How can employers approach sharing interview questions in advance?

There are several different ways employers can share interview questions with their candidates in advance. These may include:

• Sending questions via email before the interview
• Providing the questions 30 minutes before the interview begins
• Sharing certain types of questions in advance (such as situational questions) while reserving others for the interview itself

Since different forms of interview call for different kinds of questions, employers may decide that it is better to allow candidates to prepare for some but not all questions. Evaluating each question type on a case-by-case basis can help create a balanced approach.

The pros of sharing interview questions in advance

In this section, we explore how employers can benefit from providing interview questions to candidates ahead of time. Advantages include boosting candidate confidence, giving them more time to think over situational questions and broadening the talent pool to include neurodiverse candidates. Our article on how to make your workplace more welcoming to neurodiverse employees suggests strategies like reducing social anxiety and providing quiet areas in open-plan offices – sharing interview questions in advance can be another way to support neurodiverse candidates’ access needs.

Providing situational questions in advance

Sharing situational questions – or asking candidates for how they would apply their soft skills to a challenge – can be advantageous. This is because these questions often call for a STAR format response, which could take some time for candidates to consider thoroughly. A STAR interview response involves breaking down an answer into:

• Situation
• Task
• Action
• Result

Without time to prepare candidates are unlikely to provide the best example of how they’d solve a particular issue. While demonstrating a quick response to situational questions can show employers whether a candidate can think on their feet, some situational contexts may benefit from more careful consideration, especially if they require conflict resolution and other more challenging people skills.

Boosts candidate confidence and reduces stress

Different candidates perform differently under pressure, with some experiencing heightened anxiety during interviews. This can particularly affect conscientious, hard-working candidates who may worry about providing an inadequate answer. For less experienced candidates being nervous about interviewing for the first time may also impact their performance.

By sharing interview questions in advance, employers can help ease pre-interview nerves and build candidates’ confidence, giving them time to select examples from their experience. This approach can also demonstrate your business’s mental health awareness and could make it more attractive to candidates during this stage of the hiring process. 

Broadens the talent pool to include neurodiverse candidates

Some neurodiverse candidates may have strengths that differ from typical interview expectations. They may not respond as quickly without time to prepare, for example, but perhaps they excel in other areas such as problem-solving, critical thinking and lateral thinking skills. By giving all candidates time to think through their responses, they may provide answers that better reflect their capabilities. This approach may help employers enhance their talent sourcing initiatives.

Cons of sharing interview questions in advance

 Here, we look at some potential drawbacks of revealing the questions to candidates prior to the interview.

Some candidates may over prepare

While advance preparation can benefit some candidates, it may lead others to over prepare, resulting in rehearsed answers that lack spontaneity. Although this can demonstrate a conscientious approach and strong work ethic, it may also reflect a limited ability to work well under pressure or respond effectively to unexpected challenges. Candidates who over-prepare may struggle to provide a clear answer or solutions to their interview questions.

It may give some candidates an unfair advantage

Providing questions in advance can also give some candidates an edge if they seek advice from friends or family members with more professional experience. This may lead to inauthentic answers that reflect someone else’s perspective, which can make it harder for interviewers to assess the candidate’s true capabilities. This can leave interviewers feeling confused about whether a candidate’s skills meet the requirements of the role, or provide them with a false impression of how competent they would be handling their day-to-day responsibilities. 

While this could be a particular issue when interviewing for competencies, employers might consider asking candidates to bring a portfolio along to discuss during the interview, or to complete a trial task that better demonstrates their skills and competencies.

It may not reveal a candidate’s problem-solving or spontaneous thinking skills

Effective problem-solving often requires quick decision-making, especially in situations like addressing a customer concern or providing IT support for a major network outage. Allowing ample preparation time may prevent employers from seeing how well candiates can work under pressure or to time-sensitive deadlines. Spontaneous thinking skills are also valuable, as they can reveal how well a candidate might pitch an idea to a client, discuss projects during meetings or work well within an Agile team where collaboration on-the-fly is crucial during sprints.

Sharing interview questions in advance can be an effective way for employers to broaden their talent pool, make their hiring process more accessible and help interviewees formulate situational answers. However, it’s important to weigh these benefits against potential downsides such as over-preparation or a lack of spontaneous thinking. Consider taking these pros and cons into account when deciding whether to share interview questions with your candidates.