The STAR method, with examples that sound natural

Behavioural questions start with "tell me about a time when". Interviewers use them because past behaviour is the best available guide to how you will act. STAR gives your answer a shape they can follow and score.

The four parts

• Situation. Where and when, in one or two sentences.
• Task. What you were responsible for.
• Action. What you did, step by step. This is most of the answer.
• Result. What changed, with a number if possible, and what you learned.

Aim for about 15 seconds on situation and task together, 60 on action and 15 on result.

Example: teamwork

"In my final-year project, two of five team members stopped contributing three weeks before the deadline. I was responsible for the analysis section and for coordinating the group. I spoke to each of them separately, found one had a clash with exams and the other was unsure what to do, then split the remaining work into small tasks with owners and dates and set a short call every two days. We handed in on time and got the second-highest mark of the year."

Example: handling a mistake

"During my internship I sent a client report with last month's figures. I noticed an hour later. I told my manager straight away, sent the corrected version with a short apology, and added a check to the template that compares the report date with the data date. The client thanked us for the quick correction and the check is still in use."

Example: persuading someone

"Our store manager wanted to cut weekend staff. I pulled six weeks of sales by hour and showed that Saturday afternoons were under-staffed, not over-staffed. I proposed moving two shifts from Monday morning. She tested it for a month and weekend sales rose 8%."

Mistakes to avoid

• Saying "we" throughout, so nobody can tell what you did.
• Spending half the answer on background.
• No result, or a result with no evidence.
• Choosing an example that does not answer the question asked.

Prepare six stories

Teamwork, leadership, conflict, failure, pressure and initiative. Most behavioural questions can be answered with one of them.