Type two interview questions in the chat: 'Where do you see yourself in five years?' and 'Tell me about a time you had to meet a tight deadline.' Ask: 'Which question is harder to prepare for? Why?' Take 3–4 answers. Establish that the second asks for a real example from the past — a competency question — and that this lesson gives students a method to answer it.

Board: Shared screen: competency question = 'Tell me about a time…' → a real example from your past.

Compare the two questions, say which is more difficult and share brief experiences of real interviews.

Pre-teach 'competency question', 'track record', 'take the initiative', 'churn' and 'stakeholder' using the vocabulary box. Share the three job advertisements. In breakout-room pairs, students decide which skills each employer is looking for and which two competency questions from the list each interviewer is most likely to ask. Back in the main room, check briefly and ask three volunteers which job they would apply for and why.

Read the job ads, identify the key skills, predict likely competency questions and choose the role they would apply for.

↳ Three job advertisements

Tell students they will read an answer from a candidate for the Customer Success Manager job. Gist question: 'Did the candidate keep the client? How do you know?' (Yes — the client renewed for two years.) Introduce the four STAR steps using the rule box. In pairs, students do Exercise 1, matching sentences to the steps. Check as a class using screen annotation to colour each section. Ask: 'Which part is the longest? Why?' (Action — it shows what the candidate did.)

Board: S — T — A — R with a bar chart showing Action as the longest section.

Read the model answer for gist, then match sentences to the STAR steps and notice which step is the longest.

↳ Exercise 1: Find the STAR steps

Ask students to find the phrases in the model answer that introduce each STAR step and type them in the chat. Build the 'Describing achievements' table on screen. Ask CCQs on 'took the initiative', 'managed to' and 'As a result'. Highlight responsible for + -ing and managed to + base verb. Then show the 'Avoid / Say instead' table: students say why each phrase in the left column could damage the candidate. Ask CCQs on 'One area I'm working on is…'. Drill 4–5 key phrases chorally (students unmute together), stressing the numbers.

Board: Describing achievements table (Situation / Task / Action / Result / Reflection). Pattern: real weakness + what I'm doing about it.

Find signalling phrases in the model answer, answer concept questions, explain why some answers sound unprofessional and repeat key phrases.

Ask: 'The interviewer says, "Do you have any questions for us?" What should you NOT ask in a first interview?' (Salary, holidays — usually later.) Show the 'Questions to ask the interviewer' list. Ask CCQs on 'Could you tell me a bit more about…?'. Students choose the two questions they would ask for the job they chose and type one in the chat.

Answer concept questions and choose two questions they would ask for their chosen job.

Students complete Exercise 2 individually (gap-fill with word bank, 3 min). Open breakout-room pairs for 5 minutes: partners compare Exercise 2, then do Exercise 3 (multiple choice) together and justify each choice. Back in the main room, check answers, focusing on responsible for and managed to, and on why the wrong options in Exercise 3 are risky.

Complete eight sentences about achievements, compare with a partner, then choose the most professional answer to six interview questions and justify the choices.

↳ Exercise 2: Talking about achievements

Ask students to choose one competency question linked to the job they chose and plan an answer about their own experience in the writing box: notes only, not full sentences. Ask them also to prepare one strength with an example, one weakness with a plan, and two questions for the interviewer. Monitor privately via chat and help with vocabulary for their stories. Finally, ask them to reduce their notes to four key words.

Make notes for a STAR answer about a real experience from their own working life, plus one strength, one weakness and two questions for the interviewer.

↳ Prepare your STAR answer

Set up three breakout rooms of 3, 3 and 4 (two minutes). Rooms of three do three rounds: each round is a five-minute interview plus one minute of observer feedback (18 minutes in total). The room of four does four rounds of four-minute interviews plus one minute of feedback each, with one candidate, one interviewer and two observers (one checks the STAR structure, one checks language), so everyone is the candidate once. Each interview: one competency question with follow-up questions, one strengths or weaknesses question, then 'Do you have any questions for us?' (the candidate asks one or two questions). Visit each room, listen without interrupting, and note good language and errors for delayed correction. Each room's observer keeps time and calls 'Swap roles'. Broadcast only a 2-minute warning before the rooms close.

Take turns as interviewer, candidate and observer: ask and answer competency questions, discuss strengths and weaknesses, ask the interviewer questions and give checklist feedback. Outcome: the observer gives each candidate checklist feedback — two strengths and one thing to improve — and the candidate tells their partners one tip they will use next time.

↳ Mock interview: role cards

In the main room, ask each group to share one strong phrase they heard and one tip for improvement from the checklist. Then share a document with 6–7 sentences you noted — some correct, some with errors (e.g. *I was responsible to manage the budget. *I managed reducing costs. *We did a lot of improvements.). Students correct them in pairs in breakout rooms for three minutes, then check together. Praise effective answers and strong results with numbers. Finish with the exit task: everyone types the result sentence of their STAR answer in the chat, starting 'As a result, …'.

Board: Shared document: 6–7 anonymous sentences from the mock interviews for correction.

Share examples of good language and feedback from the observer checklist; correct anonymous sentences from the mock interviews in pairs.

Set the homework and show the success criteria: 180–220 words, all four STAR steps, a measurable result and at least four phrases from the lesson.

Note the homework task and success criteria.