Humanitarian written tests and interviews: worked examples

Sample answer (STAR)

S: As MEAL manager, my donor moved the final report forward by two weeks. T: Deliver a complete report while endline data was still being entered. A: I split the work into steps, reinforced the data entry team with two staff trained in half a day, had the analysis plan validated by my manager on day one, and drafted the narrative sections while the data was being cleaned. R: Report delivered one day early with no quality remarks from the donor; since then I prepare a report template at the start of every project.

Sample answer (STAR)

S: Launch of a cash transfer programme in a village. T: Explain the targeting criteria to committees where many people could not read. A: I replaced the written document with pictures and examples of fictional households, held separate sessions for women, and asked participants to repeat the criteria in their own words. R: Targeting complaints halved compared with the previous phase.

Sample answer (STAR)

S: The logistician and I disagreed on a distribution date. T: Find a date that respected both security and families' needs. A: I met him one-to-one, first listened to his constraints (convoy, stock), then presented mine with figures; together we proposed a distribution in two waves. R: Distribution carried out on time for 70% of families; we kept this joint planning approach.

Sample answer (STAR)

S: In the middle of a cholera emergency, I was also closing another project. T: Manage both without losing quality. A: I listed all tasks with deadlines, delegated the administrative closure to my deputy with a daily 15-minute check-in, and blocked my mornings for the emergency. R: Closure done on time, and 14 chlorination points installed in 10 days.

Sample answer (STAR)

S: I sent a donor a table with the wrong number of beneficiaries. T: Correct it before it was used in their report. A: I told my manager the same day, sent the donor a clear correction with an explanation, then set up a double check of all figures. R: The donor appreciated the transparency; no error of this kind since.

Sample answer (STAR)

S: During a kit distribution, women reported that the sanitary pads were not suitable. T: Adapt the kit. A: I organised two focus groups with women and adolescent girls, presented the findings to the procurement team and changed the specification. R: Satisfaction rose from 58% to 87% at the next distribution.

Sample answer (STAR)

S: A rumour of an attack during a vaccination campaign. T: Decide whether to continue. A: I checked with three sources, consulted the security focal point, then decided to suspend one area only and continue elsewhere, with a check-in every two hours. R: No incident, 92% of the target reached; the suspended area was covered the following week.

Sample answer (STAR)

S: After a grant ended, the team feared layoffs. T: Keep motivation up for the last three months. A: I honestly shared the information available, organised certified training for everyone and helped colleagues prepare their CVs. R: All targets met, and 9 out of 12 people found a new job before the end.

Sample answer

"Your approach through local partners in the Sahel interests me: I spent three years strengthening local associations, and that is where I saw the most lasting results."

Sample answer

In a water project, monthly monitoring showed that 30% of water points were broken by month three. I analysed the maintenance records with the team, held focus groups with the committees and found that spare parts were not available locally. We proposed to the donor to reallocate part of the budget to a spare-parts stock and to training local repairers. Six months later, 92% of water points were working.

Sample answer

A road was cut with only two weeks of nutrition supplies left. I triggered the contingency plan: a documented stock loan from a partner agency, humanitarian air transport for the critical quantity, then an emergency tender as provided in our procedure for an alternative route. No centre ran out, and we then raised the safety stock to six weeks.

Sample answer

On a food distribution, I applied the four elements of protection mainstreaming: sites and times chosen with women to avoid night travel, a priority line for older people and people with disabilities, mixed teams trained in PSEA and the code of conduct, and a complaints mechanism with a line answered by a woman. Feedback revealed a risk of taxation by leaders, so we changed how cards were handed out.

Sample answer

I start by reading the donor's guidelines, priorities, templates and eligibility rules, and turn them into a checklist. I set a backward plan with the programme, finance and MEAL teams, check that every logframe activity has a budget line and vice versa, and have someone outside the project review it. For a first ECHO proposal, this approach let us submit two days before the deadline with no request for clarification.

Sample answer

I put three key messages and a precise ask at the top of the first page, then details by sector. I use short sentences, sourced and dated figures, and a chart or map when it replaces a paragraph. I always separate what is verified from what is not. The head of office told me he now reads my sitreps in full, which was not the case before.

Sample answer

Three months ahead, I check that every expense has all its documents (purchase order, quotations, receipt, invoice, payment), that bank reconciliations are signed and differences explained. I prepare a mapping between the general ledger and the financial report and run a pre-audit on a sample. At the last audit, we had no ineligible costs.

Sample answer

A vehicle was stopped at a fake checkpoint. Colleagues followed the instruction not to resist. I activated the phone tree, informed management and the security network, suspended movements on the road and arranged medical and psychological support for the team. The review showed our timings were too predictable, so we changed routes and departure times.

Sample answer

I build checks into the KoBo form (value ranges, required questions, GPS), train enumerators with practical exercises and review a nightly dashboard of inconsistencies and abnormal interview durations. When in doubt, a supervisor calls back a sample of households. Every correction is recorded in a cleaning log.

Sample answer

Before construction, we set up a mixed management committee with the community, trained in maintenance and in running a small fund. We train a local repairer, link the committee to a spare-parts supplier and test water quality at commissioning and then regularly. Two years after a project in Chad, 90% of boreholes were still working.

Sample answer

I always start from national protocols and existing structures. In a cholera outbreak, we supported district health centres with staff and supplies rather than opening parallel structures, shared data daily with the district office and took part in health cluster meetings. By the end, Ministry staff were running the treatment units on their own.

Sample answer

The main risks are targeting fraud, insecurity at payment, inflation, exclusion of some people and data leaks. I reduce them with list verification from several sources, mobile money or small-group payments, weekly price monitoring, solutions for people without phones and a data protection agreement with the provider. Post-distribution monitoring checks that the money arrives safely and without pressure.

Sample answer

A coverage assessment (SQUEAC) showed that mothers knew little about malnutrition and that distance was a barrier. We trained mothers to measure MUAC themselves, opened weekly mobile sites and worked with traditional healers on referrals. Coverage rose from about 35% to over 60% in a year.

Sample answer

I meet the person privately with specific facts, listen to their explanation (workload, training, personal situation), then we agree on clear objectives, support and a time frame in a written improvement plan. I hold regular check-ins. In most cases performance improves; otherwise the disciplinary procedure is applied fairly and documented.

Sample answer

We train volunteer teachers before opening (active learning, classroom management, psychosocial support, code of conduct), then a pedagogical adviser observes them in class every month. We use the national curriculum where possible to ease the return to formal school, and simple reading and maths tests at the start and end of the year show progress.

Sample answer

Before choosing a design, I consult families, especially women, and local builders. In an earthquake response, we replaced an imported model with a shelter in local materials reinforced with simple earthquake-resistant principles, built by families with technical support and cash. It was cheaper, faster and better accepted.

Sample answer

I start from the seasonal calendar and market analysis. During the lean season, transfers protect households from selling animals or land; before planting, we provide seeds and tools; afterwards, we support income-generating activities and savings groups. The same family moves from emergency aid to its own income without a break.

Sample answer

We held block elections with seats reserved for women, youth and people with disabilities, then trained committees on their roles. Every week they attended the coordination meeting with NGOs and presented complaints. After three months, the committees proposed the new layout of water points, better located than the first.

Sample answer

I use the IASC Guidelines to build prevention into each sector: lighting and locks on latrines, nearby water points, daytime distributions, hygiene kits, women in teams and committees, a referral pathway known by all staff. Regular safety audits with women help identify and fix new risks.

Sample answer

I treat the report as a priority: a quick visit by a trained case worker, a risk assessment and, if the child is in immediate danger, safe temporary placement agreed with state services. I document everything confidentially, inform management and follow the child until a durable solution. I also use it to review the follow-up of other foster families.

Sample answer

I do not stop at the area cleared. We track the use of released land (crops, schools, roads), the number of accidents in the area and access to services, and carry out post-clearance surveys with communities. This data convinced the donor to fund a second phase focused on farmland.

Sample answer

I first meet them alone to understand their constraints (donor, headquarters, access). I present the facts and the effect of their choices on other partners and on the people we serve, then look for a compromise. If the problem continues, I raise it with the cluster's strategic advisory group. In one real case, the NGO agreed to change area because we helped it explain the change to its donor.

Sample answer

I built a weekly dashboard comparing needs by district with partner presence. It showed that a district with 40,000 displaced people had only two partners. The Humanitarian Coordinator presented it to the country-based pooled fund, which opened an allocation for that district.

Sample answer

From the start, I keep a risk register with the team: for each risk, likelihood, impact, a mitigation measure and an owner. We review it monthly. For a construction project, we had planned for rising material prices with a contingency line and fixed-price contracts; when prices rose by 20%, the project was not blocked.

Sample answer

Displaced families could not enrol their children in school without a birth certificate. With three NGOs, we documented 600 cases, presented a two-page brief to the Ministry of Education and organised a meeting with head teachers. The Ministry issued a circular allowing temporary enrolment, and more than 2,000 children were enrolled that term.

Sample answer

I apply data minimisation, encryption of devices and backups, personal accounts with two-factor authentication, role-based access rights and defined retention periods. I train teams every year and we test the data evacuation procedure. When a laptop was stolen, encryption prevented any leak.

Sample answer

A checkpoint had been blocking our trucks for a week. I tried to understand the counterpart and his interests: he wanted recognition from his chain of command. With my management's agreement, we offered written notification of each convoy to his command, and nothing else. The trucks passed three days later and the procedure was kept.

Sample answer

In every project I add a risk analysis: shelters built outside flood-prone areas, raised latrines, boreholes protected from floods. I also support preparedness committees and evacuation drills. After the next floods, the sites we had relocated were not affected.

Sample answer

I set reasonable hours and make sure rest days are taken. We hold a short weekly team check-in with a peer support system, and I trained team leaders in psychological first aid. After an incident, everyone can talk confidentially to an external psychologist. I lead by example by taking my own leave.

Sample answer

We inform people about procedures, help them gather evidence (witnesses, school or religious records), accompany them to the civil registry and organise mobile court hearings in the sites with the authorities. In one project, 3,500 birth certificates were issued in six months, opening access to school and services.