HR Interview Questions | Examples & Tips

To answer HR interview questions successfully, prepare to respond to questions aimed at revealing insights into your soft skills as well as a range of common interview questions.

This article explains what to expect in an HR interview, offers tips for answering HR interview questions, and provides a selection of example questions to help you prepare for your interview.

Use one of Quillbot’s free resume templates to create a professional-looking resume to take along to your HR interview.

Try our free AI Chat

What is an HR interview?

An HR interview is a job interview with someone from the company’s human resources (HR) or recruiting team. The hiring manager, who is in charge of the hiring process for the vacancy and will often be the successful candidate’s future manager, usually conducts a separate interview focused more closely on job-specific skills and experience.

The purpose of an HR interview is typically to help determine whether you meet the role’s basic requirements and would be a good fit for the organization before you progress to an interview with the hiring manager. In this context, other terms for “HR interview” include:

• Screening interview
• HR screen
• Recruiter screen
• Recruiter interview

If the interview is done over the phone, it may also be called a “phone screen” or “phone screening interview.”

An HR interview can also take place after an interview with the hiring manager. At this stage, its purpose is to provide additional input regarding your suitability, focusing on factors such as your working style and potential to develop in the role. It may also cover salary and benefits.

Answering HR interview questions

Here are some important points to remember when answering HR interview questions:

• Adapt your technical explanations to the interviewer. The HR or recruiting professional interviewing you will probably have limited technical knowledge of your specialist field. A good strategy for an HR interview is to use the same technical terms that were in the job posting, as these are ones that the interviewer is most likely to be familiar with.
• Demonstrate your soft skills with specific examples. HR interviews typically assess soft skills such as communication, teamwork, adaptability, and conflict management. Make your answers more convincing by preparing example “stories” from your experience that demonstrate these skills. For instance, instead of simply saying “I’m good at managing conflict,” describe a disagreement you helped resolve, the steps you took, and the outcome (i.e., use the STAR method).
• Research the company and connect your answers to the role. Review the job description and find out about the company’s products or services, customers, and recent developments. This will help you to explain why the opportunity interests you and how your experience relates to the employer’s needs.
• Keep your answers relevant and focused. Even if the conversation feels informal, use your answers to help the interviewer understand what you could bring to the job. When asked to introduce yourself, focus on relevant experience, skills, and career goals rather than aspects of your personal life. Examples from education or volunteering can also be useful, particularly if you have limited work experience.
• Focus on the strengths you can offer. Discuss any job requirements you don’t fully meet in terms of how your existing skills and experience could help you succeed in the role despite these gaps. Mention any steps you’re taking to develop the relevant skills.
• Be ready to discuss practical details. Review any advertised salary range and think about your expectations before the interview. Be ready to discuss when you could start and whether the location, schedule, and working arrangements would suit you.
• Prepare questions for the interviewer. Ask a question or two to help demonstrate that you’ve done your research and are enthusiastic about the opportunity. You could ask about things like training opportunities, how teams work together, or the next steps in the hiring process.
• Give yourself plenty of time to prepare for a phone or virtual interview. If your HR interview’s not going to be in person, don’t leave considerations like phone reception, internet connection, or a quiet place to take the call to the last minute.

HR interview question examples

Here are some sample HR interview questions that you can use to guide your preparations.

Tell me about yourself questions

The interviewer might break the ice with an open-ended question that invites you to introduce yourself, such as tell me about yourself. Here, you can give a brief summary of your career, emphasizing aspects that are most relevant to the position.

Behavioral interview questions

While the interview with the hiring manager may concentrate on the hard skills required for the job, such as specific knowledge or experience using particular software, the HR interview is more likely to focus on soft skills like problem-solving, adaptability, or decision-making.

To assess your soft skills, interviewers often ask behavioral interview questions. These prompt you to describe how you handled a specific situation at work in the past. Your answers help interviewers understand aspects of your working style, such as how you approach tasks, work with others, manage your time, or reflect on your performance.

Motivation

In HR interviews, you may be asked questions that give you a chance to explain why you’re excited about the position, interested in working for the company, or passionate about your work.

Resume and cover letter

The interviewer may ask you to elaborate on details from your resume or cover letter, such as a previous role, a responsibility you held, an accomplishment, a qualification, or a choice you made in your career.

Career change questions

If you’re moving into a new career or taking a different path within your field, the HR interviewer may ask what prompted the change and how your existing skills and experience would help you succeed in the new role.

Weaknesses

Be prepared to discuss your weaknesses as well as your strengths in an HR interview. A good strategy is to choose a genuine area for improvement that isn’t central to the role, then explain the steps you’ve taken to improve and the progress you’ve made. Depending on the job, examples might include giving presentations, providing feedback to colleagues, negotiating, or prioritizing tasks.

Practicalities

You could be asked about things like your availability, salary expectations, and working arrangements in an HR interview.

Questions to ask an HR interviewer

You’ll usually have an opportunity to ask some questions of your own in an HR interview. Avoid asking about information that’s probably readily available on the internet, as this could suggest that you weren’t motivated to do much research before the interview.

Frequently asked questions about HR interview questions

What are common recruiter interview questions?

Common recruiter interview questions are generally similar to common HR interview questions.

Both types of interviews often involve assessing your general suitability for a role before you meet with the hiring manager. Questions typically focus on your professional background, relevant experience, and motivation for applying.

A recruiter interview may be conducted by an external recruiter working for a recruitment agency or a member of the HR department at the company you’re applying to.

An HR interview is conducted by a member of the company’s HR department.

Create an impressively designed resume to take along to your interview using one of Quillbot’s free resume templates.

Other interesting articles