Best Secretary Interview Question Samples and Answers

If you intend to land a secretary job, then you should prepare well to answer all the questions that will be thrown at you at the interview.

Your performance at the interview is important to your getting the secretary job, so you need to prepare thoroughly for it.

You can enhance your preparation by learning about the possible secretary interview questions you might be asked and practice answering them before going for the real interview.

This post provides the common and major interview questions for a secretary position that you can work with in your preparation for an interview for the job of a secretary:

Please, read on:

What do Interviewers Look for in a Secretary?

Interviewers will be looking for someone who is well spoken and can also take on a range of responsibility.

They will want to make sure you have the requisite experience required for the position and plenty of skills in accountancy, administration, correspondence, and spelling.

10 Most Common Interview Questions for Secretary Position with Answers

Here are common questions you will likely be asked in an interview for a secretary position:    

1. Where do you imagine yourself in the next five years?

Answer: I hope to be in my dream job!

2. Where do you see your career going next?

Answer: I see myself going into a supervisory role in the future with a company. I love being a secretary, but I want to be able to keep up my skills and expertise. I would like to stay with the company for more than five years.

3. What are two positive things about working as a secretary?

Answer: The two positive things about working, especially as a secretary is the ability to be creative and have some autonomy at work. I’m also able to create my own schedule so I can have more time for myself outside of work.

4. What are your salary expectations?

Answer: I am currently in salary negotiations with my current employer. I would like to be compensated in the $40,000 range for this next role.

5. What’s your biggest weakness?

Answer: I work too hard. In the past, I have been prone to overwork and make myself sick. This usually occurs when I am really focused on a project and comes from the pressure of not wanting my friends or family to know that I can’t make it through everything on my own. A strategy for me is to tell everyone who will be impacted by my project about the commitments I have, which reduces a lot of pressure for me.

6. Why do you think we should hire you as a secretary?

I believe my attention to detail, passion for documentation and typing skills will help me become a valuable member of your team.

7. What is this one fun thing you like to do over the weekend?

I’ll give you an example that’s relevant to this topic. A few weekends ago I decided to go on a boat ride with my family. It was really fun and the weather was very nice.

8. Can you provide us with three references who can attest to your skills and abilities?

Answer: Yes.

9. What type of management style would work best for you as a secretary?

Answer: I am a secretarial and administrative professional who is able to work well with others or on my own. I like to be in control of the situation, but I am also open to working with others. I often take initiative and don’t want to let opportunities slip away.

10. Who was your favorite supervisor and why did he/she stand out from the rest?

Answer: My favorite supervisor was James, not because of his management style but because he always made the day exciting. He would sometimes surprise us by cleaning up or making coffee for everybody.

More Sample Secretary Interview Questions by Category

Here are more questions to practice with in your preparation for a secretary job interview:

Sample Behavioral Interview Questions for Secretary Position

1. Have you ever been in a situation where you had to lie?

2. Can you work well on a team? How would your co-workers describe you?

3. What are your thoughts about working irregular hours, such as weekends and evenings, when it comes to staff meetings and deadlines?

4. What is most important to you: a stable job or a good salary?

5. Describe a time when you made a mistake at work and how did you address it?

Sample Case Interview Questions for Secretary Position

1. How do you feel about taking initiative?

2. What is your experience with following set procedures and policies?

3. How does multitasking affect your productivity?

4. Do you handle difficult situations well?

5. Can you tell me an example of when you prioritize completing a certain task over another one that was more important at the time?

Sample Competency Based Interview Questions for Secretary Position

1. What is your biggest strength?

2. What is your greatest accomplishment?

3. How do you handle a conflict situation in the workplace?

4. Why do you think you are the best candidate for the secretary job?

5. What are the three words that describe how you work?

Sample Problem-solving Interview Questions for Secretary Position

1. What is an example of a problem you solved in your last position?

2. What did you do when you were faced with a challenge or obstacle in your last role?

3. How would you resolve an issue if it came up again in the future?

4. Can you provide an example of how you demonstrated initiative and innovation at work?

5. Give some specific example of how you impressed your boss?

Sample Situational Interview Questions for Secretary Position

1. What are the most important qualities of a secretary?

2. Give an example where you had to make tough decisions.

3. Imagine your boss is asking for his coffee, but it’s not in sight. You go to get some milk and sugar, but when you return both are gone. Your boss asks what happened.

4. What would be your response?

5. What’s your best memory at a job?

Sample Communication Interview Questions for Secretary Position

1. Are you good at taking instructions?

2. Have you ever had to work with someone who was rude or acts unprofessionally? How did you handle the situation?

3. What is your experience with data entry and Excel Spreadsheets, if any?

4. Do you have strong grammar skills (including spelling, capitalization, and punctuation?)

5. What are your thoughts on multitasking office tasks without compromising quality of work for that task?

Sample Interpersonal Skills Interview Questions for Secretary Position

1. How do you achieve targets?

2. Do you have any relevant experience with admin roles or customer service?

3. Tell me an example of a time when you had to work on tasks with others, how did this make you feel and what did you learn from it?

4. How would your manager describe your interpersonal skills in the workplace? Are they mostly positive or negative comments from them that come to mind?

5. Have you ever had to deal with an angry customer before? And how did you handle them?

Sample Company Culture Interview Questions for Secretary Position

1.What is the best part about working here?

2. If you were to rate our company’s culture based on work/life balance, employee freedom, and happiness, etc. what would it be?

3. Would you say there are opportunities for growth within this company? If so how are they achieved?

4. Do people get promoted internally or do most people come from outside the company into a high level position.

5. Can you describe what an average work week looks like while employed with this company?

Secretary Success Interview Tips

To have a successful interview, you need to learn how to conduct yourself in a way that comes across as an all-round candidate.

The interviewer(s) are observing as well as listening to you.

Here are some tips that can help you shine as the preferred candidate they want for the secretary role:

1. Prepare for a secretary interview by getting a good night’s sleep the night before, dressing in professional attire that is comfortable and arrive at least 10 minutes early.

2. Be confident during the interview. Answer questions truthfully but politely.

3. Be practical when answering questions.

4. Know what you’re applying for.”

5. Communicate your job skills to the interviewer.

6. Have responses prepared for typical interview questions.

Conclusion

If you are applying for a secretary job, it’s important to prepare for the interview questions.

The secretary interview questions that we’ve provided on this page should help ensure your success in an interview setting by helping you think about what questions might be asked and how best to answer them confidently.

Make sure to research the company’s culture before interviewing with them so that you can demonstrate why they are the right choice for your skillset.