Sample Behavioral Interview

Listen to this Behavioral Interview
This is an audio recording, and transcript, of a behavioral interview. The candidate is a national VISTA recruit, based in New York, who is willing to relocate to Chicago for her service year. Before the interview, the candidate was given some questions to think about, was told the interview would take about 40 minutes, and was informed that she would be interviewed by only one person. She was also advised that she would be expected to ask questions at the end. As you listen to this file think about:
  • What in the interview worked?
  • What were the challenges?
  • What strategies did the interviewer use?
  • What strategies could you incorporate into your own interviews?
This resource was created by the Northwest Regional Educational Lab (NWREL) and Bank Street College (BSC) training team. NWREL/BSC has been a Training and Technical Assistance provider for AmeriCorps VISTA since 1998. They design and deliver the Pre-Service Orientation (PSO) and the Supervisor Orientation (SO), as well as other events. NWREL/BSC uses this recording in the Supervisor Orientation to help new VISTA supervisors prepare to interview VISTA candidates. Use this resource to:
  • See a behavioral interview in action
  • Identify the types of questions asked in an behavioral interview
  • Plan your interview

Click the play button to hear a sample audio interview


download audio transcript

Post a comment

We welcome your comments on this resource. All the items have been submitted by program staff after successful use. Ideas, praise and criticism are welcome, but please be respectful and constructive. Thanks.

(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)