APS behavioural interview questions, explained

What the question is for

A behavioural question is built on a simple idea: how you handled a real situation in the past is better evidence than what you say you would do. That is why the question asks for a time, not an opinion. The APSC’s guide for applicants, Cracking the code, notes that interview questions often follow the job description and may be behavioural, beginning with a prompt like “Tell us about a time when…”.

The panel is not grading how interesting your story is. It is looking for evidence of a capability the role needs, at the level the role needs it. A clear, ordinary example from a café, a call centre or a university group project can do that well.

Some panels also ask situational questions (“What would you do if…”). Those test judgement rather than track record. Treat them differently: explain how you would reason through the problem, and where you can, mention something similar you have done.

Where the capabilities come from

The capability behind each question depends on who is recruiting.

	APS (Commonwealth)	NSW public sector
Framework	Integrated Leadership System (ILS), APS 1–6 pathway	NSW Public Sector Capability Framework
What it lists	Five groups: supports strategic direction; achieves results; supports productive working relationships; displays personal drive and integrity; communicates with influence	Focus capabilities named in the role description, each at a set level
Where to look	The job advertisement, information pack and the ILS profile for the level	The role description and the Capability Application Tool

On the APS side, the APS Values in the Public Service Act 1999 also shape what panels listen for. There are six: impartial, committed to service, accountable, respectful, ethical and, since a 2024 amendment, stewardship. You do not need to recite them. An integrity or service example simply reads better when it shows those values at work.

On the NSW side, the framework was revised in January 2026, and agencies have until January 2027 to update their role descriptions. If the role description you are reading uses older wording, prepare against that wording. The NSW Capability Application Tool also offers practice questions for each capability, while noting that real interview questions may differ.

Common question types

Most behavioural questions for administrative roles fall into a handful of groups. Here is how they usually look:

• Working with others: a disagreement with a colleague, supporting a team member, working across teams.
• Client and stakeholder service: an upset client, explaining a decision someone did not like, balancing a request with a rule.
• Getting results: competing priorities, a tight deadline, finishing work when something went wrong.
• Integrity and judgement: being asked to bend a rule, handling private information, admitting a mistake.
• Communication: explaining something complex simply, writing for a particular reader, passing on bad news.
• Adapting: learning a new system fast, a change in process, taking on unfamiliar work.

Examples from outside paid work

You do not need years of office experience to answer behavioural questions well. Panels assess the capability, not the setting. Examples from study, volunteering, sport, caring for family or casual jobs are all valid if they show what the question asks for. A group assignment where you sorted out a disagreement shows working with others. Running a club’s membership list shows organisation and care with records.

What matters is that the example is real, that you can explain your own part, and that it is at a level that suits the role. If most of your examples come from one place, try to find at least one from somewhere else, so you can show range.

Follow-up questions to expect

After a behavioural answer, panels often ask a short follow-up. Common ones include:

• “What exactly was your role in that?”
• “Why did you decide to do it that way?”
• “What would you do differently next time?”
• “How did the other person respond?”

If you have thought about these for each example, you will not be caught out. The follow-up questions guide covers this in more detail.

Building an example bank

You cannot predict the exact questions, but you can prepare examples that cover these groups.

1. List the capabilities in the advertisement or role description.
2. Write down real situations from work, study, volunteering or caring roles where you used each one.
3. Pick examples that stretch. One good example can often answer two or three different questions, depending on which part you emphasise.
4. Check the level. An APS 4 example should show more independence and judgement than an APS 2 one. The APS Work Level Standards and ILS profiles help you check this.
5. Outline each example with STAR (see the STAR guide) and practise saying it, not reading it.

Common mistakes

• Talking in general terms. “I always…” or “I’m the kind of person who…” gives the panel nothing to assess.
• Saying “we” the whole time. The panel needs to know what you did.
• Choosing a dramatic story over a relevant one. Relevance to the capability matters more.
• Skipping the result. End with what happened and, briefly, what you learned.
• Giving a hypothetical answer to a behavioural question. If you have no direct example, say so, and offer the closest real one.

Checklist before the interview

• I have an example for each capability listed for this role.
• Each example has a clear situation, my actions and a result.
• I can explain my own part without saying “we” for every step.
• I know which examples could answer more than one question.
• I have said each example out loud at least once.