I have been envited for job interview starting from next week. Does any civil engineer here have sample answers to behavioral questions. If  you could lead me to some websites or send me your collection, I would be very grateful to you.

chao.

one question "what will you do if you know that there is a snake in your bag?"

Here is one list of sample behavioral-based interview questions:

• Describe a situation in which you were able to use persuasion to successfully convince someone to see things your way.

• Describe a time when you were faced with a stressful situation that demonstrated your coping skills.

• Give me a specific example of a time when you used good judgment and logic in solving a problem.

• Give me an example of a time when you set a goal and were able to meet or achieve it.

• Tell me about a time when you had to use your presentation skills to influence someone's opinion.

• Give me a specific example of a time when you had to conform to a policy with which you did not agree.

• Please discuss an important written document you were required to complete.

• Tell me about a time when you had to go above and beyond the call of duty in order to get a job done.

• Tell me about a time when you had too many things to do and you were required to prioritize your tasks.

• Give me an example of a time when you had to make a split second decision.

• What is your typical way of dealing with conflict? Give me an example.

• Tell me about a time you were able to successfully deal with another person even when that individual may not have personally liked you (or vice versa).

• Tell me about a difficult decision you've made in the last year.

• Give me an example of a time when something you tried to accomplish and failed.

• Give me an example of when you showed initiative and took the lead.

• Tell me about a recent situation in which you had to deal with a very upset customer or co-worker.

• Give me an example of a time when you motivated others.

• Tell me about a time when you delegated a project effectively.

• Give me an example of a time when you used your fact-finding skills to solve a problem.

• Tell me about a time when you missed an obvious solution to a problem.

• Describe a time when you anticipated potential problems and developed preventive measures.

• Tell me about a time when you were forced to make an unpopular decision.

• Please tell me about a time you had to fire a friend.

• Describe a time when you set your sights too high (or too low).

what do u prefer, working in a team or individual?

u have 5 tasks to complete with all deadlines tomorrow, u can only complete 3 till tommorow, what will you do ?

your deadline for a task is tomorrow, your manager is out, you don;t know how to do it, what will you do?

you are in dept A, a manager from dept B find outs that you did a mistake on a project and writes a very very nasty email to you , what will you do ?

a project is handled to you, u don;t have sufficient information to go ahead, what will you do?

what is the motivation behind any project?

What do you do when  you do not agree with the opininon put forward by your manager?

How much supervision do you need while working ?

 

 

 

 

 

do u like wokring in small teams or big?

Google it dude...!!

these were the real questions @ my interviews.

final 2 importnat questions

where do u see yourself in 2 years ( short term goal) ?

where do u see yourself in 10 years ( long term goal)?

final piece of advice , don;t let the interviewer ask u a lot of questions. Whenever he asks you a question that you can reply well, keep him engaged in that conversation.

lastly, the first question a interviewer ask will be , so mr .. tell me about yourself. you can take whole time of the interviewer in this question, but be aware that make the interviewer have conversation within your introduction , throw as much examples as you can , provide name of projects, products, companies you worked for , talk about some interesting people, that the interviewer may have known ( same) . However, you will need to have already worked for this .

 

 

Oops! Repost

 

Guys I am looking for the answers compilations for these questions if you've managed to make.

these behavioral questions are 'chhyap-chhyapti' on the net, but i am looking for the civil engineering answers.

That would be great.

variyaa,
the answer depends on your experience and you should sit down and think about what you are going to say. Since you are an engineer, I am sure you have had project experience with a lot of design. Thus, as an engineer, it is easier for you to talk regarding behavioral questions. I will give answers to a couple of questions, I am sure you can carry on from that.

• Describe a situation in which you were able to use persuasion to successfully convince someone to see things your way.

           Personally, if I were to talk about my projects, I had to do a software engineering project where my team decided to implement a database system, which was not part of the requirement. My professor was initially against it saying that it would be too much work and large-scale. We then came up with a basic design of the system and presented it to her. We had to go on to do a lot of work (eg. making drawings, graphs,  detailed layout of modules) beforehand to try to convince that it would work...that meant  working a lot in the beginning to sell your idea. Eventually she bought it and our implementation paid off really well.

So, if I were you, I would talk about a situation, usually design project where you had to work hard, be it making detailed drawings of your project, or calculations before hand to make someone 'see' your point of view.

• Describe a time when you were faced with a stressful situation that demonstrated your coping skills.

This question should not be that hard, especially as an international student. You can start off talk with the cultural shock coming to US as a freshmen and how it was hard to convey your ideas in the beginning because of the vast difference between you and your American peers. This is definitely a stressful situation. You can talk about a particular course (could be engineering) where you had trouble understanding anything that was happening and how you resolved....like getting help from your professor or a tutor...Don't forget to mention that you nailed the course at the end. This shows that you won't be afraid to ask for help and also that you have shown you can transcend cultural boundaries when the time calls for it.

• Give me a specific example of a time when you used good judgment and logic in solving a problem.

This is very specific to your major. If the people who are interviewing you are HR, then you might not want to go into details. But if there are engineers you can talk about particular problem in a design and how you decided to solve it.  Since it means good judgment and logic, you know designs always have trade offs, talk about why you used one approach vs. another, what did you give up and what you gained? Say you were designing a bridge, did you compromise the aesthetics for a robustness or safety factor? Think about the examples that you can relate to and how you can convey them.


Well, enough said, and I wish you luck for the interview. I have a few coming up in the following weeks. What I have gathered from research and other people is that you have to be well prepared, even if it means Bullsh*tting your answers and be sure you can answer the questions alexander posted.

Peace.

Forty,

thanks for your two cents. For last couple of days, I have actually been taking the same approaches that you've raised. Muchas gracious.

Still lookin for some civil engineers share some real examples, just to strengthen.

Chao.