50 Common Interview Questions

From tell me about yourself to share about a time you had a conflict with your fellow employee and how you resolved it, there’s a lot of common interview questions that get asked. But the reality is, many candidates don’t prepare. As hiring experts, we screen hundreds if not thousands of candidates each year and have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to interviewing.

One of the biggest things we’ve noticed time and time again about candidates in an interview? The lack of preparation they’ve completed to learn about the company they are interviewing for or even more so, what the role would entail. 

Strong job interviews come from questions being answered by prepared candidates. 

Let us say it again…Strong job interviews come from questions being answered by prepared candidates. 

And you know what happens with strong interviews by prepared candidates? Job offers get extended. 

So where can you as a candidate start in preparing for your next interview? Thanks to Glassdoor, they’ve sifted through tens of thousands of interview reviews to find the 50 most common questions. Read up on the most commonly asked questions and consider how you can prepare answers that show you’ve done your research on the company and position you’re interviewing for. 

Best of luck candidates! 

50 of the Most Common Interview Questions:

1. What are your strengths?
2. What are your weaknesses?
3. Why are you interested in working for [insert company name here]?
4. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years?
5. Why do you want to leave your current company?
6. Why was there a gap in your employment between [insert date] and [insert date]?
7. What can you offer us that someone else can not?
8. What are three things your former manager would like you to improve on?
9. Are you willing to relocate?
10. Are you willing to travel?
11. Tell me about an accomplishment you are most proud of.
12. Tell me about a time you made a mistake.
13. What is your dream job?
14. How did you hear about this position?
15. What would you look to accomplish in the first 30 days/60 days/90 days on the job?
16. Discuss your resume.
17. Discuss your educational background.
18. Describe yourself.
19. Tell me how you handled a difficult situation.
20. Why should we hire you?
21. Why are you looking for a new job?
22. Would you work holidays/weekends?
23. How would you deal with an angry or irate customer?
24. What are your salary requirements?
25. Give a time when you went above and beyond the requirements for a project.
26. Who are our competitors?
27. What was your biggest failure?
28. What motivates you?
29. What’s your availability?
30. Who’s your mentor?
31. Tell me about a time when you disagreed with your boss.
32. How do you handle pressure?
33. What is the name of our CEO?
34. What are your career goals?
35. What gets you up in the morning?
36. What would your direct reports say about you?
37. What were your bosses’ strengths/weaknesses?
38. If I called your boss right now and asked him what is an area that you could improve on, what would he say?
39. Are you a leader or a follower?
40. What was the last book you’ve read for fun?
41. What are your co-worker pet peeves?
42. What are your hobbies?
43. What is your favorite website?
44. What makes you uncomfortable?
45. What are some of your leadership experiences?
46. How would you fire someone?
47. What do you like the most and least about working in this industry?
48. Would you work 40+ hours a week?
49. What questions haven’t I asked you?
50. What questions do you have for me?