What behavioural interviews test
The premise is simple: past behaviour is the best predictor of future behaviour. Firms shortlist a set of competencies (usually 6–8) and ask you to prove each with a real example.
The most common competencies at UK graduate schemes: teamwork, leadership, problem-solving, resilience, commercial awareness, communication, initiative, and adaptability.
Build a story bank, not a script
Prepare 6–8 real stories from the last two years. Each should be re-usable across two or three competencies. Don't memorise them word-for-word — memorise the beats.
- A team project that succeeded because of something you did.
- A time you disagreed with someone and worked it out.
- A time you had to learn something fast under pressure.
- A time you took initiative without being asked.
- A time something went wrong and you owned it.
- A time you turned data or information into a decision.
The best candidates don't have more stories — they use the same three or four stories very well, angling them to the question asked.
STAR that doesn't feel formulaic
Situation and Task should be 2–3 sentences maximum — enough to set the scene. Action is the meat: what you specifically did, why you chose that, what you weighed. Result is the payoff: numbers, adoption, or a lesson banked.
"We had a group project, we split up tasks, we finished on time, and it went well."
"Our finance society ran a stock-pitch competition — 40 teams, one week to build the shortlisting rubric (S+T). I proposed a weighted-scoring model, wrote the brief in a night and ran two calibration sessions with judges so scores were consistent (A). Judges rated the process 4.7/5 and it's the model the society still uses two years on (R)."
Why this works — Concrete Action, decisions visible, Result quantified and lasting.
Handling probes and follow-ups
Interviewers will push. 'Why did you do that, not the alternative?' 'What did you learn?' 'What did others think?' These aren't traps — they're chances to prove depth.
"The follow-up is where I find out if the story is really yours. If you can't answer 'what would you do differently now', the story was rehearsed, not lived."
The failure question
"Tell me about a failure" — the most misjudged question in graduate interviews. The trap is choosing something so small it isn't a failure, or something so catastrophic it looks reckless.
Pick a real failure with real stakes, own it clearly, and spend 60% of the answer on what changed in your behaviour afterwards. Growth is the whole point.
Common mistakes
- Using 'we' when they asked what you did.
- Stacking three stories into one answer.
- Choosing school stories when you have university or work ones.
- Forgetting the Result. No number, no lesson, no adoption — no answer.