Competency-Based Interviews: A Practical Guide for Development and Public-Health Roles

Competency-based interviews explore how you have handled real situations in the past. In development and public-health recruitment, interviewers often look beyond technical knowledge to understand judgement, collaboration, ethics, adaptability and the ability to deliver under constraints.

Identify the competencies behind the vacancy

Read the job description and group its requirements into themes. Common competencies include programme planning, stakeholder engagement, team leadership, problem solving, data use, communication, safeguarding and resource management. Prepare one or two genuine examples for each priority area.

Structure answers with STAR

Use Situation, Task, Action and Result to keep answers focused. Briefly explain the context and your responsibility, spend most of the answer on the actions you personally took, and close with the outcome and what you learned.

For example, if asked about a delayed programme, explain the cause, how you assessed options, who you consulted, what you changed and what happened next. Avoid speaking only in “we.” Teamwork matters, but the interviewer must understand your individual contribution.

Choose examples with substance

The strongest stories involve real choices, constraints and consequences. Prepare examples of a successful delivery, a difficult stakeholder, a mistake or setback, an ethical concern, a data-informed decision and a time you changed your approach. Use numbers where they genuinely clarify scale or results.

Show respect for context

Development work is rarely a simple technical exercise. Strong answers acknowledge communities, partners, power dynamics, inclusion and unintended consequences. When discussing fieldwork or vulnerable groups, use respectful language and protect confidentiality.

Balance confidence with reflection

If a project did not achieve the intended result, explain what you learned and what you would do differently. Reflection demonstrates professional maturity.

Prepare for scenarios

You may be asked what you would do if a partner missed a target, data quality was poor, a community raised a concern or a deadline conflicted with safeguarding. Clarify the facts, identify affected stakeholders, explain the principles guiding your decision and outline practical next steps. Do not rush to a heroic solution before understanding the situation.

Ask informed questions

Use the final minutes to understand the role: what success looks like in the first six months, how decisions are made, how the team works with partners and communities, and what challenges are most important. Thoughtful questions show that you are evaluating the opportunity responsibly.

Before the interview, practise aloud rather than memorising scripts. Keep your examples accurate, concise and relevant. The objective is not to sound perfect; it is to make your judgement, contribution and learning visible.