Module 3 of 5
Common interview formats. STAR method. Questions to ask employers. Follow-up communication.
Kwame has an interview on Friday for an administrative coordinator role at an international NGO in Accra. It is the best opportunity he has had in two years of searching. He is qualified. He has prepared — he has read the organization's website and can describe what they do.
What Kwame has not prepared: he cannot answer 'tell me about yourself' without rambling for four minutes. He has not thought of a single example for 'tell me about a time you handled a conflict.' He does not know what questions to ask the interviewer at the end. And he is planning to explain his 18-month gap in employment as 'I was having some personal difficulties.'
Kwame will not get this job — not because he cannot do it, but because he will not be able to demonstrate that he can do it in the 45 minutes the interview provides.
Interview mastery is not about performing a false version of yourself. It is about preparing so thoroughly that the best version of who you actually are comes through clearly under pressure.
What Interviewers Are Actually Evaluating
Before preparing for an interview, you need to understand what is being assessed. Hiring managers evaluate three things, in this order:
Can they do the job? (Competence): do they have the skills, knowledge, and experience required? This is assessed through behavioral questions, technical questions, and the specificity of examples they give.
Will they do the job? (Motivation): are they genuinely interested in this work and this organization, or are they applying everywhere and treating this as just another application? This is assessed through how well they know the organization, how clearly they articulate why this specific role matters to them, and the quality of questions they ask.
Will they fit? (Culture): will they work well with this team, in this environment, with this organization's values? This is assessed through tone, communication style, how they talk about past colleagues and managers, and whether their values and working style align with what the organization needs.
Most candidates prepare only for the first question. The second and third are often more decisive. An interviewer who is uncertain about your competence can give you a skills test. An interviewer who is uncertain about your motivation or culture fit will simply move to the next candidate.
The Five Most Common Interview Formats
1. Traditional (Structured) Interview: the interviewer asks a set list of questions to all candidates. Often used by large organizations and UN agencies. Preparation: prepare specific examples for every category of question (competence, motivation, teamwork, leadership, failure, conflict). Your examples should be ready before the interview — not constructed in the moment.
2. Behavioral Interview: questions that begin with 'tell me about a time when...' or 'give me an example of...' These are the most common format at serious employers. They are assessing past behavior as the best predictor of future behavior. Preparation: the STAR method (see below). You need 8-10 strong STAR stories ready before any behavioral interview.
3. Case/Problem-Solving Interview: common in consulting, finance, and some NGO roles. The interviewer presents a scenario and asks how you would approach it. Preparation: practice thinking out loud and structuring your thinking before answering. It is acceptable to say 'Let me think about this for a moment' before responding.
4. Panel Interview: multiple interviewers, each typically representing a different stakeholder (HR, the direct manager, a peer or team member). Preparation: make eye contact with all panel members when answering, not just the person who asked the question. Each panelist is evaluating you from a different angle.
5. Informal / Coffee Interview: presented as a casual conversation. It is not. Every word you say is being evaluated. The informal format is often used to assess culture fit and interpersonal style. Prepare as thoroughly as for a formal interview. Be yourself — your prepared self.
The STAR Method: Answering Behavioral Questions
STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action, Result. It is the most widely used framework for answering behavioral interview questions — and for good reason. It forces a complete, specific answer that gives the interviewer exactly what they need to evaluate you.
Situation: briefly describe the context. Enough background that the interviewer understands the scene. Not a full story — 1-2 sentences. 'I was working as a community health volunteer in Kisumu, and we had a measles outbreak in three of our target wards during the rainy season.'
Task: what was your specific responsibility in this situation? What were you called to do? 'As the volunteer coordinator, I was responsible for mobilizing our 15-person team to conduct emergency vaccination outreach while simultaneously managing our regular ANC visit schedule.'
Action: this is the most important part — what specifically did YOU do? Not 'we decided to...' but 'I decided to...' The interviewer is assessing you, not your team. Be specific about your actions, your decisions, and your reasoning. 'I divided the team into two groups: I personally led the outbreak response team, and I delegated the ANC schedule to my most experienced deputy with daily check-ins. I also contacted three additional volunteer organizations and secured 8 additional volunteers for the first two weeks.'
Result: what was the outcome? With numbers where possible. 'Within 14 days, we had reached 94% of the at-risk population in the affected wards. The outbreak was contained before spreading to adjacent areas. ANC visit rates dropped only 12% during the outbreak period and recovered fully within 6 weeks.'
Common STAR story categories to prepare before any interview:
A time you handled a difficult situation under pressure
A time you made a mistake and how you handled it
A time you had a conflict with a colleague or supervisor and how you resolved it
A time you went above and beyond what was required of your role
A time you had to learn something quickly to meet a deadline
A time you led a team or project to a successful outcome
A time you failed to meet a goal and what you did afterward
A time you had to persuade someone who initially disagreed with you
'Do you have any questions for us?' is asked in virtually every interview. Most candidates treat it as a formality. Prepared candidates treat it as an opportunity.
The questions you ask reveal your level of preparation, your seriousness about the role, and your ability to think strategically. They also give you genuinely useful information about whether this role and organization are right for you.
Strong questions to ask in interviews:
'What does success look like in this role after 90 days? After one year?'
'What are the biggest challenges the team is currently facing that the person in this role will need to address?'
'How would you describe the culture of the team and how decisions are made here?'
'What do you most enjoy about working in this organization?'
'What are the learning and development opportunities available for someone in this role?'
Questions NOT to ask in a first interview: salary (unless they raise it first), leave policies, how quickly you can be promoted, whether you can work remotely. These signal that you are thinking about what the job gives you rather than what you will give the role.
A brief, professional follow-up within 24 hours of an interview is a simple act that very few candidates do — and which consistently distinguishes serious candidates from casual ones.
The follow-up email structure:
Thank the interviewer(s) specifically for their time and name one or two things you found particularly interesting in the conversation.
Briefly reinforce one key point from your interview that you want them to remember: 'Our conversation reinforced my conviction that the community mobilization experience I built in Kisumu is directly applicable to what you are trying to accomplish in this role.'
Express your continued interest clearly: 'I am very interested in this opportunity and would welcome the chance to discuss further.'
Close professionally: 'Please do not hesitate to reach out if you need any additional information. I look forward to hearing from you.'
Total length: 150-200 words. Sent within 24 hours. This email takes 10 minutes and sets you apart from 80% of candidates.
African Development Bank — Graduate Programme Selection | Abidjan, Ivory Coast (pan-African recruitment)
The African Development Bank's Young Professionals Programme is one of the most competitive entry points into multilateral development finance on the continent — attracting hundreds of applicants from across Africa and the diaspora for a small number of positions.
A review of the programme's selection process reveals a consistent pattern: the strongest technical candidates — those with the highest grades and most prestigious degrees — do not automatically become the strongest interview performers. The candidates who perform best in the structured competency-based interviews are those who have prepared specific behavioral examples, can quantify their past contributions, and demonstrate clear motivation for the AfDB's specific mission rather than multilateral development work in general.
The programme's assessors specifically cite 'motivation and organizational fit' as the most differentiating factor between strong and very strong candidates — and this factor is assessed almost entirely through the quality of the candidate's examples, their knowledge of the AfDB's specific priorities, and the questions they ask at the end of the interview.
The practical insight: for a candidate applying to the AfDB's governance and public sector management division, the ideal preparation includes reading the AfDB's most recent Annual Report, understanding their Ten-Year Strategy 2024-2033, and being able to speak specifically about why the AfDB's approach to development finance differs from the World Bank's and why that difference matters to you. Generic development enthusiasm does not distinguish you. Specific knowledge and specific examples do.
Write complete STAR stories for all 8 categories listed above.
Each story should take 90-120 seconds to tell when spoken aloud. Write them in bullet note form (not a script) — enough to remind you of the key points without making you sound rehearsed. For each story: write the Situation (1-2 sentences), Task (1 sentence), Action (3-5 specific things you did), and Result (with at least one number). Eight stories, written out, before any interview.
Practice 'Tell me about yourself' until it takes exactly 90 seconds.
This question is asked in virtually every interview and almost universally answered badly. Your answer should follow this structure: where you are now professionally (1-2 sentences), the key experiences that brought you here (2-3 sentences, with one specific achievement), and why you are interested in this specific role (1-2 sentences). Practice it aloud — not in your head, aloud — until it flows naturally. Record yourself and listen back. Most people talk for twice as long as they think they do.
Research one specific organization you are actively applying to and prepare 5 tailored interview questions for them.
Read their website, their most recent annual report or impact report, any recent news coverage, and their social media. Find something specific that interests or challenges you. Write 5 questions you would genuinely want answered. Then practice your 'why this organization specifically' answer — it should reference something specific you found in your research, not generic organizational strengths.
The interview is not a test of who you are. It is a performance of your most prepared self — giving a specific, organized, credible account of what you have done and what you will do. Preparation is not cheating. It is respect for the opportunity.
Want to go further? These free resources are the next step:
Glassdoor — Interview Questions by Company and Role — Real interview questions reported by candidates at thousands of organizations — search for your target employer glassdoor.com
Big Interview — Free Interview Practice Tool — AI-powered mock interview practice with feedback on structure, language, and delivery biginterview.com
ILO — Career Development for African Youth — Free career resources, interview preparation guides, and professional development tools ilo.org/emplab
Answer this question before completing the module
Write out your answer to this interview question using the STAR method: "Tell me about a time you faced a difficult challenge and how you overcame it." After writing your answer, identify one part of it you feel least confident about and write a revised version of that part.
Score 2 out of 3 to complete this module
1. An interviewer asks: "Tell me about a time you had to work with a difficult team member." Using the STAR method, which element comes first?
2. At the end of an interview, the interviewer says "Do you have any questions for us?" What is the best response?
3. Chiamaka is asked about her greatest weakness in an interview. Which response best demonstrates self-awareness and professionalism?