor your stories to your audience.* Be sure to connect the experiences
you highlight to the job you’re applying for, especially if you’re jumping
from one industry to another. Also consider who’s asking the question—for
example, you might simplify technical language when talking to a recruiter
but include those details when talking to a hiring manager.



*Follow the two-minute rule.* This one’s simple: Keep your stories under
two minutes each. Consider practicing them in advance with a timer.

*This tip is adapted from* “*5 Ways to Prepare for Situational Interview
Questions
<https://link.hbr.org/click/34452439.76062/aHR0cHM6Ly9oYnIub3JnLzIwMjQvMDIvNS13YXlzLXRvLXByZXBhcmUtZm9yLXNpdHVhdGlvbmFsLWludGVydmlldy1xdWVzdGlvbnM_dXRtX21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbCZ1dG1fc291cmNlPW5ld3NsZXR0ZXJfZGFpbHkmdXRtX2NhbXBhaWduPW10b2RfJmRlbGl2ZXJ5TmFtZT1OTF9NVE9EXzIwMjQwMjI4/654a686e13ddf415281e0140Bc5a861cc>*,”
by Marlo Lyons



You are receiving this because you registered at hbr.org
<https://link.hbr.org/click/34452439.76062/aHR0cHM6Ly9oYnIub3JnLz91dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9zb3VyY2U9bmV3c2xldHRlcl9kYWlseSZ1dG1fY2FtcGFpZ249bXRvZF8mZGVsaXZlcnlOYW1lPU5MX01UT0RfMjAyNDAyMjg/654a686e13ddf415281e0140Cdf17e022>
to receive *The Management Tip of the Day* emails, or you provided us with
your email address.

If you prefer not to receive *The Management Tip of the Day* emails, please
*unsubscribe*
<https://link.hbr.org/oc/654a686e13ddf415281e0140kifo7.1mou/7f88368e&newsletter=managementtipoftheday>
.

You may also *Manage Email Preferences*
<https://link.hbr.org/click/34452439.76062/aHR0cHM6Ly9oYnIub3JnL215LWxpYnJhcnkvcHJlZmVyZW5jZXM_dXRtX21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbCZ1dG1fc291cmNlPW5ld3NsZXR0ZXJfZGFpbHkmdXRtX2NhbXBhaWduPW10b2RfJmRlbGl2ZXJ5TmFtZT1OTF9NVE9EXzIwMjQwMjI4/654a686e13ddf415281e0140C40a47ad3>,
view our *Privacy Policy*
<https://link.hbr.org/click/34452439.76062/aHR0cHM6Ly9oYnIub3JnL3ByaXZhY3ktcG9saWN5P3V0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1uZXdzbGV0dGVyX2RhaWx5JnV0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj1tdG9kXyZkZWxpdmVyeU5hbWU9TkxfTVRPRF8yMDI0MDIyOA/654a686e13ddf415281e0140Be0622c60>,
or *Contact Us*
<https://link.hbr.org/click/34452439.76062/aHR0cHM6Ly9oYnIub3JnL2NvbnRhY3QtdXM_dXRtX21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbCZ1dG1fc291cmNlPW5ld3NsZXR0ZXJfZGFpbHkmdXRtX2NhbXBhaWduPW10b2RfJmRlbGl2ZXJ5TmFtZT1OTF9NVE9EXzIwMjQwMjI4/654a686e13ddf415281e0140Bab4ff2da>
.

To ensure email delivery, add *emailteam at emails.hbr.org <emailteam at hbr.org>*
to your address book, contacts, or safe sender list.



Harvard Business Publishing, 20 Guest St, Suite 700, Brighton, MA 02135

Copyright © 2024 Harvard Business School Publishing. All rights reserved.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://mailman.ucar.edu/pipermail/grad-postdoc-assn/attachments/20240228/7100640d/attachment-0001.htm>