Mastering STAR, SHER, and Behavioural Questions to Land Your First Marketing Job
Why Interviews Decide Your Future
The graduate job market in the UK is more competitive than ever in 2025. With starting salaries rising to meet visa thresholds (£23,000–£28,000 for many graduate schemes, £38,900 for sponsorship roles), and employers focusing on “job-ready skills,” interviews are no longer just polite conversations — they are rigorous tests of your ability to prove value.
This guide, The Graduate Interview Bible for Marketing Roles, equips you with:
- Frameworks like STAR and SHER to structure answers.
- 100+ behavioural questions with sample answers.
- Recruiter insights on what hiring managers want to hear.
- Checklists for pre-interview prep.
- Templates for follow-up.
By the end, you’ll not only answer well but also stand out.
Chapter 1: Understanding the Interview Mindset Recruiters aren’t trying to trip you up. They’re asking:
- Can you do the job? (skills, knowledge).
- Will you do the job? (motivation, drive).
- Will you fit in? (values, communication).
Data point: According to CIPD (2024), 67% of graduate recruiters now prioritise behavioural/competency-based interviews over technical tests.
Mentor Tip: Always answer with evidence. If you can’t back it with numbers, share a process, habit, or decision you made.
Chapter 2: STAR vs SHER, The Frameworks
STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) Best for structured, achievement-focused answers.
SHER (Strengths, Hurdles, Examples, Results) Best for when the question is more personal (e.g., resilience, creativity).
Recruiter Insight: Many grads ramble. STAR forces brevity + impact. SHER adds personal colour. Blend both.
Chapter 3: Top 15 Graduate Marketing Interview Questions + Model Answers
Q1. Tell me about yourself.
Model Answer (STAR + SHER hybrid, 3–4 paragraphs):
- Situation/Strengths: I recently graduated in Marketing from Coventry University and gained hands-on experience through placements with Coventry University Student Union (CUSU) and volunteering with Coventry University Social Enterprise (CUSE).
- Task/Hurdle: Early in my degree, I realised academic knowledge wasn’t enough — employers valued real campaign delivery.
- Action/Example: I joined the student marketing team, managed event promotion, and ran social campaigns that boosted student attendance by 40%. I also built digital content for Otinga Marketing, where my SEO blogs generated organic traffic growth.
- Result: These experiences gave me skills in campaign coordination, social media analytics, and client communication — a balance of creativity and data.
Mentor Note: This shows humility + growth. Recruiters love when you explain why you took certain actions.
Checklist Skills: Social media, content creation, SEO basics, event marketing.
Recruiter Insight: Avoid generic “I’m hardworking.” Use stories.
Q2. Why do you want to work in marketing?
Model Answer (3–4 paras with KPIs):
- Passion for creativity + analysis → ran social campaigns at CUSE.
- Proved measurable results: increased Twitter engagement by 55%, secured sponsorship ROI 3:1 for events.
- Marketing blends strategy and psychology — the ability to persuade with data.
- Long-term goal → specialise in digital campaigns and brand building.
Checklist Skills: Storytelling, persuasion, campaign ROI.
Q3. Describe a campaign you worked on and the result.
Model Answer:
- Situation: CUSU “Student Rep Awareness” campaign.
- Task: Increase student sign-ups.
- Action: Designed flyers, ran Instagram polls, coordinated peer-to-peer videos.
- Result: Registrations jumped by 42%, Instagram engagement +38%, email open rate 36%.
Mentor Note: Always end on numbers. It sticks in recruiters’ minds.
Skills: Campaign planning, content design, multichannel.
Q4. How do you prioritise tasks under pressure?
Model Answer:
- Example from Otinga Marketing blog calendar. Balanced content deadlines with analytics reports.
- Used Trello + “must-should-could” prioritisation.
- Result: Published 90% of blogs on time, AdSense revenue grew 25%.
Q5. How do you handle failure?
Model Answer:
- Hurdle: First event I helped run at CUSE had only 20 attendees.
- Action: Surveyed students, fixed timing, built hype with Instagram Reels.
- Result: Next event → 120 attendees (5× growth).
…and so on up to Q15 (e.g., salary expectations, teamwork, problem-solving, creativity, analytics use, future goals).
Chapter 4: Recruiter Cheat-Sheet
- Show measurable results.
- Use action verbs: boosted, reduced, delivered, generated.
- Always tie answers to skills the role requires (see job description).
Chapter 5: Interview Prep Checklist
- Research company (LinkedIn, Glassdoor).
- Practise 15 STAR answers.
- Prepare 3 smart questions to ask them.
- Print CV + notes.
- Rehearse follow-up email.
Conclusion
This Interview Bible isn’t about memorising scripts. It’s about training your brain to always answer with evidence. Whether STAR or SHER, the formula is simple: story + numbers + reflection.
Subscribes and get Otinga’s Download Pack:
- STAR/SHER template sheet
- 50 behavioural marketing Qs
- Follow-up email template
- CV Optimisation Checklist
Read previous: New Visa Rules: International Students’ Guide to UK Marketing Jobs (2025 Edition)
Read Job Hunting Series: Series 1: UK Job Market Glossary 2025: Essential Vocabulary Every Graduate and International Student Must Know
