Template · Interviewing and selection
Interview questions template
In short
An interview questions template is a standard question sheet every interviewer uses for the same role, in the same order, with room to write down what the candidate said. This template gives you a 45-minute structure with openers, role-specific, behavioral and situational questions, follow-up probes, a closing script and a notes column.
Interview Question Sheet template
Interview Question Sheet
Ask every candidate for this role the same core questions in the same order. You may ask follow-up probes to get a complete answer, but do not add new topics. Write down what the candidate actually said (situation, action, result) rather than your impression. Do not ask about age, family, health, religion, national origin, citizenship status beyond work authorization, or any other protected characteristic.
Interview details
- Candidate name
- Position
- Requisition number
- Interviewer
- Date
- Interview stage
- Phone screenFirst interviewPanelFinal interview
- Competencies assigned to this interviewer
Opening (about 5 minutes)
Script: "Thanks for making time, [Candidate Name]. I'm [Your Name], [Your Title]. Over the next [45] minutes I'll ask about your experience and some situations you might face in this role, then leave time for your questions. I'll be taking notes so I can give you a fair review."
Q1. Walk me through your current or most recent role. What does a typical day or shift look like? Q2. What made you apply for this [Job Title] role?
Opening notes
- Q1 notes
- Q2 notes
Role-specific questions (about 12 minutes)
Q3. [Skill question tied to competency 1, e.g. "Which systems have you used to log customer cases, and how did you keep notes accurate when the queue was busy?"] Probe: How many per day? What happened when you got it wrong?
Q4. [Skill question tied to competency 2] Probe: [follow-up]
Q5. [Knowledge or process question, e.g. "Talk me through how you would handle a refund request above your approval limit."] Probe: Who would you involve, and what would you tell the customer while you wait?
Role-specific notes
- Q3 notes
- Q4 notes
- Q5 notes
Behavioral questions (about 15 minutes)
Ask for a specific past example. If the answer is general ("I usually..."), ask: "Can you think of one particular time?" Listen for the situation, what the candidate personally did, and the result.
Q6. Tell me about a time you had to meet a deadline or target while something outside your control went wrong. Probe: What did you do first? What was the result?
Q7. Describe a time you disagreed with a manager or coworker about how to do something. How did it play out? Probe: What would you do differently?
Q8. Tell me about a mistake you made at work that someone else noticed. What happened next? Probe: What did you change afterward?
Q9. [Behavioral question tied to a competency specific to this role]
Behavioral notes
- Q6 notes (situation / action / result)
- Q7 notes (situation / action / result)
- Q8 notes (situation / action / result)
- Q9 notes (situation / action / result)
Situational questions (about 8 minutes)
Q10. [Realistic scenario from the job, e.g. "It's 20 minutes before your shift ends. A customer calls with a billing problem that will take 30 minutes to fix. What do you do?"]
Q11. [Second scenario that tests judgment or priorities, e.g. "Two urgent requests come in at once from different managers. Walk me through how you decide."]
Situational notes
- Q10 notes
- Q11 notes
Logistics and closing (about 5 minutes)
Q12. This role works [schedule / shift / location requirements]. Are you able to work that schedule? Q13. Are you legally authorized to work in [Country]? Will you now or in the future require sponsorship for employment visa status? Q14. What questions do you have for me about the role or the team?
Closing script: "Thanks, [Candidate Name]. Next, [describe next step]. You can expect to hear from [Recruiter Name] by [Date]."
Closing notes
- Schedule confirmed
- YesNoPartly: see notes
- Work authorization confirmed
- YesNeeds sponsorshipNot answered
- Candidate's questions and how you answered
- Anything you promised to follow up on
- Interviewer signature
How to use this template
- List 4 to 6 competencies for the role from the job description and the hiring manager intake, then write or choose one or two questions for each.
- Replace every bracketed placeholder with a question built from real situations in this job, and add one or two follow-up probes per question.
- Split the competencies across interviewers so each person covers different questions in more depth.
- Read the opening script to every candidate and ask the core questions in the same order.
- Write down what the candidate said during the interview, keeping notes factual and job-related.
- Right after the interview, transfer your evidence to the scorecard and rate each competency before talking to other interviewers.
- Keep the completed sheet with the candidate's record for the retention period that applies to you.
Why use a standard question sheet
Two interviewers asking different questions get answers you cannot compare. One asks about leadership, the other spends 40 minutes on weekend plans and a shared hometown, and the debrief turns into a vote on likability. A fixed question sheet is the simplest fix: same questions, same order, same note format for every candidate in the requisition.
It is also the most practical form of structured interviewing, which consistently predicts job performance better than unstructured conversation. You do not need a psychologist to get most of the benefit. You need questions tied to the job, a consistent way to ask them and a scorecard that rates the answers against clear anchors.
The template above is the interviewer-facing piece. It sits between your interview plan, which decides who covers what, and the scorecard, which turns notes into ratings.
How to write questions that actually tell you something
Start from the work, not from a list of popular questions. Ask the hiring manager: what did the last person in this seat struggle with in month two? What does a great performer do that an average one does not? Each answer is a question waiting to be written.
- Behavioral questions ("Tell me about a time...") work best for candidates with relevant experience. Insist on one specific example.
- Situational questions ("What would you do if...") work better for entry-level roles where candidates have no direct history. Base them on real incidents from the job.
- Skill questions check knowledge you would otherwise test: a system, a regulation, a process. For a bank teller, that might be how they handle a cash drawer that is $20 short at close.
Write the probes in advance. "What did you do next?" and "What was the result?" turn a vague story into evidence. Avoid questions with an obvious right answer ("Are you a team player?") and brainteasers, which predict nothing for almost any role.
Timing a 45-minute interview
Interviews run long because the opener sprawls and the interviewer improvises. The template budgets the time: 5 minutes to open, 12 on role skills, 15 on behavioral examples, 8 on scenarios and 5 to close. That gives about 11 questions, which is plenty. If you get through only 7 well-probed questions, you learned more than you would have from 15 rushed ones.
For a 20 to 30 minute first-round call, use the phone screen template instead. It focuses on must-haves and motivation and saves the deeper behavioral work for this interview.
Legal do's and don'ts
Every question should relate to the job. Under Title VII, the ADA and the ADEA, questions about age, marital or family status, pregnancy, religion, national origin, disability or health are risky even when asked casually, because they suggest the answer influenced the decision.
Safe alternatives exist for most of what interviewers want to know. Instead of "Do you have kids?" ask "This role works rotating weekends. Can you work that schedule?" Instead of "Where are you from?" ask the two work authorization questions in the template, exactly as written, to every candidate. Do not ask about salary history in states and cities that ban it, including California, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts and Colorado among others. Ask about expectations instead. Do not ask about criminal history at the interview stage where ban-the-box laws apply. Rules vary by state, city and country, so have counsel review your standard sheet once.
Adapting the template for high-volume hiring
When a site is hiring 60 warehouse associates or 30 contact-center agents a month, the question sheet is what keeps a dozen supervisors consistent. Lock the core questions per role and let interviewers choose only the probes. Rotate questions between hiring classes so answers do not circulate among applicants.
Move anything you can test objectively, such as typing speed, math or system navigation, into a pre-interview assessment and drop those questions from the sheet. Many volume teams also run the opener and logistics questions as an asynchronous or automated screen and spend live interviewer time only on the behavioral and situational sections, where judgment matters.
Frequently asked questions
What should an interview questions template include?
The candidate and interview details, an opening script, a fixed set of role-specific, behavioral and situational questions with follow-up probes, logistics questions such as schedule and work authorization, a closing script and space for notes under each question.
How many questions should be on an interview question sheet?
For a 45-minute interview, 10 to 12 core questions is typical. Fewer questions with good follow-up probes produce better evidence than a long list asked quickly.
Should every candidate get the same interview questions?
Yes, for the same role and stage. Asking the same core questions in the same order makes answers comparable and decisions easier to defend. Interviewers can still use follow-up probes to get complete answers.
What is the difference between an interview questions template and an interview scorecard?
The questions template is what the interviewer asks and where they take notes during the interview. The scorecard is completed afterward and rates the candidate on each competency using those notes.
What questions should employers not ask in an interview?
Avoid questions about age, marital or family status, pregnancy, religion, national origin, disability, health and other protected characteristics. In many states and cities you also cannot ask about salary history or, early in the process, criminal history.