Application forms
Know how to approach common application form questions and use the STAR method effectively.
You could be asked to complete an application form, typically online, for a job or work experience opportunity. You will be asked questions specifically about the role and the organisation you are applying for, addressing your interest, motivation, suitability and commercial awareness. All candidates are asked the same questions which allows the employer to compare candidates objectively against the same criteria. You are often required to upload your CV to online applications too.
As well as being asked questions, you will need to provide basic factual information about yourself, usually relating to contact information and employment or work experience history. Employers may also ask you equality and diversity questions which help them monitor the diversity of their workforce – these will be separate to the rest of the application and how you answer these should have no bearing at all on the outcome of your application.
How to start and prepare your application
When you find a job or work experience opportunity that you like the look of, it can be tempting to jump straight into the application but don’t just start writing straightaway! An excellent application form takes time to complete properly, and it will be much easier if you invest time preparing beforehand.
Research the employer
Before you start your application, you should research the organisation you are applying to and try to find out as much as you can about them. Think about finding out:
- Who they are - what is their mission or purpose and what does their structure look like?
- Who they serve - what do they offer, what are their products/services and how do they fit into their wider industry?
- What matters to them - what are their values and what is their workplace culture like? What kind of impact do they want?
Use resources such as their website, social media and LinkedIn pages to help with this. Also consider if you have any contacts within the organisation you could reach out to or if they are holding any events you could attend (check your Student Futures Account for upcoming employer events).
It's also important you have a good understanding of the wider industry or sector - read our advice on developing your commercial awareness.
Match your skills and qualities to the role
Once you have researched the company, you should start identifying your skills and qualities and then matching these to ones that are relevant to the role, which are usually detailed in the person specification (the list of requirements for a role, usually divided into essential and desirable criteria). Develop specific examples of where you have demonstrated a particular skill or quality - it is not enough to just state that you have them!
Completing a self-assessment exercise like the one below will help you identify the skills required for a role and the specific example from your experiences that you can use to evidence them:
Self assessment
| Skill | Example | Area |
|
Group research module for year 2 module. | University |
|
Work experience | |
|
Part-time jobs | |
|
Volunteering / Extracurricular |
Check what is required
Spend some time reading through the application form thoroughly so that you understand what is required in each section. Most application forms also set specific word or character limits for each question so make sure you know these before you start drafting your answers! You may need a copy of your transcript (your education record) or degree certificate too - you can usually request these through your School office or the Registry department. Finally, make a note of the deadline and allow plenty of time to work on your application.
Contact your references
It is common for employers to ask for details of your referees (people who can give a reference about your suitability) within an online application form, but they may only ask for them later on in the process. Always make sure you have asked your referees in advance if they are happy to be contacted to provide a reference for you.
Draft your application
It's a good idea to draft your application answers in Word so that you can easily edit and monitor word counts, as well as double check spelling and grammar. When you start, make sure you know whether you need to complete the whole application in one go or if you can go in and save your progress, log back in and complete your application at a later time.
The good news is that the time you spend preparing for an online application form will come in handy for future applications! Your answers will need to be specific to each role and organisation, but it is worth keeping a copy of all your completed applications so that you can tweak examples to use again in the future - with the necessary tailoring of course!
Common types of question and how to approach them
There are several types of questions commonly asked in application forms (many of which are also asked at interview too):
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