Interview answer frameworks

Coaching can help you practice and prepare for an important interview or national selection. Please contact me if you would like to schedule 1:1 interview practice coaching. My favourite answer frameworks are below.

Interview answer frameworks

I did A, which resulted in B, that shows I’m capable of C, and I can help you with D

This is a great way to identify and express the transferable skills that you have to offer the interviewers. Usually applicants only do parts A and B, but adding part C and D is a way of highlighting what you offer in an easy to understand way. It’s useful for talking about your past experiences.

Fact – Implications – Options – Opinion

This is a great way to talk about how you might do something in the future. Without it, applicants either talk about lots of ideas but don’t say what they would actually do, or they forget about the big picture and go straight into giving an opinion.

Event – Action – Evaluation

This is a reflective way to talk about an experience. The key is in the evaluation rather than just describing what happened.

What (happened) – So what – Now what

Another reflective framework, again focusing on the implications and change rather than just a descriptive account.

STARRR: Situation – Task – Action – Results – Reasoning – Reflection

Another framework talking about the past events. This one focuses on the reasons why things happened the way they did.

CAMP: Clinical – Academic – Management – Personal

A mnemonic to remind you that when people ask about your career, it is more than just the clinical aspects. Certainly at consultant interviews, understanding the individuals personal motivations that attracted them to the job is important. Instead of splitting your career into the CAMP components, you could also tell a story of your career making sure that CAMP are covered at some stage in the story.

SPIES: Seek info – Patient first – Initiative – Escalate – Support

This is a good framework when faced with a clinical question. Remember also to demonstrate awareness of the big picture, and to demonstrate how you have personally dealt with such situations.

Good luck!