The Ultimate Job Interview Questions List (200+ Questions with PDF Cheat Sheet)

Interviewing for a new job can be a nerve-wracking experience, but being prepared can give you a significant advantage. Whether you’re a fresh graduate or an experienced professional, having a comprehensive list of potential interview questions at your disposal can help you anticipate and formulate thoughtful responses.

In this article, we’ve curated a massive list of 200+ job interview questions, covering a wide range of topics from personal questions to behavioral and situational inquiries. We’ve also included a handy PDF cheat sheet with word-for-word sample answers to some of the most common questions, so you can practice and refine your responses.

Why Prepare for Interview Questions?

Preparing for potential interview questions has several benefits:

1. Boosts Confidence: By familiarizing yourself with common questions, you’ll feel more confident and poised during the interview.
2. Showcases Your Preparedness: Employers are impressed by candidates who have done their research and come prepared.
3. Helps You Highlight Relevant Skills and Experiences: Thoughtful responses allow you to showcase your qualifications and strengths.
4. Reduces Stress and Anxiety: Being prepared can help alleviate the stress and anxiety that often accompany job interviews.

The Master List of 200+ Job Interview Questions

Most Common Interview Questions

1. Tell me about yourself.
2. Why should we hire you?
3. What’s your greatest weakness?
4. What are your career goals?
5. What’s your greatest strength?
6. What’s your greatest accomplishment?
7. How do you handle conflict?
8. How do you handle stress?
9. What are you most proud of?
10. What are you passionate about?
11. What makes you unique?
12. How would you describe yourself?
13. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
14. Why do you want to work here?
15. Why did you leave your last job?
16. What motivates you?
17. What are you looking for in a job?
18. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
19. What is your salary range expectation?
20. Do you have any questions for us?

Questions Focused on You

1. How do you define success?
2. Do you prefer to work alone or in groups?
3. What’s the most recent book you’ve read?
4. If you could describe yourself in two words, what would they be?
5. What most turns you off in a job?
6. If you were a billionaire, what would you do with your time?
7. What are you prepared to do with an employee who refuses to be a team player?
8. If you were given the opportunity, would you take my job from me?
9. What is your ideal job?
10. On a scale of 1-10, with 1 being a hard worker and 10 being smart, where would you rate yourself?
11. How would you describe your personality?
12. How do you describe your analytical skills? Good, average, or bad?
13. Why are you the best person for this job?
14. What is your philosophy of selling?
15. What is the thing that frustrates you the most about work in general? Give examples.
16. Are you good at multitasking?
17. Are you self-motivated/a self-starter?
18. What’s an animal you most admire/relate to?
19. What do you want to accomplish?
20. What is your work style?
21. Who’s your mentor?
22. What are your hobbies and interests?
23. What is your favorite website?
24. What makes you uncomfortable?
25. On a scale of 1-10, how aggressive are you?
26. If you could have a superpower, what would it be?
27. Can you easily build rapport?
28. How do you think other people think of you?
29. What do you see yourself in 10 years, and how did you get there?
30. Do you prefer quality or quantity?
31. What areas need improvement?
32. Who is your biggest inspiration?
33. Do you like constant change?
34. How do you communicate when you are unsatisfied?
35. Why are you a good fit for this job?
36. What core value of the organization most resonates with you?
37. Do you find it difficult to talk to and meet new people?
38. What does integrity mean to you?
39. How will you achieve a work/life balance?
40. What is the most competitive thing you did last week that wasn’t related to work?
41. What gets you out of bed in the morning?
42. Would you say you are a person who loves to win or hates to lose?
43. What is your biggest regret?
44. Describe your personality.
45. What is your management style?
46. Who is your hero?

Questions Focused on the Job

1. Are you willing to relocate for this job?
2. Will you travel for this job?
3. What interests you about this position?
4. If you were hired, how soon can you start?
5. Are you willing to travel?
6. Are you overqualified for this role?
7. Would you be willing to work nights and weekends?
8. What do you know about our company?
9. What do you know about our industry?
10. If you were asked to, would you break union rules if directed to do so by management?
11. What’s the biggest problem you see with our company?
12. Is it okay to miss a deadline? If so, when?
13. How do you feel about working long hours?
14. Would you get bored in a year and leave us?
15. How would you deal with ambiguity in the workplace?
16. Why is diversity important in the workplace?
17. What do you think about overtime work?
18. What does customer service mean to you?
19. How long do you expect to stay with this company?
20. How would you deal with a rude employee?
21. What would you look to accomplish in the first 30 days/60 days/90 days on the job?
22. What is the name of our CEO?
23. How would you fire someone?
24. What is your desired salary?
25. What do you consider the most important qualities for this job?
26. Can you, from day one, be on your own, no processes, just be told what needs to be done, and do it?
27. Describe your best day at work.
28. What would you do if the head partner gave you an assignment to do ASAP, and another partner gave you another assignment to do ASAP?
29. Why should I hire you over these other candidates? (In a group interview)
30. Some people only work in [This industry] just to have a job until something better comes along. How do we know if we hire you that you will stay?
31. If you saw your boss stealing, would you turn them in?
32. Would you be willing to start out part-time?
33. How do you see yourself fitting into the organization?
34. What would you do if you heard a coworker talk badly about a customer?
35. Sell me this [object].
36. What would you consider your one greatest attribute as it applies to this position?
37. What makes you a bad candidate for this position?

Questions Focused on Your Past Job Experience

1. What did you like least about your last position?
2. Can you explain these gaps in your resume?
3. Can you walk us through your resume?
4. Why are you changing careers?
5. What did you hate about your last job?
6. Why is your resume so diverse?
7. What was the hardest thing you ever had to do in your prior work experience?
8. Tell me about your experience at [XYZ] company.
9. Tell me about your background and how that impacted your ability as an employee.
10. What do you think your former boss would say about you?
11. Name something you wish you regret at your previous job and would do differently here.
12. Why were you let go from your last position?
13. Why are you looking for a new job?
14. Were there any unethical situations at past jobs, and how did you handle this?
15. Have you ever been late for work? How do you make sure you always get to work on time?
16. Pretend I didn’t read your resume, and we just met on the street and go from there…

Behavioral & Situational Interview Questions

1. Describe a situation where you disagreed with a supervisor.
2. Tell me about a time you had a conflict at work.
3. Tell me about a situation where you had to solve a difficult problem.
4. Describe a project or idea (not necessarily your own) that was implemented primarily because of your efforts.
5. Do you feel you work well under pressure? If so, describe a time when you have done so…
6. Give me an example of a time when you motivated others.
7. Tell me about a time where you had to delegate tasks during a project.
8. Give me an example of when you showed initiative and took the lead.
9. Tell me about a time when you missed an obvious solution to a problem.
10. Tell me about your proudest professional accomplishment.
11. Describe a time when your work was criticized.
12. How would you feel about reporting to a person younger than you?
13. Describe a time you went above and beyond at work.
14. Tell me about the last mistake you made.
15. Describe a time when you had to give a person difficult feedback.
16. How would you deal with an angry or irate customer?
17. Describe a time you chose not to help a teammate.
18. Tell me about a time you failed.
19. How would you handle a situation where you have a client who interrupts your existing interaction with a client?
20. Suppose you are working on a project with an original scope of a few months, and you are told that you instead now have a few days — how would you handle it?
21. How would you communicate to team members that a deadline was approaching, and they had to have their materials ready on time?
22. If your supervisor gives you a direct order that you know is against company policy, how do you handle the situation?
23. Tell me a time when you had to make a quick decision without knowing all the facts.
24. Tell me a time when you had to work on a project and had someone on your team who would not cooperate. What did you do?
25. Tell me about a time you failed and what you learned.
26. Tell me about a time when you had to work with someone with whom you did not get along. How did you handle that situation?
27. How would you go about solving a problem? Describe the process.
28. Tell me about a time when you went above or beyond.
29. Describe a time you disobeyed a rule.
30. Describe a time when you didn’t complete a task on time or to expectations.
31. Tell me about a situation where you had to adapt quickly.
32. Please explain the last time you realized you made a mistake, how did you handle it?
33. Tell me about a time when you had to work in a culturally diverse environment.
34. Tell me something you would change if you could go back and do it over.
35. Tell me about a time you provided excellent customer service.
36. Tell us about a time you’ve faced a moral decision.
37. Tell me about a time that a situation at work was solved because of teamwork.
38. If your boss was late giving you information to complete a project for a boss two levels up, how would you handle it?
39. Tell me a time when someone made a decision that you did not agree with, and what did you do about it?
40. Tell me about a time that you jumped to an incorrect conclusion.
41. Describe a time when someone pushed your buttons continuously, and how did you handle it?
42. Tell me about a time when you struggled with meeting your goals, and what did you do?
43. How would you handle a situation where another employee was complaining about the job?
44. Talk about a time when you provided a creative solution to a problem.
45. Tell me about a time when you had to work long hours to finish a project. How did you handle it?
46. Give an example of when someone on your team was not pulling their own weight. How did you deal with the situation?
47. Tell me about a time you were a leader and were unsuccessful.
48. Describe a time where you held a co-worker accountable for their actions.
49. Describe a situation where you didn’t particularly care for someone, but had to interact with them in a difficult situation.
50. Tell me about a time you managed a team, and things didn’t work out as planned.

Questions About Leadership

1. Can you tell me about a time when you demonstrated leadership capabilities on the job?
2. Which supporting skills do you think are most important when it comes to leadership?
3. When there is a disagreement on your team, how do you handle it?
4. Tell me about the hardest decision you’ve ever made as a leader. How did you decide which course of action was best?
5. What steps do you take to make sure that projects are completed on time, on budget, and to the proper standard?
6. How would you describe your leadership style? How would your colleagues describe it?
7. Can you tell me about a time where you faced a leadership challenge? What did you do to overcome it?
8. If a team member is underperforming, what steps do you take to improve their performance?
9. Have you ever taken on a leadership role voluntarily? If so, can you tell me about it?
10. Tell me about your approach to delegation.
11. Can you describe a time when you led by example?
12. Have you ever served in a coach or mentor role? How were you able to help the other person achieve success?
13. How do you monitor a team’s performance?
14. If a team is struggling to stay motivated, what steps would you take to boost engagement?
15. When a member of your team presents you with an idea, how do you respond?
16. Which of your past managers was your favorite leader, and why?
17. Who inspires you?
18. How do you respond to constructive criticism?
19. What approach do you use when you need to deliver constructive criticism?
20. What steps do you take to measure your personal performance at work?
21. During your first days in the job, are there any changes that you try to implement immediately?
22. When starting with a new team, how do you evaluate the current state of their capabilities?
23. What do you think is most important in creating a positive culture?
24. How do you determine who gets access to professional development or training?
25. If your project became unexpectedly shorthanded, what would you do to ensure it stayed on target?
26. Tell us about a time you had to lead a meeting.
27. Describe how you motivate others.
28. Are you a leader or a follower?
29. What are three qualities of leadership?
30. Describe your philosophy of leadership in a few sentences.

Brain Teasers

(A lot of these are used to see how you approach solving the problem/answering the question)

1. If you had to figure out the total number of red cars in the city of Boston, how would you go about doing that?
2. Why is a manhole round?
3. Mary’s mother has four children. The names of three of the children are April, May, and June. What is the fourth child’s name?
4. How would you get an elephant into a refrigerator?
5. If you had to get rid of one of the states in the U.S., which one would it be, and why?
6. Suppose you had eight identical balls. One of them is slightly heavier, and you are given a balance scale. What’s the fewest number of times you have to use the scale to find the heavier ball?
7. You have 25 horses, what is the minimum number of races you can find the top 3. In one race, you can race 5 horses, and you don’t have a timer.
8. How many bottles of shampoo are produced in the world a year?
9. How many baseballs can you fit on a 747?
10. Four people need to cross a bridge at night; there is only one flashlight, and only one person can walk on the bridge at a time. How would you get them all across the bridge?
11. How does a toilet work?

PDF Cheat Sheet

We’ve also included two PDF versions of this list for you to practice with:

1. PDF Version with Graphics: This version includes visuals and formatting, making it ideal for practicing on your phone or tablet.

![PDF Version with Graphics][]

1. Simple Printable Version: This stripped-down version is perfect for printing out and taking notes during your mock interviews.![Simple Printable Version][]

Free Job Interview Questions & Answers Cheat Sheet

To further assist you in your preparation, we’ve created a free “Job Interview Questions & Answers PDF Cheat Sheet” that provides word-for-word sample answers to some of the most common interview questions, including:

• What Is Your Greatest Weakness?
• What Is Your Greatest Strength?
• Tell Me About Yourself
• Why Should We Hire You?
• And more!

To get your hands on this valuable resource, simply [click