Professional Documents
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P I Q - P: Otential Nterview Uestions Rincipal
P I Q - P: Otential Nterview Uestions Rincipal
GENERAL COMMENTS
1. The following pages contain potential questions that can be asked during a principal interview. These
are provided as samples only. Feel free to adapt the question to meet the needs of the interview team.
You can also add questions to this list. The Director of Human Resources will monitor the development
of questions and review the final list to make sure all questions and the interview process meet
appropriate legal and procedural guidelines.
2. Interview team members should:
a. Determine the length of the interviews.
b. Finalize the list of questions to be asked during the interview.
c. Assign a specific member of the interview team to ask a specific question(s).
d. Maintain consistency throughout all interviews (e.g., same questions asked to all candidates; same
person asking each question with the same follow up questions if any are asked).
e. Complete individual radar diagrams prior to team discussion.
f. Smile, attempt to be at ease with the candidates, and enjoy the process!
3. The chair should greet the candidate in the appropriate room and escort them to the interview room (see
interview schedule).
4. Give a general introduction to the candidate and ask team members to briefly introduce themselves and
share their position (parent, teacher, etc.).
5. Monitor the flow of the interview and keep time so that each respondent completes as many questions as
possible.
6. Begin with this question:
Could you please tell us a little about yourself and anything that you feel is important for us to know
about you as a candidate for the [fill in building here] principalship?
7. End with this question:
Is there anything else we did not cover that you would like us to know about you as we consider you
as a candidate for the Willow Primary School principalship?
PERSONAL BACKGROUND/INFORMATION
• Why did you apply for this position?
• How would your best friend describe you? How would your worst enemy describe you?
• Please tell us what is special about yourself and what areas you would like to improve on.
• If you were offered this position, list your top five priorities for starting a new year with a new staff.
PARENT/COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
• How will you identify the educational needs and values of the community?
• Please describe the role you feel parents should play in the operation of the school.
• High-risk parents are often not involved in the school process. What strategies would you use to engage
them?
CLIMATE
• Schools tend to take on personalities of their own that are generally influenced by the leadership style of
the building principal. Based on this, what would Willow Primary School look like if you were named
principal?
• When you visit a classroom, what are the first things you look for as signs that the classroom is an
effective learning place?
• What do you feel are the key components of maintaining high staff morale?
• What are things that catch your attention when looking at a school?
• As a building administrator, what message would you want your school to convey when visitors walk
into the building?
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE
• How do middle school practices differ from those of a junior high school?
• When is ability grouping appropriate and when is it not appropriate?
• Middle schools are traditionally grouped into teams or communities of students and teachers. What are
the benefits of such a grouping? What are the disadvantages?
• What factors are critical considerations regarding how you would evaluate student scheduling decisions?
• What are the most important characteristics of a strong instructional team?
TECHNICAL SKILLS
• How do you evaluate the breadth of your knowledge about your field? Explain and justify your
evaluation.
o In what areas do you have special expertise?
o How did you develop that expertise?
o How have you utilized that expertise?
• What do you do to keep up to date in your field?
o What regular professional reading do you do?
o What is the most recent new, good idea in your field you have learned about?
o Tell me about the last time you were surprised by some development or finding in your own area of
expertise.
DECISION MAKING
• Tell me about the last time you made a decision that backfired.
o What caused you to choose that particular course of action?
o What options did you consider?
o Whom did you talk to about it?
o What feedback did you get?
o What did you learn from this experience?
• Tell me about the decision you’ve made which you feel has had the most impact.
o How did you come up with the idea for your decision?
o What risks did you take when deciding on this course of action?
o How did you evaluate the results?
CREATIVITY
• Describe the most important situation you have faced in which the best action was not prescribed by
definite guidelines.
o What was the situation?
o What was your rationale?
o What have you done to prevent this type of situation from reoccurring?
• How do you view your ability to solve problems innovatively?
o Describe the last time you did that.
o What was the outcome?
o Tell me about the time you’ve felt best about being innovative or creative.
ACHIEVING RESULTS
• Tell me about the most long-term, sustained, extra-hours effort you have ever put in.
o What was the assignment or project?
o In what ways did you put out extra effort to get the job done?
o How successful were you on it?
o What have you done most recently that has been beyond the call of your normal duties?
• What was the most unpleasant task or project you have been assigned in school or at work?
o Tell me about it.
o How did you go about performing it?
o How long did you wait before beginning work on it?
o What encouragement did you get (from your boss or instructor, for example) to start working or keep
working on it?
o How long did you take to finish the assignment?
o How long before or after your deadline did you get it done?
TAKING INITIATIVE
• Describe a situation in which you displayed the greatest amount of initiative in getting an assignment
underway and going.
o How did the need for initiative arise?
o Describe step by step how you proceeded.
o What was the outcome?
FLEXIBILITY
• What has been the hardest change for you to adapt to over the years?
o How did you handle it at first?
o What was it that you objected to most?
• Occasionally our needs and plans cause difficulty for someone else. During the last year or two, what
was the most critical interaction in which you and someone else were pressed to bargain to reach both of
your goals?
o What were initial positions?
o What strategy did you employ?
o What specifically did you say? What was the response?
o What was the outcome of the situation?
o What was your next encounter with this individual like?
HANDLING STRESS
• Tell me about he period of time when your work has been the most hectic.
o What did you do to keep it under control?
o What hours did you work then? What is more typical for you?
o What did you do when you were “stretched the thinnest”?
o What work got placed “on the back burner”?
• What has been your most disappointing or frustrating supervisory experience?
o What different approaches did you try?
o What directions did you give that were misunderstood?
o How did you handle objections to your directions or commands?
o Looking back, what could you have done differently?
• What has been the most unreasonable demand at work someone has made of you (a user, requester,
supervisor, or client)?
o How did you first respond?
o What was your approach in trying to meet the demand or in not attempting?
o How did the other person feel about your handling of the situation?