How to answer common job application screening questions

Screening questions are the short questions an application asks before anyone reads your résumé. Are you authorized to work here? How many years of experience do you have? What salary do you expect? Why do you want to work here?

They look simple, and that’s the catch. A quick answer to the wrong reading of a question can screen you out of a role you’re well suited to. Here’s how to handle the ones you’ll see most often.

Work authorization and sponsorship

Most US applications ask two separate questions:

1. “Are you legally authorized to work in the United States?” This one is about today: whether you can legally work for this employer now, as a citizen, a permanent resident, or with another kind of work permission.
2. “Will you now or in the future require sponsorship for employment visa status?” This one is about the future: whether keeping the job would need the employer to sponsor a visa for you.

They’re easy to mix up. Someone whose current work permission has an end date, and who would need an employer’s sponsorship to stay on, may truthfully answer yes to both.

Answer both accurately. Employers verify work eligibility when you’re hired, and a mismatch between the form and your documents can cost you an offer. If your situation is complicated, a short, factual note in an optional comments box can help, and an immigration attorney or your school’s international student office can advise on your specific case.

Years of experience

These come in two forms: a number (“How many years of project management experience do you have?”) or a yes or no (“Do you have at least five years of experience in data analysis?”).

• Count all relevant experience, not only jobs with a matching title. Part-time work, freelance projects, internships and the relevant part of a broader role can all count. If you did analytics work for three years as an operations manager, that’s analytics experience.
• Look for “or equivalent”. Many postings accept a degree, certifications, or a mix of education and experience in place of years. If the posting says so, weigh your whole background.
• Be ready to explain the number. Whatever you enter, assume you’ll be asked about it in an interview. If you’re between two figures, give the one you can comfortably walk through.
• Don’t rule yourself out too early. Requirements often describe an ideal candidate. If you’re close, and strong in the areas that matter most, it can still be worth applying, while answering the question accurately.

Salary expectations

This is the question many people dread, because it feels like a trap: aim too high and you’re out, too low and you’ve left money on the table. A little preparation takes most of the fear out of it.

• Research first. Start with the posting itself: a growing number of US states and cities require employers to include a pay range. Then look at published salary data for the title and location, and ask people in similar roles if you can.
• Answer expectations, not history. Many states and cities bar employers from asking what you earn now. Even where they can ask, the form usually wants what you expect, and you can answer that on its own terms.
• Use a range when you can. Make the bottom of your range a figure you’d genuinely be happy with, not the least you’d accept. If the posting lists a range, place yours within it according to how closely you match the role.
• If the field needs a single number, enter the number you’d be glad to receive, based on your research.
• If there’s room for text, add context. For example: “$95,000 to $110,000 base, depending on the full package.” Bonus, equity, benefits and flexibility can all be part of the conversation later.

“Why do you want to work here?”

This is the one question your résumé can’t answer, which is exactly why it’s asked. Generic praise, like “an industry leader with a great culture”, tells the reader nothing. A good answer takes three or four sentences and has three parts:

1. Something specific about them: what they make, who they serve, a problem they’re working on, or how they work.
2. Something specific about you: experience or an interest that connects to it.
3. The connection: what you’d bring, or what you’d like to do there.

The job posting, the company’s own description of its product and customers, and news it has published recently are all good places to find the first part.

Here’s an example for an operations analyst role at Northstar, a company that makes budgeting software for small nonprofits. (Northstar is made up for this example.)

It’s short, it could only have been written to Northstar, and every part of it is true.

Other questions you’ll see often

• “When can you start?” Give a date or a notice period. “Two weeks after an offer” is a complete answer.
• “Are you willing to relocate?” or “Can you work on site three days a week?” Answer for this role as it’s described. If the honest answer is “it depends”, say what it depends on wherever the form gives you room.
• “How did you hear about this role?” Be specific. If someone referred you, name them; referral programs often depend on it.
• “Have you worked here before?” Answer factually. A past role that ended well can count in your favor.

Write your answers once

You’ll see most of these questions on almost every application. Write your best answers once, keep them somewhere you can copy from, and adapt them rather than starting over. Your answers will stay consistent from one employer to the next, and each new form gets quicker. Our guide to getting through application forms faster shows how to keep them in one simple kit.