Police Interview Examples
With No Work Experience

Courage, from sport: "Tell us about a time you challenged inappropriate behaviour"

"Situation: I play in a Sunday football team. After a match, our captain kept making jokes in the group chat about a new player's weight and others joined in. Task: I was not in charge and the captain was a friend, but I could see the new player had stopped replying and I did not want him to quit. Action: I messaged the captain privately rather than in the group, said I didn't think he meant harm but the jokes were making the new lad feel singled out and asked him to drop it. He said it was banter, so I said that if it carried on I'd raise it with the club secretary, because the club has a code of conduct. I also messaged the new player to say well played and that most of us were glad he'd joined. Result: The captain deleted the messages and apologised in the chat. The new player is still with the team. I learned that a private word first usually works better than calling someone out in front of everyone and next time I would speak up sooner."

Respect and empathy, from caring: "Tell us about a time you helped someone who was vulnerable"

"Situation: During my A levels I helped look after my grandad, who has dementia, after school. One afternoon he became very distressed because he was sure he had missed a hospital appointment. Task: I needed to calm him down and find out whether he really had, without making him feel foolish. Action: I sat down next to him, spoke slowly and told him I would check for him. Instead of saying he was wrong, I asked him to help me find the letter. When we found it, the appointment was the following week; I read it out and put the letter on the fridge where he could see it. Then I rang my mum and we set up a large calendar with his appointments so he did not have to rely on memory. Result: He calmed down within a few minutes and the calendar cut down these worries a lot. I learned that with someone who is confused, how you say something matters as much as what you say."

Public service, from university: "Tell us about a time you improved something for others"

"Situation: At university I volunteered at the students' union food bank. People had to queue in a corridor in full view of everyone and fewer students were coming each week. Task: I was one of six volunteers, with no budget and I wanted more students who needed help to feel able to use it. Action: I asked five regular users, privately, what put people off; four mentioned being seen. I suggested to the coordinator that we let people pre-order online and collect a packed bag from a side room, wrote a short plan and offered to set up the form myself. I tested it for two weeks before we switched over. Result: Numbers went up from about 20 to about 35 a week over the next month. I learned to ask the people affected before trying to fix something for them."