What is the STAR method?
The STAR method is a common interview technique used to organize responses to open ended, behavioral questions. The acronym, STAR, stands for:
- Situation: Set the scene. Share relevant background information and context to your experience.
- Task: What did you take on? The task is something you performed whether it was voluntary or involuntary.
- Action: What did you do in response to the task? How did you accomplish this?
- Result: How did this end? Whether the results are positive or did not turn out as planned, what happened and what did you learn from the process?
The STAR process gives you an opportunity to share an experience based on your behaviors and the actions you took from the beginning to conclusion. Depending on the interview question, you can discuss both your successes and opportunities for future improvement. The most important thing is to identify the appropriate story.
Identifying your story
Take some time to reflect on your accomplishments and moments where you were challenged throughout your career. It is common to look at your current career, but relevant stories can happen at any time. When thinking of stories for the STAR method, consider having multiple stories you can tell during your interview. To help identify stories, consider the following:
- Review the job description and the organization’s visions and values.
- Review past individual and team projects or achievements and, if applicable, quantify those results to share the measurements, results and impact.
- Reflect on your interactions with others or ways you engaged with a situation or project.
- Talk with current or former supervisors, mentors or peers.
- What did not go as planned? How did you respond and what did you learn?
- How did you have to adapt or how did you help others adapt to meet the challenge?
- Don’t have much formal work experience?
- Think about school and group projects and how you contributed to their completion.
- Consider other jobs or volunteer experiences.
- Reflect upon other personal achievements that may demonstrate relevant skillsets and experiences that would be beneficial to the role.
Helpful interview tips
- Take a moment to fully consider the question. You do not need to respond immediately. If you are unsure how to answer a question, ask for clarification.
- Avoid responding in generalities. Remember, interviewers are listening for an example of a specific Situation, the Tasks that were involved, the Actions taken and the overall Results of those actions. Be specific about your role and your involvement in the project. Talk about what you did, do not focus on what the team did. Remember this interview is about you and the actions and results you achieved. When applicable, quantify the results to share the measurement of the results.
- It is good to have a few stories lined up, not every story will match up to the questions being asked. It is also good to have multiple stories lined up that show different aspects and depth of your skills.
- Practice. Know your stories and ways you can adapt your stories to suit the questions. Remember to quantify the results to share the full story.
- Come prepared. It is acceptable to have notes for your interview, just do not read your notes as your response.
Additional STAR and interview resources
- Expert Tips for Answering Common Interview Questions (LinkedIn Learning)
- Skills-First Interviewing (LinkedIn Learning)
Good luck in your interviews!