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40 Interview Questions Every Social Worker Needs to Know

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40 interview questionsWould you like to know what types of questions to expect or prepare for before heading out to an interview for a prospective new social work position?

An earlier post had provided you with 20 questions every social worker needs to know for the interview preparation process. However, since then some important changes have taken place within the industry plus you had offered some wonderful suggestions.

As a result, the list of interview questions for social workers has grown from 20 to 40 ! These questions appear in the below infographic, organized by the following categories:

  • General
  • Assessment of skills/technique
  • Personality/working style
  • Other (may or may not apply according to chosen practice area)

This post also provides you with some suggestions as to how to answer three of your most challenging questions, how to quell some of your interviewing jitters, remain inspired and more during your job search journey.

Social Worker Interview Qs

Specialty Interview Questions

School and Child Welfare

For those of you interested in school social work, also see Got School Social Work Interview? 21 Questions to Answer and those of you wanting to pursue a position in child welfare, there are 10 specific practice questions in A Day in the Life of a CPS Social Worker.

Macro Social Work

See 3 Secrets Every Macro Social Worker Must Know and 7 Career Tips for Macro Social Workers.

Interviewing Tips for a Few of the Most Difficult Questions:

Try to View Interviewing Process As Learning Experience: 

Social Worker Salary/Growth Outlook

Continuing Education/Career Development

Showcase Your Talents Using the STAR Approach

Last but not least,  try to have between 4 to 8 case examples (or short stories) to share employing the STAR method in which you are demonstrating your strengths and skills in the areas that are most critical for the position you are seeking (as well as at least one in which you surmounting a difficulty):

  • Situation: Briefly describe the situation/event
  • Task: Point out the desired goal
  • Action: Share the steps you took to achieve the objective
  • Result: Describe the positive outcome(s)

Bonus: Where applicable: Were there some lessons learned from this event/situation and how has this impacted your work since? 

Finally, asking the interviewer a few thoughtful questions is another important ingredient to the interview process. If you would like a post with some suggestions, please let me know in the comments below.

Based upon your experience, are there any additional key interviewing questions you believe that social workers should be prepared for? 

Please feel free to comment and say hello any time! I would also love to hear what’s on your mind and what questions you have so that I can address them in future posts 🙂

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Comments

  1. Patrycja Jakubiuk says

    Hello Dorlee! Have you published recordings from the webinars, already? I am interested in sharing them with our community of medical professionals in developing countries.Kind regards, Patricia

  2. Dorlee says

    Hi Patricia,

    I think there may have been a misunderstanding about how things work vis a vis the webinars.

    If there is a webinar that is of interest to you in this list http://www.dorleem.com/2014/09/free-webinars-for-mental-health.html, you need to click on the webinar link and register for that specific webinar.

    After the webinar has taken place, if that particular organization sends or makes available a recording of its webinar, you’d either get it via email or you could visit its site to see if they have made a recording available.

    I have no personal connection to these organizations or their webinars. I just happen to take the time each month to gather the information of when/where they are available to make it easier for us mental health professionals to increase our skills in this way.

    Hoping this was helpful,
    Dorlee

  3. Jonathan Singer says

    Dorlee – these are great questions. I’d add:
    Would you be willing to be on-call nights and weekends?
    If the full time position is filled, would you take a prn/relief worker position?
    The agency doesn’t provide cell phones. Are you willing to call clients from your personal cell?

  4. DorleeM says

    Thanks so much, Jonathan, for your kind feedback and for suggesting these additional questions as ones to prepare for prior to an interview.
    These are very helpful additions – social workers would definitely benefit from thinking about what their flexibility is on these matters.

  5. Luke says

    Dorlee,

    Thank you for posting these questions! In a couple weeks, I have 2 different interviews for a couple openings in my local county social services. Both interviews are group interviews with 3 – 5 applicants in each group. Do you have any advise on how to stand out in the group? Thank you!

    Luke

    • Dorlee says

      Hi Luke,

      It was my pleasure. With a group interview, you want to stand out but also show that you work well with others.

      Below are a few suggestions to help make a positive impression:

      • Prepare (research the company as well as the backgrounds of the interviewers if you’re given a list of the interviewers)
      • Address your interviewers by name and make eye contact. Try to make sure you are addressing everyone’s concerns (not just the main interviewer).
      • Provide responses that show what makes you unique – for example, when you’ll be asked a warm up question about what you like to do outside of work for fun, try to share something more specific than a general “reading” or “watching movies” type of response.
      • Listen carefully and see what you can add to what other interviewees are saying (this will demonstrate your willingness and openness to working with others)

      Wishing you the best of luck!

  6. Kirsten says

    Hi Dorlee, thanks for posting these interview questions – it is a very nice, comprehensive list. I have an interview next week on 2/26 and was wondering if you could help me with one of the questions I struggled with at my last interview. The question was similar to the following one from your list: can you articulate how culture impacts our work? What kind of answer are the interviewers hoping to hear? Obviously, I am very aware that culture impacts our work, but had a hard time articulating a good response at my last interview. Next week I will be interviewing for a Child/Family Mental Health Therapist, if that gives you some context for your response.
    Thanks so much – I really appreciate any help you can offer!

  7. Dorlee says

    Hi Kirsten,

    Great question. This question may warrant a post all on its own 🙂 However, in the interim, you may want to consider including these ideas in your response.

    Being culturally aware helps you:

    1) avoid misdiagnosing a culturally appropriate behavior as some kind of mental illness
    2) recognize when a client is feeling ashamed vs. avoiding eye contact due to the way he/she has been taught (or other similar type behaviors)
    3) provide treatment within a client’s cultural context without imposing your own values

    Also, try to add an example of how one of these concepts specifically applied to your work with one of your clients.

    Wishing you the best of luck!

  8. Kynzie M. says

    Dorlee,

    Thank you for the incredible list of interview questions social workers need to know. I am currently in my junior year in the BASW program. I have learned about an opportunity that will allow me to complete my 450 hour internship at the Department of Children and Family Services during my senior year. The program is called the CalSWEC.

    “California Social Work Education Center (CalSWEC) is a unique partnership between social work education and the publicly supported child welfare agencies. A goal of the CalSWEC program is to recruit and prepare a diverse group of social workers for careers in public child welfare. CalSWEC provides financial support to BASW students in exchange for a commitment to work in a public child welfare agency for one year after graduation.”

    I am currently studying generalist practice but I have a strong desire to work as a geriatric social worker. I am also enjoying my current experience working with children at a children and family resource center. I am having a hard time figuring out how to present myself in my personal statement and interview. Should I not mention my desire to become a geriatric social worker after I graduate and complete my commitment to work in public child welfare for one year? I want to be a aprt of the program because I come from the child welfare system myself, I do not want to limit myself and the resources I can provide to others, I want my education and college experience to be holistic and I want to challenge myself. I have an overall passion to help people from all populations, cultures, and walks of life but I do not know if this quality is more desired than a person who is solely dedicated to working with children, has experience working with children, and would like to pursue a career in child welfare.

    I will apply to get into this program within the next week and I wanted to know if there are any tips, recommendations, and pointers you would give to guide me in my personal statement writing process and interview.

    Best Regards,

    Kynzie

    • Dorlee says

      Kynzie,

      It was my pleasure. That opportunity with CalSWEC sounds like a great one.

      In light of the program’s emphasis/requirement for you to work in the public child welfare arena, I would recommend that you stress all the interests and experiences you have that align with this goal such as your current experience working with children at the children and family resource center. In this manner, you are more likely to come across as a top candidate that they are seeking to admit to their program.

      Assuming your strong interest in being a geriatric social worker will remain after this additional training and work, you will be able to seek new experiences to shift/further your career in that direction.

      Wishing you the best of luck,
      Dorlee

  9. Liza says

    Hello,

    I have an interview for the position of Settlement Counsellor for victims of torture (Canada) next week. Any thoughts and ideas will be highly appreciated.

    • Dorlee says

      Hi Liza,

      I would look through the wonderful materials provided on this site http://www.healtorture.org/content/case-management-basics so that you have a good idea of the special needs that your clients are likely to need and the adaptations you may need to make in your approaches with them to help them find housing, child care, access community support, obtain mental health care etc.

      After your interview, please come back and share a bit of your interview experience/questions for the rest of us to learn from…

      Wishing you the best of luck!

      • Liza says

        Hi Dorlee,

        Thank you very much. I will definitely come back to share my experience.

        Best,
        Liza

        • Dorlee says

          It was my pleasure, Liza

          That would be lovely. I look forward to hearing all about it.

          Best of luck,
          Dorlee

  10. Liza says

    Hello Dorlee,

    As promised, I want to share some of the interview questions for settlement counselor I faced during my interview.

    Of course, there were common questions such “tell me about yourself” and why should we hire you?” And why do you want to work for us?

    However, the random questions were “how do you evaluate a program? What is the relation between a counselor and a client, staff and volunteers, staff and manager? What are the elements of a team? Will you provide information about your client if any other agency calls and asks for? Example of a difficult client and how you handled it? And etc..

    I hope this is helpful to those who apply as social worker or settlement worker. Thanks for the materials once again. That was very helpful.
    Best,
    Liza

    • Dorlee says

      Hi Liza,

      Thanks so much for coming back to share some of your interview questions!

      These will definitely be helpful for others 🙂

      Wishing you the best of luck in your job search,
      Dorlee

  11. Rachel says

    Dorlee, hi,

    I have an interview coming up as a re-entry technician with a program that specializes in providing substance abuse, mental health, and education programs for convicted felons. My duties will include working along side counselors.
    Are you able to give me some thoughts on what types of questions might be asked?

    Thank you!

    • Dorlee says

      Hi Rachel,

      Very interesting area! First, below are three resources worth checking out:
      1) Background on what the main concerns are for individuals seeking reentry after having served time in prison
      http://www.goodwill.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Road-to-Reintegration-Full.pdf
      2) A strength-based, family-focused approach to reentry planning
      http://www.vera.org/sites/default/files/resources/downloads/Why-ask-about-family-Final.pdf
      3) Several on-demand webinars giving you in-depth background on different issues for different populations
      http://csgjusticecenter.org/corrections/corrections-webinars-and-video/

      Second, my guess is that aside from the standard questions that you could expect, you may be asked:

      * What knowledge do you have about the criminal justice system?

      * What type of experience do you have with ex-prisoners?

      * How comfortable are you working with people from diverse educational and cultural backgrounds, from ex-prisoners to public officials?

      * What would you expect the typical barriers to be for clients to successful reentry?

      * What are some effective methods that you may use to help clients overcome these barriers?

      * What do you know about the Second Chance Act, Federal Bonding Program and/or the Work Opportunity Tax Credit?

      Wishing you the best of luck (and if you could come back and share what some of your questions were, that would be most appreciated) !

  12. Heather Kennard says

    Hi Dorlee, Im looking at an interview process as a beginner social worker student. I need to interview a child btween 0-5, so need a scenario n tools that would help with assessment. Questioning etc. Can you help me please?

    • Dorlee says

      Hi Heather,

      I haven’t had the pleasure of working yet with this age group but based upon what some contacts on Facebook shared, you may find one of the following possible tools helpful (the exact one to be used depending on what your exact purpose is):

      * CANS – The CANS-Comprehensive is an open domain tool for use in service delivery systems that address the mental health of children, adolescents and their families > Here is a manual and here you may get some training.

      * MIM – The Marschak Interaction Method (MIM) is a play-based, structured technique for observing and assessing the relationship between a parent/caregiver and child > You can find out more information about this and take a training here.

      * ASEBA Assessment for Preschoolers – http://www.aseba.org/preschool.html

      * DIPA – Diagnostic Infant and Preschool Assessment – 12-session, manualized cognitive behavioral therapy for PTSD in young children > http://www.infantinstitute.org/measures-manuals/ < manuals, training and assessments/screening If you are already employed in this facility where they are conducting these assessments, I would highly recommend consulting with a colleague/mentor what type they tend to do... because they may have a preference for one vs. another. Wishing you the best of luck!

  13. Che says

    Hi Dorlee,

    I have a interview coming up soon in the state of Maryland with the Department of Social Services. The positions they are hiring for are Foster Care Worker, Adoption Worker and a CPS Worker. Since I’m not quite sure which unit I will be placed in once I get the job (I’m claiming it in advance) are there any tips or questions you can think of that may be asked ? I was informed that I may be doing a writing sample where I have to rank what to do first, next, etc.

  14. Joseph teboho khohlokoane says

    I am wating for an interview in com,munity socialwprk as an socialauxilliaryworke what types of questins or tips you may help me with please i am scared as it is my first time

    • Dorlee says

      Hi Joseph,

      I haven’t heard of that type of position before but if you share with me the job description, perhaps I can suggest a few questions for you to prepare for. Could copy and paste the description here?

      You will be ok. In the interim, plan to do your research about the firm/organization (so you know why you want to work there vs another organization) and be prepared to describe what you’ve done to date that is relevant to this position you are seeking (so they know why you’d be a good candidate).

      Wishing you the best of luck!

  15. Sarah says

    Hi Dorlee,

    I happened to come across this site and have found he posts very helpful. I wondered if you could help me with an interview question which I failed miserably on, it also appears to be on the list of questions posted. I was asked to talk about a time in which I had failed professionally, the role I am applying for is a newly qualified social worker. I assume that they are looking to see that I am resilient and would be able to over come any difficulties I may face, however being new to my career I really struggled to offer an example and I am still unsure as to what they are looking for fully. I hope you can help as I will be interviewing for the same post very soon!!

    Thank you
    Sarah

    • Dorlee says

      Hi Sarah,

      The failure question is tricky. Generally, prospective employers are asking this in order to see how you view failure, whether you are someone who can learn from failure and whether you are self-aware enough to acknowledge failure and/or weakness.

      I’d recommend you try to use the STAR approach I describe above (situation/task, approach and results) to describe a real failure/mistake you have made in the past that you learned from.

      For example, I once made an assumption that X about a client or suggested to a client X. However, upon learning the facts, I realized that I had made the wrong assumption or given the wrong advice. This led to the client receiving their benefits two weeks later than they should have. This was due to my having made an assumption about X.
      Since then, I no longer make such assumptions and make sure to ask all of my clients the full checklist of background questions to ensure that I have the necessary information to ensure that they qualify for their benefits at the earliest possible moment.

      The key is to demonstrate that you learned from your mistake and that you can handle failures/mistakes.

      Hoping this helps! Wishing you the best of luck!

  16. Rebecca says

    Hi there! This post is very useful as I am going back into the field after 1 1/2 years break. I am an LCSW, LCAS and CCS in the USA.

    I applied for a supervisor position at a well known agency. They called me yesterday and asked if I would be interested in interviewing for a few of their therapist positions instead, as they are tabling the supervisor position right now (possibly).

    My husband thinks this means bad news for the company. I am obviously disappointed as well.

    I would like to go into the interview with a positive open attitude that conveys I am a good therapist.

    But I would also like to show that I am experienced and ready for the supervisor position if they decide to hire for that position.

    Any suggestions on how to present myself well for either position would be helpful. Thanks!

    • Dorlee says

      Hi Rebecca,

      I’m so glad that you are finding this post helpful.

      Hmm, in light of this agency now specifically hiring for a therapist position, I think you would be better off trying to sell yourself off as the best therapist they could hire, and later once you are in the door, you could apply for (and position yourself for) the supervisor position (once it re-opens).

      I think that if you were to go in for the interview with the attitude that you are still applying for the supervisor position when they have told you that it is unavailable may give them the false impression that you are unwilling to work temporarily as a therapist (essentially taking you out of their consideration).

      Wishing you the best of luck!

  17. Sam Cox says

    Morning Dorlee,

    I have a job interview coming up in a private sector fostering agency. My position here will be a newly qualified social worker. This is my first interview and I’m feeling really anxious! Is there any additional tips, points and interview questions you think they may ask?

    Thank you

  18. Dorlee says

    Hi Sam,

    How exciting that you have an upcoming interview in a private sector fostering agency.

    Aside from being knowledgeable and prepared for questions about why you want to work for this agency, and how your experience is a good match for them, you can probably assume that you will be asked questions to demonstrate that you have:

    An understanding of the foster care and adoption system
    Experience working with children
    Experience working as a liaison between schools, agencies and caregivers
    Knowledge about child abuse
    The ability to handle the demands of multiple cases and assignments
    Crisis intervention experience
    Problem-solving ability
    Willingess and ability to work with different personality types

    To illustrate that you have all of the above, have a few case examples in your head that demonstrate the above skills/experiences so that if/when asked, you won’t simply be saying that yes, you have skill X, but you will be giving them an example of how you applied that skill in action.

    If possible, please do come back and share some of the questions you’ve been asked for the benefit of the others in the community 🙂

    Best of luck,
    Dorlee

  19. Ellen says

    Hello! I have an interview for a caseworker position inside a prison. I am very nervous because I do not have experience in this role. My experience has been outside of the prison in probation. Any insights you can give me?

    Thank you!

    Ellen