Shortlisting questions guidance

Read this guidance carefully if the job you are applying for requires you to answer shortlisting questions. This will be stated on the advert.

Shortlisting questions relate to the skills, knowledge, qualifications and experience needed in the role you are applying to. Your answers to these questions are the most important part of your application as they will be used in the shortlisting process to assess whether you meet the essential requirements for the role that are set out in the person specification and whether you should be offered an interview. 

Top tips to help you answer shortlisting questions are: 

• read the shortlisting questions and the person specification for the job thoroughly before you start
• think carefully about how you can answer the questions by considering what you've done in the past 
• if you've little or no work experience, think about the skills you developed at school, home, college, through voluntary work or a hobby that you can transfer to the workplace 
• provide practical examples of real-life situations when you used the particular knowledge, skill or experience 
• use the STAR model below to help structure your answers.