NGO program officer interview questions
Development sector interviews look for field sense, report writing and working with communities and donors.
About you
1Tell us about yourself.
What they want to know: Whether you can sum up who you are and why you fit, in a minute.
How to answer: Present, past, future: what you do now, one or two things you did that matter for this job, and why you want it.
2Why do you want this job?
What they want to know: Whether you know what the job is and chose it on purpose.
How to answer: Name two things about the role or the organisation that match what you are good at. Avoid salary and security as your main reason.
3What are your strengths and weaknesses?
What they want to know: Self-awareness, and honesty.
How to answer: Give a strength with a short example. For a weakness, pick a real one that does not break the job, and say what you do about it.
Programs
4How do you monitor whether a project is working?
What they want to know: M&E thinking.
How to answer: Indicators set at the start, regular data collection, field visits, and changing course when the data says so.
5Tell us about a time you worked with a community.
What they want to know: Field experience and respect for people.
How to answer: Who they were, what you listened to, what you did together, and the result.
6How do you write a report for a donor?
What they want to know: Donor reporting is a big part of the job.
How to answer: Follow their template, report against the agreed indicators, be honest about delays, and keep evidence.
Reading is not practising.
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