Teach First Interview Questions & Answers

The start of the assessment centre day was a one on one interview, lasting approximately 20 minutes. The interview was based solely on answering questions based on the competencies that Teach First look for in potential teachers such as leadership and resilience. There were also questions to test your knowledge of Teach First's mission statement and your understanding of educational disadvantage.

Describe a situation where you had to persevere over a long period of time to reach a predetermined goal.

Make sure you know the competencies very well as well as why you want to join the leadership development programme. Have a couple of examples prepared for each competency so you can draw on as many as possible in the interview as you will be asked detailed questions.

We were greeted by a graduate recruiter who talked through what we could expect from the day and given an opportunity to talk to the other candidates informally. The interview was first, then a group exercise and then we had to deliver individually a 5 minute lesson (that we had already prepared for) to two graduate recruiters. The group exercise was enjoyable and was a theoretical situation where we discussed who out of our 'students' should be offered an internship with a company linked to the school we were working with. We then individually evaluated the performance of the group and the performance of other individuals in a one to one 'debrief' with a recruiter. The final task of the day was a lesson delivered on a subject we were able to prepare for before the day. This was over very quickly and again there was a self-evaluation exercise afterwards.

The overall format was a general assessment centre, a competency based interview, group exercise and a presentation in the format of a teaching lesson. The assessment centre consisted of 3 tasks, a one to one competency based interview which lasted approximately 45 minutes, a group exercise where we were split into groups of 8, given 15 minutes to read the task and decide collectively on the outcome, and finally a 5 minute sample teaching lesson where we were given 1 minute to prepare once stepping into the class.

Describe a time where you failed something and how you overcame this?

Teach First is a very friendly organisation, they want you to do well so be calm and perform in your interview, and let your personality shine through. Make sure you know their competencies very well and the rest should be fine!

The assessment centre consisted of 3 tasks, a one to one competency based interview which lasted approximately 45 minutes, a group exercise where we were split into groups of 8, given 15 minutes to read the task and decide collectively on the outcome, and finally a 5 minute sample teaching lesson where we were given 1 minute to prepare once stepping into the class.

After getting through the online application process, you will be invited to their assessment centre. It is a full day assessment centre which involves three main tasks: one-to-one interview with a TeachFirst staff/ambassador; group case study and; presentation of your chosen lesson title. The first of these is usually the one-to-one interview where you will be given a series of competency questions from their lists of competencies:
Humility, respect and empathy (HRE)
Knowledge
Resilience
Leadership
Planning and organising
Interaction
Problem solving
Self-evaluation

The interview is relatively straightforward if you have prepared a couple of different examples for each competency. The assessor was patient and very friendly. The great thing about the TeachFirst interview is that they give you a chance to come back to questions if you don't feel confident with it at the time, this gives you a chance to think about it whilst going through other questions. The questions themselves are predetermined and goes through each competency so it is very important that you have prepared these. However, they have no access to your online application so you can use your answers which you provided on there. I would say that this part of the interview was the easiest for me as I prepared thoroughly.

1) Please give an example of a situation that you have created which was leading to, or resulted in a negative outcome. Explain how the measures you put in place helped to improve the situation.

2) Please give an example of the time when you had a positive influence on someone.

My best advice would be to go through each competencies and list different examples for each one as well as finding ways to incorporate those competencies in the group task and lesson plan. Also, during the day it is vital that you just relax, be yourself and have fun.
Lastly, the best thing you can do to be successful at this assessment centre is PREPARE, PREPARE AND PREPARE!

The assessment centre is relaxed and very informative. There were about 15 of us at the time and we were given breaks in between the different tasks. This gave us time to talk amongst ourselves as well as do some last minute preparation. We were given detailed instruction in the morning of what we were required to do during our time there. It was really well organised and everything ran smoothly. The staff there were very helpful and it felt that they wanted us to do the best we can. The atmosphere didn't feel at all tense.

After you've done your one-to-one interview, you are then assigned to a group of maybe 4-7 people depending on the number of the participants during the day. The group tasks involves discussing different solutions to a problem and deciding on an answer as a group. You are given a few minutes to read over an information pack. The best way to get through this is by making quality contributions as well as involving other participants into the conversation. Do not take over the whole discussion or interrupt other participants whilst they are speaking.

The last task of the day is the lesson preparation. A week or two before your assessment centre you are given a choice of lesson titles and out of these you must prepare 1 lesson which you will present to two adult assessors (acting like kids) for exactly 7 minutes. It's really important that this lesson is both creative and engaging. You must also be able to control the situation when it comes to bad behaviour or lack of attention. However, this certainly was the most fun part of the day!

Overall, TeachFirst is looking for someone that match their criteria so just make sure you know and apply the list of competencies throughout the selection process. You will also be given self evaluation forms which is crucial to identifying your strength and weaknesses. My advice is just to make the most out of the day and be yourself!

My interview was the first stage in my assessment centre day. It was one on one with a member of their graduate recruitment team. The interview wasn't CV based but was instead based on the competency questions asked during the application process. A lot of the questions were very similar to those asked in the application process. Questions required knowledge of the company and opportunities within it, and demonstrations of the key skills required to be a teacher.

Please give an example of a situation that you have created, which was leading to, or resulted in a negative outcome.

Learn your answers to the competency questions thoroughly as this will give you most of your answers for the interview. Also research Teach first and opportunities they offer. I attended a presentation about them which was also helpful.

The process consisted of; a one on one interview, a group exercise, a review of the exercise, a lesson and a review of the lesson. In between each of the exercises there are plenty of opportunities to talk to other candidates and run through or prepare for the lesson. The subject specific lesson title is e-mailed to you the week before the assessment centre day so you can prepare properly. The lesson is in front of two members of the graduate recruitment who take the role of children in your classroom.

was a very friendly atmosphere at the interview. Started with a group assessment lasting about 40minutes. Each took a role in a group, but difficult to gauge if you did well as everyone was doing similar things. Gave feedback on this. Then an individual interview with someone already on the programme, asked competency questions and tried to steer you in direction that they wanted you to. Wanted lots of examples for each answer. Then 5 minute presentation in front of two people pretending to be children, and had to self-assess yourself on this also. Equally difficult to do but didn't feel very pressured, a very relaxed environment. Whole day lasted 6 hours so long day.

Describe a time where you failed and how you would do it again.

Be very self aware and critical of youself. Be confident. Make sure you speak out in the group assessment but also be considerate to others. Know lots of accurate facts about the company and it's philosophy. Have lots of examples ready for every type of competency question you can think of.

very relaxed. about 30 people there. group assessment split into smaller groups of 6 to do role play, obvious that they wanted you to show yourself as a leader but also conscientious.

The one-to-one interview was the first part of the assessment centre and in this I was tested on the 8 competencies including my knowledge of Teach First and the Leadership Development Programme . The interview was really friendly and gave me enough time to give lots of detail in my answers but would stop me if she needed to move on. She gave me time to think of an appropriate answer for each question and would repeat or go back to the question at the end if necessary.

When have you done something wrong in a team?

When have you received feedback or criticism for something recent and how did you respond?

When have you persevered with something difficult to achieve a long-term goal?

Be as detailed and specific as possible in your answers. Make sure you smile and make a good impression from the start.

In the group case study, make sure you make yourself heard but actively take on board everyone elses opinions and don't become overbearing or too loud. Include everyone in the discussion.

At first there was a one-to-one interview where you are tested on teach first's 8 competencies and your ability to display them well. The interviewer was friendly and would repeat the question or go back to it at the end if need be.

Then there was a group case study, where you worked in a group to come to decisions on a case study you were given. i was given a break aftet the case study and then had to do an oral self-evaluation of the case study with an interviewer.

We had plenty of time to interact and talk to other candidates and also go over any notes, before we were shown some videos about Teach First and what could happen after you were accepted for a place on the programme.

Then I was called in to present a 7 minute sample lesson to 2 assessors who were pretending to be kids. I would have to teach the lesson to them, while responding appropriately to any questions or distractions they posed. Meanwhile a third assessor was at the back taking notes. After this was over, I was taken to a separate room to complete a written self. evaluation of the lesson and then I needed to compete an online feedback form of the assessment centre.

The interviewers were very friendly and approachable. I was asked questions about the 8 competencies Teach First have. The easiest way to prepare is to come up with two examples of each competency. There were generic question about my motivation to join the program and why I wanted to work with children.

Describe a time you went out of your way for a long-term goal.

Make use of all resources available before the interview, use the time to call them and discuss any concerns; Be open and approachable during the interview; Professionalism is a must. Show leadership skills.

We did a group task about solving a problem in a school. After that, there was a role-playing delivery of a lesson.

The interview was comprised of 3 different sections and previous to the interview I had been contacted by a Graduate Recruitment officer who had talked me through the different steps which I would go through during the interview process. Upon arrival all the candidates were able to meet and talk among one another. The first stage of the interview process was a one on one interview in which I was assessed on competency based questions and the competencies which were important to the company. This lasted for around about 40 mins and included asking questions in which I had to explain what I would do in certain situations if I found myself in a classroom. The second stage of the interview was a group based task in which we had to have a discussion about which child we would give an award to. This task took about 30 mins. The final part of my interview was to deliver a 7 min lesson to two assessors who pretended to be the age of the children your lesson was tailored to. Following this I was given the opportunity to do a self evaluation of the lesson.

The most difficult questions I was asked was what I thought was the most important competency which the company vales themselves upon as when under pressure it was difficult to remember all the competencies that the company prided themselves upon!

Be confident and make sure you have read up about the competencies. If you don't get offered the job you do get feedback, mine stated my body language was the only thing that went against me during the group interview- competition is very high but don't be put off! I would also recommend to apply early!

One to one interview, a group discussion task in which we were given data and then asked to put forward our own opinions as to why we thought that specific candidate would receive an award and finally a 7 min lesson.