Competency-Based Interview Course
A candidate says they are good at teamwork. What should you ask next, and how should you rate the answer? In six recorded lessons, Mike Pritula covers job profiles, interview questions, STAR and CARE, assessment and reference checks. Prepare a structured interview for a role in your company.
- 6 recorded lessons
- Candidate profiles and scorecards
- STAR and CARE interview techniques
- Homework review
- Diploma
By Mike Pritula — No. 1 HR instructor on Udemy, 21 years in HR
The job in front of you Sound familiar?
A CV lists skills, but you need evidence of how the candidate used them.
Interviewers ask different questions and struggle to compare applicants.
Candidates give general answers or describe the team's work without explaining their own actions.
You have interview notes but no clear way to turn them into a hiring recommendation.
What you will have after the course
A profile for the role
Define the job's goals, required competencies and observable behaviour. Use them to prepare a candidate scorecard.
An interview question set
Prepare questions about successes and setbacks. Use STAR and CARE to clarify the situation, the person's actions and the result.
An assessment based on evidence
Record behavioural examples, apply a competency scale and identify missing information. Add motivation and reference checks before the hiring decision.
| Competency | Situation question |
|---|---|
| Setting priorities | Remember when you were faced with several big tasks at once and had to decide which ones to do first? Tell us about it. |
| Decision making | Give an example of a situation when you made a wrong decision. |
| Negotiating terms | Think of a time when a client was most active in asking for a discount or a deferment. |
| Cold calling | What cold call are you most proud of? |
Start today, for free
PapaHR's free role pages include job profiles, KPIs with formulas, competency-based interview questions and a test task, with no sign-up. Use a role page as a starting point, then adapt the profile and questions with the course.
- In PapaHR Pro, create vacancies and follow candidates through the hiring stages.
- Use an interview scorecard for each vacancy and stars for each candidate in PapaHR Pro.
- Start with a free role page: a job profile, KPIs, competency-based interview questions and a test task.
Tools you get in the course
Job competency profile
Set out the role's goals, knowledge, skills and behavioural competencies.
Lesson PDFCandidate scorecard
Bring role requirements, behavioural indicators and ratings into one assessment.
Lesson PDFBehavioural interview question bank
Ask about past situations, including difficult decisions, conflict and missed deadlines.
Lesson PDFSTAR and CARE question guides
Clarify the context, the candidate's own actions and the outcome.
Lesson PDFCompetency rating scale
Rate observed behaviour and mark where there is not enough information.
Lesson PDFReference check script
Check the working relationship, strengths, weaknesses and examples of past performance.
Lesson PDFWho this course is for
Recruiter
needs consistent questions and evidence for comparing candidates
HR generalist
is setting up structured interviews for the company
Hiring manager
wants to test role requirements through concrete examples
HR director
wants interviewers to use a shared assessment approach
Program
01
01 · Lessons 1–2
Define what the role needs
Distinguish hard skills and soft skills. Describe competencies through behaviour, study strong performers and connect the job profile with an interview scorecard.
- 1What are competencies? Hard skills and soft skills
- 2How to profile a candidate for an interview
Result: A role profile with competencies, indicators and questions to assess them.
02
02 · Lessons 3–4
Ask for detailed behavioural evidence
Compare interview formats and structure the conversation. Use CARE and STAR to explore achievements, take notes and clarify vague answers. Review how test tasks support assessment.
- 3How to conduct competency-based interviews and select test tasks
- 4CARE and STAR techniques for detailed skills research
Result: An interview structure and follow-up questions that reveal what the candidate actually did.
03
03 · Lessons 5–6
Assess candidates and check the decision
Evaluate behavioural indicators and use a competency scale. Review assessment exercises, explore motivation and salary expectations, assess personality and gather references.
- 5How to assess competencies: assessment tools and their validity
- 6How to assess motivation, personality profiles and collect references
Result: A way to compare candidates and identify evidence still needed for a hiring decision.
Your profile after the course
What you can add to LinkedIn and your CV — and what this work pays.
Your Name
Recruiter · Competency-based interviews and candidate assessment
Experience
Prepared a role competency profile, behavioural interview questions and a scorecard. Used interview evidence and reference checks to support a hiring recommendation.
Licenses & certifications
Competency-Based Interview — Mike Pritula AcademyDiploma after the course
Skills
- Competency Profiling
- Structured Interviews
- STAR and CARE
- Candidate Scorecards
- Reference Checks
Medians in the U.S.; pay depends on country, company and experience. * U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025
Your diploma after the course
Complete the course assignments and get a personal diploma of Mike Pritula Academy.
- Add it to Licenses & certifications on LinkedIn
- Every diploma has its own unique code
- The QR code on the diploma opens its online version
- Issued on Accredible, the platform Google, Udacity and Rosetta Stone use for their certificates, so it cannot be forged
- Define what the role needs
- Ask for detailed behavioural evidence
- Assess candidates and check the decision
Learn from your phone
Recorded lessons fit into your day: on the way to work, at lunch or in the evening.
- Recorded lessons — watch at your own pace
- A year of course access
- Interview guides and assessment tools in the PDF slides
- Homework review and Diploma after completing the assignments
Mike Pritula
Founder of Mike Pritula Academy and PapaHR
Mike Pritula founded the academy and built PapaHR, the HR system where the templates of his courses work for real companies. The playbooks are his own HR practice, step by step.
What graduates of the academy say
Graduates of this and other Mike Pritula Academy courses, from the surveys they fill in when they get the diploma.
“It helped me pick the best candidates more accurately, run more meaningful interviews and focus on exactly the candidates who meet the hiring manager’s requirements.”
Course: Competency-Based Interviewing · Profile on LinkedIn
“The lessons taught me different interviewing methods and added new questions to my toolkit. It was interesting to watch candidates react — clearly hearing such questions for the first time. That’s what helped me get to the heart of things.”
Course: Competency-Based Interviewing · Profile on LinkedIn
“I got several insights into improving the hiring process — not only for recruiters but for hiring managers too.”
Course: Competency-Based Interviewing · Profile on LinkedIn
“I liked that the homework let me put what I learned into practice right away. Lots of documents I’ll be able to use later.”
Course: Talent Acquisition Manager · Profile on LinkedIn
Price
for one person, access for a year
- 6 recorded lessons
- Role profiles, interview guides and assessment tools in the slides
- Homework review
- Diploma
a year for one person
- All 150+ courses of the academy, this one included
- All playbooks, now and new ones
- Homework review and certificates
- PapaHR Pro for up to 50 employees
a year for a team of up to 10 people
- Everything in the annual subscription
- For up to 10 people of your team
- PapaHR Pro for up to 200 employees
Questions
What is a competency-based interview?
It asks for examples of past behaviour linked to the requirements of a role. The course shows how to define those requirements, ask questions and assess the evidence.
Does the course cover STAR?
Yes. Lesson 4 covers STAR and CARE, follow-up questions and interview notes. You practise separating the candidate's own actions from a general description of the team's work.
Is this useful for hiring managers?
Yes. Recruiters and managers can use the same role profile, questions and competency scale. The course also covers motivation and reference checks.
How is PapaHR connected to the course?
Free role pages give you a starting profile and interview questions. Hiring stages, vacancy interview scorecards and candidate stars are available in PapaHR Pro.
Do I get a Diploma?
Yes, after completing the course assignments. Homework is reviewed.
What does the annual subscription give?
All 150+ courses of the academy for a year, including this one. You can study the recorded classes at your own pace. The team subscription covers up to 10 people.