Interview in English
Twelve questions you will hear, and the answer each one wants
An English-language job interview runs on about twelve questions. The company changes, the wording changes, the list does not: who you are, why you are leaving, why here, a failure, a disagreement, what you want to earn, what you want to ask. Below are the twelve, with what each is really asking for and how long the answer should run — and, for anyone interviewing in a second language, where the answer tends to lose the point.
The twelve questions
| The question | What they really ask for | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Tell me about yourself. | Your working path in two minutes, pointed at this role. Not your life story. | 90 seconds |
| Walk me through your resume. | A sequence, in order, with the decision that was yours at each stop. | 90–120 seconds |
| Why are you leaving your current job? | One reason you are drawn here and one reason you are leaving, no names. | 30 seconds |
| Why do you want to work here? | One specific detail of the product or the team — not the mission statement. | 45 seconds |
| What are your strengths? | Two strengths, each with one example. | 60 seconds |
| What is your biggest weakness? | A real one, and what you do to compensate for it. | 45 seconds |
| Tell me about a time you failed. | One failure, your part in it, what you changed afterwards. | 90 seconds |
| Tell me about a time you pushed back. | Whether you said no to someone senior, the sentence you used, and what happened. | 90 seconds |
| How do you handle pressure? | An example, not a description of your temperament. | 60 seconds |
| Where do you see yourself in five years? | A direction that fits this role, stated plainly. | 30 seconds |
| What are your salary expectations? | A range, in the currency of the role, said once and without apology. | 15 seconds |
| Do you have any questions for us? | Yes. Three, about the work. | 3 questions |
Where non-native answers lose the point
Understanding the twelve questions is rarely the problem. The problem is that the first language decides the shape of the answer, and English interviewers are listening for a different shape.
The point arrives last
Most languages build an answer as situation first, conclusion last. An English interviewer hears the first thirty seconds as the answer — and there is no decision in it. Put the decision inside each step. The Spanish and French pages go into why.
Nobody is in the sentence
Impersonal and passive constructions — “it was decided to migrate” — are good style in many languages and hide exactly what the interviewer is looking for: which verb was yours. Say “I chose”, then share the credit. See the Mandarin page for the “we” version of the same habit.
Modesty heard as absence
Understatement that sounds polite at home — “I helped a little with the release” — is read literally in an English interview. Name the thing you did at its real size. The Hindi page covers the reverse problem: decoding British and American understatement from the interviewer.
Pragmatics heard as character
Advanced speakers get judged harder: a direct “No, that is wrong” sounds like a personality, not a grammar choice. “I’d push back on that” carries the same content. The German page is about exactly this.
Warmth instead of evidence
Enthusiasm is a bonus; it is not proof. “I love working in a team” answers nothing an interviewer can write down. A project, a number and a decision can. The Portuguese page starts from this.
AI interview copilot in your browser: live answers in Zoom, Google Meet and Teams
Having the question on screen while it is asked
Trippi Cue is a Chrome extension for interviews in Google Meet, Zoom on the web and Microsoft Teams on the web. Click its icon in the call’s tab and, from that click, it listens to that tab’s audio — the sound the call is already playing to you. Your microphone is never requested, and nothing joins the meeting.
Two things appear in a window over the call: every line the interviewer says, as recognised — with a translation under it in any of 68 languages if you want one — and, when the copilot judges a question was asked of you, a short card with a structure to answer from. The card is written from the last minutes of the conversation and from the note you typed before the call. It is a structure, not a script.
It works only in the browser — not in the Zoom or Teams desktop apps. It records nothing; the recognised text and the cards are kept for 30 days and then deleted. It does not hide itself from anyone: if you share the call tab, the window is visible. Where we stand on using help in an interview is on responsible use.
Before the call, in five minutes
- 1Write your answers to the twelve questions. Say them out loud once, in English, with a timer.
- 2Prepare two stories: one failure and one disagreement. One sentence each.
- 3If you use Trippi Cue, type the note — the role, the company, the project you want to come back to, the salary range you decided — then click the icon once the call starts.
- 4If the link opens a desktop app, join from the browser instead.
FAQ
Asked about the twelve.
Are these really the most common interview questions in English?+
In general and behavioural rounds, yes: nearly every English-language interview contains most of them in some wording. Technical rounds add their own questions on top.
How long should my answers be?+
The column above gives the usual range. Behavioural stories run about ninety seconds; a salary answer is one sentence. Past two minutes, interviewers start composing the next question.
Does Trippi Cue work in the Zoom app?+
Only in Zoom on the web. A Chrome extension cannot hear the Zoom or Teams desktop apps.
Will the interviewer know I use it?+
It does not hide itself. The interviewer sees your camera and what you choose to share; if you share the call tab, the window is visible. A uniform pause before every answer is noticeable too. Read our position on responsible use.
Does it keep the interview?+
It records no audio. The recognised text and the cards are kept for 30 days and then deleted automatically; deleting your account deletes them sooner.
Read next
Twelve questions, each one on your screen as it is asked.
Trippi Cue is in the Chrome Web Store. One click on the icon when the call begins, and nothing before that.