By Chris – PS Interview Coach
After coaching thousands of Australian Public Service candidates over the past two decades, I’ve noticed a persistent confusion that costs many talented professionals their dream APS roles. They prepare extensively for “behavioural questions” using the STAR method, only to stumble when faced with competency-based questions that require a completely different approach.
The truth is, understanding the subtle but crucial differences between behavioural and competency-based interview questions—and knowing how to excel at both—can be the difference between APS interview success and disappointment. Today, I’m breaking down these differences and sharing my proven strategies for nailing both question types.
Understanding Behavioural Interview Questions
What Are Behavioural Interview Questions?
Behavioural interview questions are designed to assess how you’ve handled specific situations in the past. They’re based on the principle that past behaviour is the best predictor of future performance. These questions typically start with phrases like “Tell me about a time when…” or “Describe a situation where…”
Key characteristics of behavioural questions:
- Focus on specific past experiences and actions
- Require detailed storytelling with concrete examples
- Assess your problem-solving process and decision-making
- Evaluate your ability to learn from experiences
- Test your self-awareness and reflection capabilities
Common Behavioural Question Examples in APS Interviews
Here are typical behavioural questions you might encounter in Australian Public Service interviews:
- “Tell me about a time when you had to work with a difficult stakeholder”
- “Describe a situation where you had to adapt to a significant change”
- “Give me an example of when you had to decide with incomplete information”
- “Tell me about a time when you had to influence someone without authority”
- “Describe a situation where you had to handle competing priorities”
Understanding Competency-Based Interview Questions
What Are Competency-Based Interview Questions?
Competency-based questions focus on assessing whether you possess specific skills, knowledge, or abilities required for the role. Rather than asking for a story, these questions test your understanding of concepts, your approach to situations, and your theoretical knowledge.
Key characteristics of competency-based questions:
- Assess specific skills, knowledge, or capabilities
- May include hypothetical scenarios or theoretical situations
- Test your understanding of best practices and methodologies
- Evaluate your knowledge of relevant frameworks or processes
- Focus on your approach and thinking rather than specific past events
Common Competency-Based Question Examples in APS Interviews
Here are typical competency-based questions in Australian Public Service contexts:
- “How would you approach building relationships with key stakeholders in this role?”
- “What strategies would you use to manage a team through organisational change?”
- “How do you ensure compliance with government policies and procedures?”
- “What’s your approach to risk management in government projects?”
- “How would you handle a situation where departmental priorities conflict?”
Key Differences Between Behavioural and Competency Questions
Response Structure Requirements
The most critical difference lies in how you should structure your responses to each question type.
Behavioural questions require:
- Specific examples from your experience
- STAR method implementation (Situation, Task, Action, Result)
- Detailed storytelling with concrete outcomes
- Personal reflection on lessons learned
- Demonstration of growth and development
Competency questions require:
- Framework-based approaches and methodologies
- Theoretical knowledge demonstration
- Best practice understanding
- Strategic thinking and planning
- Examples used to illustrate understanding (not as the main focus)
Assessment Focus Differences
Understanding what interviewers are assessing helps you tailor your responses appropriately.
Behavioural questions assess:
- Your actual performance in real situations
- Problem-solving and decision-making processes
- Interpersonal and communication skills
- Adaptability and resilience
- Self-awareness and learning capability
Competency questions assess:
- Knowledge of relevant concepts and frameworks
- Understanding of best practices in your field
- Strategic thinking and planning abilities
- Professional judgment and decision-making capability
- Alignment with role requirements and expectations
How to Nail Behavioural Interview Questions
Master the Enhanced STAR Method
While most candidates know about STAR, few implement it effectively. Here’s my enhanced approach:
Situation (20% of response time):
- Set the context concisely without unnecessary detail
- Include relevant stakeholders and constraints
- Establish the complexity or challenge level
- Connect to APS values or government context, where relevant
Task (15% of response time):
- Clearly define your specific role and responsibilities
- Explain what needs to be achieved
- Highlight any competing priorities or constraints
- Show understanding of broader organisational goals
Action (50% of response time):
- Focus exclusively on YOUR actions, not team actions
- Detail your thought process and decision-making
- Show how you applied relevant skills or knowledge
- Demonstrate problem-solving and adaptability
- Include communication and stakeholder management
Result (15% of response time):
- Provide specific, quantifiable outcomes
- Connect results to organisational benefits
- Include lessons learned and personal development
- Show impact on stakeholders or the broader organisation
Advanced Behavioural Question Strategies
Example selection criteria:
- Choose examples that showcase progression and growth
- Select situations with clear challenges and obstacles
- Ensure examples demonstrate the specific competency being assessed
- Use recent examples that reflect your current capability level
- Prepare examples that highlight different aspects of your experience
Response enhancement techniques:
- Include emotional intelligence and interpersonal awareness
- Show consideration of different perspectives and stakeholder needs
- Demonstrate ethical reasoning and value-based decision-making
- Connect your actions to broader organisational or public benefits
- Show a learning and continuous improvement mindset
How to Nail Competency-Based Interview Questions
Framework-First Approach
Competency questions require you to demonstrate knowledge of frameworks, methodologies, and best practices before providing examples.
Effective competency response structure:
- Framework introduction: Start with the relevant methodology or approach
- Process explanation: Detail the steps or considerations involved
- Context application: Show how you’d apply this in the specific role
- Example illustration: Provide a brief example of a successful application
- Outcome focus: Connect to organisational benefits and results
Essential Competency Response Strategies
Demonstrate a comprehensive understanding:
- Show knowledge of multiple approaches or methodologies
- Explain when and why you’d use different strategies
- Display awareness of potential challenges and mitigation strategies
- Connect your approach to current best practices in the field
- Show understanding of government-specific considerations
Government context integration:
- Reference relevant policies, frameworks, or legislation
- Show understanding of government accountability requirements
- Demonstrate awareness of political sensitivities
- Include stakeholder complexity and consultation processes
- Connect to broader government priorities and objectives
Common Mistakes That Kill Interview Performance
Behavioural Question Mistakes
Critical errors to avoid:
- Using hypothetical examples instead of real experiences
- Spending too much time on the situation setup
- Describing team actions rather than personal actions
- Providing vague or unquantified results
- Failing to connect examples to the selection criteria
- Using outdated examples that don’t reflect current capability
Competency Question Mistakes
Common competency response errors:
- Jumping straight into an example without explaining your approach
- Providing generic responses that could apply to any organisation
- Failing to demonstrate knowledge of relevant frameworks
- Not connecting your approach to government-specific requirements
- Showing limited understanding of best practices in your field
- Not addressing potential challenges or risk mitigation
Advanced Preparation Strategies for Both Question Types
Example Mapping and Framework Development
Successful candidates prepare systematically for both question types through strategic example mapping and framework development.
For behavioural questions:
- Create an example bank covering all major competency areas
- Ensure examples span different roles, timeframes, and complexity levels
- Practice telling each example in 2-3 minutes using enhanced STAR
- Identify multiple competencies each example could demonstrate
- Prepare follow-up details for likely interviewer questions
For competency questions:
- Research and master relevant frameworks for your field
- Understand government-specific policies and procedures
- Develop clear methodologies for common workplace challenges
- Prepare brief examples that illustrate the framework application
- Practice explaining complex concepts in clear, accessible language
How PS Interview Coach Transforms Your Interview Performance
At PS Interview Coach, we specialise in helping candidates master both behavioural and competency-based questions through our comprehensive coaching approach:
- Question type identification training: Learn to quickly recognise and categorise different question types
- Framework development: Build robust methodologies for addressing competency questions
- Example optimisation: Refine your behavioural examples for maximum impact
- Response timing and structure: Perfect your delivery for both question types
- APS-specific preparation: Integrate government context and requirements throughout your responses
Don’t let confusion between behavioural and competency questions cost you your ideal APS role. Master both approaches and watch your interview confidence and success rate soar.