Questions to Ask an Intern Candidate
Questions for interviewing intern candidates when you have to choose between several students with thin resumes. They ask for evidence from coursework and projects rather than for self-assessment, and they cover logistics before an offer.
The questions
Open any question for the note
What made you apply here rather than somewhere else?
Why ask it
An easy opener that separates candidates who read something about the company from those who applied to sixty places. You are not looking for flattery, just evidence of a choice.
What class or project are you proudest of, and what was your part in it?
Why ask it
The second half matters most. Students describe group work in the first person plural, and asking for their own contribution reveals whether they led it, wrote one section, or watched.
Show me something you built or wrote. What would you change about it now?
Why ask it
The critique of their own work is the real signal: it shows how far their judgment has moved since they finished it. A candidate who would change nothing has stopped learning from it.
What did you do the last time you were stuck on something for more than a day?
Why ask it
Interns spend a lot of time stuck, so how they get unstuck predicts most of their value. Listen for a sequence, such as reading documentation, retrying, then asking with a specific question rather than a general plea.
Tell me about something you got wrong. How did you find out?
Why ask it
The discovery route matters: caught it themselves, a peer caught it, or a grade revealed it much later. Candidates who cannot name any mistake are usually either guarded or not yet doing work with consequences.
How do you keep track of things when three deadlines land in the same week?
Why ask it
Asks for an actual system, whether a calendar, a list, or negotiating an extension early. Answers about working harder and sleeping less describe a strategy that fails in a job with no exam date.
Which tools have you actually used, and what did you use them for?
Why ask it
Resumes list every tool a course mentioned. The second half sorts a semester of real use from one afternoon in a lab, without accusing anyone of exaggerating.
Which part of this job do you think you would be worst at right now?
Why ask it
Tests self-knowledge without the rehearsed weakness answer, because it is bounded by the specific role. A precise answer also tells you what support they will need in week one.
When you received feedback that stung, what did you do with it?
Why ask it
Interns receive more correction per week than they ever have. What they did next, rather than how they felt, is what predicts whether supervising them will be work or a pleasure.
Tell me about a group project where someone was not pulling their weight.
Why ask it
Almost every student has this story, so refusal to describe one is unusual. Listen for whether they spoke to the person, quietly absorbed the work, or complained to an instructor.
What do you want to be able to do by the end of this that you cannot do now?
Why ask it
A specific skill tells you whether your actual work will satisfy them. Answers about gaining experience in general mean nobody has helped them think about it, which is worth ten minutes of your time either way.
What kind of supervision suits you: daily check-ins, weekly, or being left alone?
Why ask it
There is no wrong answer, only a match or a mismatch with what you can offer. An intern who needs daily contact and gets a manager who travels will struggle for reasons neither of you intended.
What would make you finish this internship disappointed?
Why ask it
Surfaces expectations you may be unable to meet, such as client contact, a published piece of work, or a guaranteed offer. Better to hear it now than in a mid-point review.
What have you read, watched, or followed about this field recently?
Why ask it
Distinguishes genuine curiosity from a course requirement, and the specific source tells you where their picture of the industry comes from. A blank here is not disqualifying but it is informative.
Here is a real problem we have. How would you start on it?
Why ask it
The most predictive question available, because the work itself is the test. You are watching whether they ask clarifying questions before answering, which is the habit that matters most in a junior.
What would you need to be told or shown in your first week to be useful?
Why ask it
Reveals whether they have thought concretely about starting a job rather than getting one. Practical answers about access, context, and who to ask suggest someone who has worked before.
What are your dates and weekly hours, and what else are you committed to?
Why ask it
Classes, a second job, athletics, and family obligations all shape what the internship can be. Asking directly avoids the common failure where an intern turns out to be available half as much as assumed.
Is there anything you need from us to do this job well?
Why ask it
Opens space for equipment, software, scheduling, or accessibility needs without asking anyone to disclose anything personal. Silence is fine; an unmet need discovered in week three is not.
What questions do you have about the work itself?
Why ask it
Questions about the day-to-day work indicate someone imagining themselves doing it. Questions only about perks, or none at all, usually indicate a candidate who applied broadly.
If we offered you a place, what would you need to know before saying yes?
Why ask it
Tells you their real decision criteria and whether they are holding another offer. It is also the fastest way to learn what would make them decline after you have spent a month choosing.
Choosing Between Intern Candidates
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Running the Interview
Ask for Evidence, Not Traits
Students have been coached to describe themselves as hardworking and detail oriented. Every question that starts with what did you do produces something checkable; every question about what kind of person they are produces the coaching.
Use One Piece of Real Work
Bring an actual problem your team faced, stripped of confidential detail, and ask how they would begin. Watching someone ask clarifying questions and admit what they do not know is worth more than any answer they could prepare.
Compare Against the Job, Not Each Other
Write down the three things an intern must be able to do here before you interview anyone. Without that list, panels tend to pick the most confident talker, who is often not the person who will do the work.
Decide What You Are Offering
Be honest in the interview about pay, hours, the project, and whether a full-time offer is possible. Candidates who accept an internship on an inflated picture leave halfway through, and the reputation damage lands on next year's hiring.
Common Pitfalls
Interviewing Them Like an Experienced Hire
Questions that assume years of workplace context reward candidates who have had well-connected internships already, not those who would learn fastest. Ask about coursework, projects, and part-time jobs, which everyone has.
Overweighting Polish
Some students have had interview practice through their school or their family, and it makes them sound better rather than perform better. Note the gap between confidence and specifics.
Skipping the Logistics
Dates, hours, exam periods, and travel are the most common reason internships go wrong, and they are almost never discussed until after the offer. Ten minutes here saves a scramble in July.
Choosing Someone With Nothing to Learn
A candidate who already knows all of your tools may be the safest pick and the least engaged by August. Weigh what the internship would actually give them, since interns who grow are the ones who come back.