Building Your New Chapter
Module 4: Recruitment Overview & Preparation

Interview Questions

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Questions to ask should provoke a professional, thorough answer that should allow PNMs to showcase who they are as a person and how they would be as a member of PGN. These can be your basic, experiential questions all the way to thoughtful, in-depth questions. Examples include (but not limited to):

  • Major and why?

  • Best accomplishment?

  • Discuss a time you were tasked to be a leader (project, team, job, etc.).

  • Extracurricular activities? Other involvement in college?

  • Why are you interested in PGN?

  • Do you need PGN or does PGN need you?

  • Dream job?

  • What can you bring to PGN?

  • What positions would you run for?

  • How many ping pong balls would you need to fill this room?

  • Favorite memory so far in college?

  • Take one minute as a PNM group and pitch us on X PRODUCT (think 'sell me this pen').

Questions NOT to ask are those that might make a PNM uncomfortable and are often times unproductive in finding if a PNM is going to be a true fit for your chapter. Think of questions you would never ask a random person you just met or an employer, or likewise with questions you wouldn't want to be asked during an interview - those same questions shouldn't be asked during PGN formal interviews. Examples include, but not limited to:

  • Anything sexual

  • Anything personal

    • Relationship status?

    • Grades/GPA (these can be asked on application)

    • Worst experiences

  • Alcohol 

  • And overall anything that might reflect negatively on PGN and make a PNM uncomfortable

Formatting the set up of your interviews is ultimately up to your chapter, however, it is recommended that interviews are broken up into smaller groups. Keeping in mind the size of the recruitment class, try to group a few (3-5) members per member group and a couple (2-3) PNMs per PNM group. For the rotations from interview groups, five to ten minutes is adequate to ask a few questions per rotation. After the five to ten minutes is up, each small group of PNMs will rotate to the next table of members. This will continue until every member group has interviewed every group of PNMs.

Just like any job, interviewing is the most important part of the recruitment process. This is your time to get to know the potential new members (PNMs) on more of a professional level. While these should be fun, it is important to remain professional and refrain from questions that might reflect poorly upon PGN. After all, this is a Professional Development Organization.