Public Sector Interview Questions & Answers

After applying online I completed several psychometric tests, including verbal and numeracy. Following this I completed an E-tray exercise where you given a fake email account and answer emails based on a fictitious scenario.

If you are successful you are invited to attend the assessment day.

Arrived at 7.30am to the Assessment Centre in London. There were around 30 of us being assessed that day.

A series of different assessments judged by a variety of assessors.

It lasted till about 4-5pm depending on the timetable you were given.

You must have examples to prove you fulfil their competencies. When they interview you they have a check box based on how you demonstrate you fulfil the competencies - make sure you have LOTS of examples.

You MUST learn the competencies that they assess you by! Memorise each one, and develop strong arguments/evidence as to how to fulfil each one. It is the ONLY thing they assess you on. No points for personality if you don't fulfil the competency criteria.

Time management - you will be given a LOT of information to read in the exercises. Think carefully about how you read and select data.

Try and find someone who has done the assessment day already, ask them about the feedback they received and what they learnt.

We were divided into groups of 6 and then given timetables for our day. It comprised of:

- one group exercise - given limited time to read a booklet of information on different policies and your 'views' on them, which ones your supported and didn't support. Then sent into room with your group to argue why your policy was best and come to unanimous conclusion. Assessed by 3 diff people.

- leadership exercise - given scenario as a manager, given limited time to read information. Then had to present to an assessor, answer qu's.

- written policy exercise - 2 hours

- interview

Throughout the day we have to do our own self assessments on how we feel we did in each exercise.

We were asked to use the STAR approach in order to explain some situations relevant to the questions. Unfortunately a group of us did not receive our candidate packs due to a fault with the system including myself and so had no idea about the STAR approach. Apart form this the questions were competency based on: making effective decisions, managing a quality service and delivering at pace. I was told that my examples were good but because I had not used the STAR approach I scored weakly.

I found proving that I make effective decisions quite difficult, but I think it was more about the nerves at the beginning of the interview.

HMRC proved themselves to be really unorganised this time, with people showing up who like me hadn't received some information, or any at all, and some people whose interview times had been changed or cancelled without them knowing. Just prepare really well and don't worry if you don't get it due to their lack of competency.

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After submitting an initial application form and undertaking the online assessments, I was then called by a member of e recruitment team from a telephone interview this was based around competency questions and to see if you were suited to the role. Before the assesement day you also had to complete a personality questionnaire which was based around workplace behaviours.

The assesment day itself was impressive as there were several high ranking people within e organisation present and it really gave you a chance to get a feel of the organisation and what kind of work you would be doing if successful.

On the assesment day there was a presentation and an ice breaker activity and we then launched into a group activity/one on one interview/ and then a presentation.

In regards to feedback DHL was great as they informed you of the decision within two days and an offer was given.

Because the role was procurement based a deep knowledge is needed of the NHS supply chain that DHL operate as there were several questions regarding this. Eg " how does this model work"

I think it's refreshing and will give other candidates confidence in the fact that DHL employ people based upon how you are as a person. Their graduates all come from several differing backgrounds and discipline so they look for candidates that seemingly offer more as people. Furthermore being prepared is always helpful as in the one on one interviews if you are able to show knowledge that goes that little bit further than other candidates then this will certainly benefit you.

1. Group task-given a fictional scenario and as a group we had to reason with each other in order to make an informed decision.
2. One on one interview- as with most jobs of this kind this was based around competent based questions
3. Presentation- we were given 15 minutes to read over a procurement strategy and then come up with an evaluation and asked to make improvements. We then had 5 minutes to present this to senior members of the procurement team.

The graduate scheme did not require an interview initally. It began with an application followed by online tests. I was then called into the London office to do some tests at an assessment centre. That was followed by a days worth of assessments which included an over night stay. The tests included group work and individual.

Analysis of data sheets. I misinterpreted the information as i was under pressure

Read the questions given, don't lose concentration in nerves

My overall experience was good. We were given dinner the night before in which we got to know other members of the group. This helped us familiarize ourselfs with eachother so the group work went a little smoother the following day

Arrived at main entrance and after a short wait I was greeted by a home office employee and taken upstairs to an interview room. After they sorted some paperwork I was called in to face a panel of two. They were competency based questions and were quite similar to those I had answered in the initial online application. They asked around the civil service competency framework and asked for examples of how I have shown to have a particular quality.

How would I use my skills and experience of customer service in this role. I found this incredibly difficult to answer as the job I applied for was administration based and mostly individual work with very little contact with other parties. I felt that this question was quite irrelevant to the job I was applying for.

Don't be disheartened if you are not selected for interview the first time. Myself and my friends have all applied for jobs here and those who were overqualified didn't get a chance at interview. The initial selection process - I believe - is just luck of the draw. They focus so much on buzzwords also, so read up on those.

There was no assessment centre for this role.

The interview starts off with why you want to work for the IPCC, and then there are questions about what you know about the company and its aims - so it is good to do your research. You are also asked questions about what kind of things you expect the role to incorporate, and about your experiences working with people of different backgrounds. You are also asked about examples of problems with communication in your life. BEWARE: They want very specific examples so make sure you have some case studies ready.

Can you tell me about a time when you have learnt something new and then been asked to apply it in your work?

Overall, the interviewer was friendly and helpful - but there are times when she was writing notes and so you feel as if you're talking to yourself. Also, be prepared for them to stop you in the middle of an answer in order to get a concise answer from you if you are going off topic.

Also, the whole process - from applying to being rejected - was just over two months. The next stage of the process was to be an assessment centre, in Quinton, Birmingham, I believe.

You are given a pin number in the invitation email, which is then used when you call the given number on the day of your interview. After a quick identification check you are put through to your interviewer who explains the process. Subsequently, she said that she did not have the information to answer many of my questions about the role, so I imagine that the interviewers are outsourced and not directly employed by the IPCC.

The telephone interview was a relatively straightforward one. It was competency based with many questions probing your previous experiences. Relating to your communication, team work skills. questions ask where what do you understand of the job? Why do you want the job? Tell us about a time you worked with a diverse group of people with conflicting views.

Tell us about a time when you had to resolve a conflict what was the outcome and what was your role in that.

I didn't get the job, i'm not sure what they required. However, the assessment center was really well set up, everyone was very friendly and helpful. Prepare as much as possible. for the role play and written test.

The Assessment center interview was much harder with questions relating to your 10 year plan, what you were doing presently to work towards your ten year plan?
The assessment center was difficult as it was hard to understand what was really required of you and what was being assessed during the role-play and written exercise.

Lack of information for candidates about what was required from them. Unable to get any help before assessment , could not get through to contact centre for days. Interview process appeared to be fair and professional but would not provide any feedback related to assessment centre performance and stated in their reply that they hoped this would assist me for further applications?

Group exercise , unclear what was required and what was being assessed and it quickly became a free for all with candidates talking over each other for the sake of speaking.

May be helpful if you have a relative already working there to actually discover what is required of you on the day. Plan time off work to allow you to get through to the recruitment team , possibly a week. Repeat yourself as much as possible in the group exercise.

Assessed by probation employees , are they trained in fair and thorough assessment? Staff were welcoming on the day.

The interview is roughly 4-7 questions asking why you want the role and how you dealt with certain situation. (dealt with change, offender behavior, your own actions, PACE)
The report was summarizing a case file.
Lastly the group assessment was about making points as team and then agreeing on a desired outcome.

Provide a situation where you have caused change and this had lead to a positive outcome.

Do not worry about this assessment day. Think of examples and be yourself. Work as a team, write a quick concise report and sell yourself. It is a challenging assessment but if you have made it this far and have worked with ex offenders already, you've done the hardest part.

The assessment centre was full of friendly staff who make you feel comfortable and welcome. Everything is well organized and explained. The hardest part, in my opinion, was writing the report especially if you have never done this before within this setting.