• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

HBCU Lifestyle – Black College Living

  • HBCUs
    • What is an HBCU?
    • History
    • List of HBCUs
    • Notable Graduates
  • Jobs
  • Parents
    • HBCU Rankings
    • Black College Tours
    • College Admissions
    • Financing
    • College Scholarships
    • College Planning
  • Current Students
    • College Life
      • Greek Life
      • Sports
      • Dorm Living
      • College Survival
    • Careers
      • HBCU Career Hub
      • Internships
      • Career Profiles
      • Entrepreneur
    • Research Paper Resources
      • Research Paper Topics: 50 Ideas to Get Started
      • How To Write An Annotated Bibliography
      • Journalism Research Paper Resources
  • Alumni
    • HBCU Shirts
    • Podcast
    • Alumni Spotlight
    • HBCU Merch
    • Jobs
  • Shop

You are here: Home / Current Students / College Life / Greek Life / From Greek Life to Career: Three Tips for Answering Behavioral Interview Questions

Greek Life, Careers

From Greek Life to Career: Three Tips for Answering Behavioral Interview Questions

Black Sorority member is asked a series of behavioral interview questions during second round job interview.There is one type of interview question that trips up almost every job seeker—the behavioral question. Every day I interview unsuspecting job seekers who mostly get stomped when I get into the behavioral section. And folks think they’re slick. They respond with generic answers which rarely goes over well, if ever. Ironically, behavioral interview questions are easier to answer than job seekers think.

Greek life is fertile ground to prepare for behavioral-based interviews. Think about it. As Greeks, we are held accountable for our chapters complying with national standards and producing results while managing folks who constantly stay in their feelings about having letters. There are studies and research that point to how Greek life builds marketable career skills. In the book “African American Men in College”, for example, a study was quoted as stating:

African-American undergraduates—43 percent of whom held membership in black fraternities—identified time management, the ability to work collaboratively with people from different backgrounds, persuasion and negotiation tactics, multi-tasking and delegating, and improved communication skills as some of the competencies they acquired through their membership in student organizations.

By maximizing your Greek life opportunities, you could very well be prepared to reply to behavioral interview questions if you remember these three tips:

1. Give yourself something to talk about.

Being a “t-shirt wearer” gets you no respect, especially outside of Greek life. Dig in! Do things that cater to your talents and set goals. A great way to start is to join a committee. Also, come up with goal-oriented ideas to pitch to the chapter using the proper fraternity or sorority protocols. Sharpen your people skills by building relationships among your chapter members.

If you are in a small chapter that demands the members step into executive leadership immediately, seek guidance so that, in an interview, you can tell the story of a time that you were proactive about building your leadership skills to get results. The best results to mention in your interview answers are increased membership and revenue as well as service hours.

2. Document it!

People often claim to not have answers to behavioral questions because they simply don’t remember things they did to contribute to team successes. That is why it is important to document your success on your résumé. Other ways to document stories that can be useful in answering behavioral interview questions are blogging, personal journaling, or social media posts. Wherever you do it, make sure you have something that you can study before walking into an interview.

3. Practice telling your stories.

One thing that slightly annoys me is when I ask a candidate a behavioral question and the response, “I do that all the time.” Okay, so it should be easy to tell me a story (but remember that folks are trying to be slick). It may seem silly but practice telling one-minute stories about your accomplishments.

Here’s the good news—you’re Greek! Surely, you have a story about an idea that helped a committee successfully execute an event. Did you come up with a move that helped your step team place or win a show (to show creativity and team work)? You’ve got to have a story about a time you balanced class work, a job, and student activities to achieve success in all three areas. Have you ever taken the initiative to build relationships among your chapter members? Did that result in better chapter performance? Trust me, you have the answers we recruiters and hiring managers are looking for.

Here’s an important final thought. If you want to ace behavioral interview questions, get comfortable with the fact that they are coming regardless of the type of interview. Don’t look at behavioral questions as “gotcha” questions. Look at them as opportunities to illustrate how you accomplish goals.

Are you curious about the types of questions you are likely to face? Here are some outstanding examples.

March 17, 2016 by Eddie Francis

About Eddie Francis

Eddie Francis is the HBCU Lifestyle Podcast host and Greek life contributor. He is also a speaker, award-winning media veteran, and talent acquisition professional. Eddie is a regular contributor to "The HBCU Nation Radio Show" and award-winning "Sunday Journal" talk shows; and he has written for The Huffington Post, The Ladders, Great Black Speakers, LinkedIn, Social-Hire, Write to Bear Alms, Greek Ladders, and Careers in Government. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and you can learn more about him at EddieFrancis.com.

Primary Sidebar

Search

Follow Us

  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Quick Links

  • Newsletter
  • Jobs and Internships
  • Shop
  • HBCU Colleges List: All of the Historical Black Colleges and Universities
  • HBCU Rankings 2022
  • HBCU College Tours
  • Contact Us
  • About Us

Good Reads on Greek Life

  • The Divine 9: Black Sororities and Fraternities
  • Black Greek Apparel: 5 Unique Online Paraphernalia Shops
  • Joining a Black Sorority
  • Joining a Black Greek Graduate Chapter
  • How to Pick the Best Fraternity or Sorority

Popular Posts

  • Happy female college student working on research paper topics. Research Paper Topics: 50 Ideas to Get Started
  • HBCU Sororities and Fraternities to Consider The Divine Nine: Sororities and Fraternities on HBCU Campuses
  • New Programs at Morgan Address the Work of the Future and the Future of Work Morgan State Offers 4 New High-Demand Academic Degree Programs
  • Bowie State's nursing program students check a patient in class simulation. Top 10 HBCU Nursing Schools Rankings for 2022 by RN to BSN
  • Members of Alpha Phi Alpha's South Dallas graduate chapter. Joining a Black Greek Graduate Chapter

Before Footer

Follow Us

  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Subscribe to our newsletter

Sign up to receive weekly HBCU news, jobs, and advice in your inbox.

Sign Me Up

Footer

About HBCU Lifestyle

The spirit and camaraderie of black college living is a lifestyle - the HBCU lifestyle! We're committed to keeping you connected to the black college living experience, bringing you the latest on everything, from scholarships and dorm living to Greek life and alumni giving.


Contact Us

Latest from the Blog

  • PVAMU’s College of Nursing Helping to Cultivate Inclusive Classrooms
  • HBCU Go Partners With Award-Winning Movie ‘Freedom’s Path’
  • Local Initiatives Support Corporation Offers New HBCU Internships
  • Morgan State Offers 4 New High-Demand Academic Degree Programs
  • Newsletter
  • Jobs & Internships
  • Shop
  • List of HBCUs
  • HBCU Rankings
  • HBCU Scholarships
Copyright © 2010-2022 HBCU Lifestyle, LLC. All rights reserved.
Contact Us | Sitemap | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
Get the best of the Black college experience delivered to your inbox.
Your email address:*
Name:*
Subscribe to (select all that apply):*





Please wait...
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide
No spam, ever. Promise. Powered by FeedBlitz