Each Tuesday, the CSE Connect “Top Interviewing Questions Series” will highlight a different question from the CSE Top Interviewing Questions Guide, detailing 1) How the question is typically asked, 2) Why interviewers tend to ask the question and what the interviewer is looking for when asking the question, and 3) Tips for a successful response.

This week’s question is : “What are your weaknesses?”

How the Question is Typically Asked/Common Variations

• What are your weaknesses?
• What is your number #1 Weakness?

Why Do Interviewers Ask/What are their Expectations

Everyone has areas of difficulty/weakness. The interviewer seeks to understand two main things with this question: 

1) How have you adapted to manage your areas of difficulty/weakness so that they are not problematic to your work? 

2) What have you learned by managing your areas of difficulty/weakness?

Tips for Success

There is no perfect answer to this question and it is easy to misstep. Here are some standard practices:

• Do not play off a strength as a weakness. Interviewers can tell, and a fake weakness may show you have something to hide
• Do not choose a weakness that could limit your ability to do the job well. Pick a real, but benign weakness
• Do not be defensive or dwell on the negative, answer the question quickly and move on to more positive topics

Finally, it’s important to explain how you address this weakness and take initiative to improve in order to end the question positively

Additional CSE Advice

“Here is a scenario where you can use the last few years of quarantine to your advantage. You can say something like, “These last few years I’ve really come to terms with my weaknesses. More specifically, before quarantine, I didn’t realize that I struggled with time management because everything was scheduled out for me naturally (school time, work time, club time, social time etc.). When that rigid scheduling structure was taken away, I at first struggled to get everything done that I needed to because I was doing it all at the same desk and not properly blocking out time myself to get things done. Now, even though we’re back in person, I am meticulous about my google calendar, and make sure to schedule out time to do work on different tasks. It’s really helped me stay on top of everything.” – And it’s important to tie-in how you’ve carried these good habits into your everyday life now!” – Natalie Warila

For practice with this question please visit: Big Interview > Practice > General

Visit the CSE Top Interviewing Questions Guide for more information regarding top general interview questions!