Written assessment and interview

Tips for written assessment and interview

During the written assessment

Carefully read all instructions for the exam
Do not ignore asset qualification questions
Do the assessment on your own
Make sure you can answer questions about each competency with concrete examples
Practice and review sample questions beforehand

During the interview

Do not be afraid to take a few seconds to think before or during your responses.
Take your time. This is your chance to sell yourself to the Academy and show us you have the qualifications.
Speak clearly, at a good speed, using proper grammar.
Do not read directly from your notes. Instead, use your notes as prompts, to remind you of the points you want to make. Reading directly from your notes will make you speak too quickly. The interview board members may miss important information you say.
Use the time to explain why you believe you are the perfect candidate for the program.

General tips

Review links provided to identify information that can support your answers.
Break down the questions to think about the information that you want to include.
As you prepare your answers, remember the job you are applying for.
Draw on personal experiences as examples. Remember to relate them to the competency in question.
- For example, if providing an example for teamwork using a sports team, make sure it shows how your teamwork capabilities relate to the Officer Training Program.
Be prepared to answer:
behaviour-based questions
Behavioural questions focus on how you handled various situations in your past. Understanding how you handled these situations will help give a sense of what you might do in the future. When providing answers to behavioural questions, it's important to use specific examples instead of speaking in general terms.

When you respond to behavioural questions, you'll need to use the STAR technique, as it provides a reliable structure to help you organize your thoughts. There are four steps to answering questions using the STAR technique:

(S) Situation

Describe the situation in which the event took place.

(T) Task

Describe the task you were asked to complete. If there was a particular problem or issue you were trying to solve, describe it here.

(A) Action

Explain what action you took to complete the task and/or solve the problem.

(R) Results

Explain the result of your actions. For example, explain if your actions resulted in completing a task, resolving a conflict, improving a situation, etc. Try to focus on how your actions resulted in a success.

situation-based questions
Situational questions focus on how you'll handle real-life scenarios presented to you. Situational questions help us to better understand your thought process and assesses various skills.

When you respond to situational questions, you'll need to use the ARC technique, as it provides a reliable structure to help you to organize your thoughts. There are three steps to answering questions using the ARC technique:

(A) Action

What action will you take to address the situation?

(R) Reasoning or Rationale

What is the reasoning/rationale behind your actions? How did you arrive at this decision?

(C) Considerations

What factors did you taking into account when making your decision?

Accommodations for written assessment and interview

If you have a functional limitation, disability or condition that could impede your performance while completing the written assessment or the interview, you must notify the Academy admissions. Do not begin the written assessment or the interview until a member of the admissions team contacts you.

If, before the written assessment or interview you experience a physical or psychological problem that may interfere with completing the assessment, please notify us immediately via the link on your invitation.

Should you choose to proceed with the written assessment or interview without requesting accommodation ahead of time, you must accept the written assessment or interview results.

Alternate test dates

Requests for an alternate date will only be considered for one of the following reasons:

religious obligations
death in the immediate family
medical reason with a doctor's certificate (proving illness for the entire week)
planned vacation with costs already incurred
paid military leave or training

Proof may be requested in these circumstances. If you require an alternate test or interview date for one of the above-mentioned reasons, you must notify us via email noted on the invitation to the written assessment or interview.

How long results remain valid

Successful results of the written assessment and interview are valid throughout the selection process. If you receive unsuccessful results, your candidacy for the Officer Training Program will be terminated. If you wish to reapply to a future selection process, you may do so in the next selection process in the fall of the year.

During the assessment process both cheating and plagiarism are considered forms of misconduct and are not permitted. Any person found cheating or plagiarizing, including those who help others cheat, may be subject to sanctions including removal from the selection process.

Sample exam questions

These sample questions will help you prepare for the written assessment and your interview.

Leadership

Question 1 What are two characteristics you believe every leader should have?
Why do you consider them to be important?

Question 2 Give an example of a time you played a leadership role in an event, activity, work unit or project.
Describe the actions you took to lead.

Adaptability

Question 1 What aspects of your lifestyle will you need to change to adapt to the new lifestyle of officer cadet?

Question 2 What skills or behaviours will you use to help make this change?

Judgement

Question 1 What actions would you take to manage and resolve a conflict issue with another cadet?

Question 2 What factors would you consider before taking these actions?

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2026-01-20

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Written assessment and interview

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