Recruitment

Competency Based Application Forms

Completing a competency-based application form

A competency-based application form requires you to describe some of your personal achievements to date that demonstrate certain competencies (necessary skills and qualities) required for the position you are applying for (e.g. Communication Skills, Planning and Managing Resources, etc). All question areas must be completed and remember that you will be questioned on all areas at interview.

For each competency, you are given a description of a skill or quality. You are then asked to describe a situation, from your own experience, which you think is the best example of what YOU have done which demonstrates this skill or quality. It is essential that you describe how you demonstrated the skill or quality in question.

The information you present here may form part of a ranking exercise process, and may also be used to help structure your interview, if you are invited to one. A ranking exercise may apply based on the information you provide in your application form. This means that a ranking board will “rank” applications based on information put forward in the supplementary questions section of your application form. Interviews may be held on a phased basis, inviting applicants to interview based on the position held in the ranking exercise. A primary panel will be formed of candidates successful in the first phase of interviews. If subsequent interviews are held candidates successful at these interviews will be added to the end of the primary panel and will be listed with a lower order of merit.

Therefore, compose your replies carefully in this section and try to structure what you write so that you give specific information about what you have done – for example, do not simply say that “X was successful”, describe exactly what you did and how you demonstrated the skill or quality in question.

For each example please include the following:

1. The nature of the task, problem or objective;
2. What you actually did and how you demonstrated the skill or quality (and, where appropriate, the date you demonstrated it)
3. The outcome or result of the situation and your estimate of proportion of credit you can claim for the outcome.

 Please do not use the same example to illustrate your answer to more than two skill areas.

Please note that, should you be called to interview, the board may look for additional examples of where you demonstrated the skills required for this post so you should think of a number of examples of where you demonstrated each of the skills.

Notes

• You may use a word processer to reproduce these pages and type your replies
• It is recommended that you keep a copy of this section of the application form

Guidelines for completing the Supplementary Questions

The Supplementary Questions are designed to help you to present relevant evidence in order that decision makers can evaluate how well you ‘fit’ the requirements of a particular role. Relevant evidence is usually drawn from your work experience and the way in which you have accomplished a range of activities. Those involved in screening the applications will be evaluating the information you give against specific skills required for effective performance in the role. To do this they need you to give enough detail so that they can tell what you actually did and how you did it.

The people doing the screening will not assume that you demonstrate a skill at the right level just because of your current role, length of experience or educational qualifications. These od not give enough evidence about how you accomplished relevant tasks.

So, if a question is about your approach to decision making, you need to do more than described your current role and list important decisions you have made. You will need to describe how you reached relevant decisions. 

Some guidelines for presenting yourself well are given below: –

Give specific examples – most questions will ask you to describe an example of when you have demonstrated a skill: try to do this concisely but with enough detail so that the reader will be clear about what you actually did. This detail might include information about timescales, the number of people involved, budgets etc. It can help to use bullet points to that the sequence of events is clear to the reader.

Give a range of examples – if possible, base your answers on different situations or challenges you faced rather than rely on just on experience. This helps the reader to evaluate how you tackle different challenges and not just your behaviour in a ‘one off’ situation.

Be concrete rather than theoretical – a clear description of how you actually behaved in a particular situation (and why) is of much more use to the reader than a vague or general description of what you consider to be desirable attributes.

Examples on how to complete this section of the application form

Skill Area: Communication Skills: able to adapt your communication style to particular situations and audiences…. Able to produce clear and concise written information….

Example 1: I was responsible for producing important management reports and supporting presentations for a range of important and high-profile clients.  Through my understanding of the clients’ needs and my effective communication skills, I have ensured that the reports that go to the clients are relevant and focused, and are continually improved.  The reports I have produced and the presentations I have made were well received by all my clients.  As a result of the combination of my analytical thinking and interpersonal and communication skills, my brief has been extended to lead the development of the strategic plan for the organisation.

Example 2: (a) The unit I was attached to was responsible for producing a management report and supporting oral presentation for several large clients, some with significant problems and issues to report.  In some cases, the management report was publicly available and was subject to a great deal of scrutiny.  A new style/format of management letter needed to be developed for my clients, as many of the clients were complaining that the letters were too large/long and difficult to read.

(b) I was tasked with developing a new style of management letter for the clients.  I had to meet stringent quality requirements/criteria whilst addressing the need to reduce its size.  Following consultation, mainly over the phone and face-to-face, with the majority of our clients, I realised that a summarised report format with a better visual and more interactive presentation was the answer.  I developed a format for a summarised report, reducing the average length from 40 pages to just 10.  I achieved this through careful editing of information and increased use of graphs etc.  I then developed a more focused presentation to clients and included more graphical displays and incorporated short presentations by colleagues directly involved in producing the work.  During the presentations I encouraged clients to ask questions and develop their understanding of the issues at hand.

(c) The summarised management report and improved presentations were seen as a success by the clients, who with exception, in responding to an evaluation survey, found the new format/style better than the previous, and all requested that the revised system should be continued. 80% credit

Example 1 (above):

This is not a good example because it: 

– does not give sufficient details of exactly what the person did or how they actually demonstrated their “effective communication skills”

– also, it is not clear where the information requested at, (a), (b) and (c) (supplementary section) is presented.

Example 2 (above):

This is a better example because it:

-describes exactly what the person did and how they communicated, for example

“…consultation, mainly over the pone and face-to face” & “developed a format for a summarised report, reducing the average length from 40 pages to just 10” “achieved this through careful editing of information and increased use of graphs”. “encouraged clients to ask questions”

-also, it is clearer where the information requested at (a), (b) and (c) of supplementary question section is presented.

The STAR Model

For completing application form questions:

• Situation: Use one or two sentences to describe WHEN the situation took place, WHERE you worked or studied, WHAT your role was, WHO else was involved and any other relevant background information that provides context. 

• Task: Clearly describe the problem or challenge you faced and the goal you were working towards in the example. 

• Action: Outline WHAT YOU DID to either resolve the situation or contribute to the success of the example. Describe in detail the steps you took (WHAT, WHY, HOW etc.), any challenges you faced, and what specific skills you used. 

• Result: Describe the result of your actions and what you accomplished from the situation. It is important to relate the skill or competency you are illustrating back to the role you are applying for and explain what you learned from the experience. 

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Frequently Asked Questions