Behavioural questions — "Tell me about a time you…" — assess how you have actually behaved, not what you think you would do. Medical schools use them to evaluate teamwork, responsibility, resilience, integrity, and leadership under pressure.
What Is STARR?
STARR structures your answer:
- Situation — Brief context. Where were you and what was happening?
- Task — Your responsibility or the challenge you faced.
- Action — What you specifically did (use "I", not only "we").
- Result — Outcome — ideally measurable or clear.
- Reflection — What you learned and how your behaviour changed.
Reflection is where most candidates underperform. Panels care as much about learning as about success.
When To Use STARR
Use STARR for behavioural judgement questions such as:
- Tell me about a time you made a mistake
- Tell me about a time you worked in a team
- Tell me about a time you failed
- Describe a situation where you showed integrity
The same framework applies to many leadership and professionalism scenarios.
Mini Example: Making A Mistake
- Situation — Group research project at school; I was responsible for data entry.
- Task — Ensure accurate results before submission.
- Action — I spotted duplicated entries the night before the deadline, informed the team, rechecked all rows, and stayed late to correct the dataset.
- Result — We submitted on time with accurate data; the teacher noted our transparency.
- Reflection — I now use a double-check system and ask a peer to review critical work — I would rather flag an error early than hide it.
Tips That Raise Your Score
- Prepare five versatile examples you can adapt — teamwork, failure, initiative, conflict, pressure
- Keep Situation and Task short; spend most time on Action and Reflection
- Own mistakes honestly — accountability beats a spotless record
- Practise aloud with a timer; behavioural answers often run too long
Common Mistakes
- Using hypothetical answers ("I would…") instead of real examples
- Describing what the team did without your contribution
- Skipping reflection entirely
- Choosing examples where you were the hero with no nuance
Practise Beyond The Page
Browse 25 behavioural questions — each includes an expandable + Model answer with STARR guidance.
Follow-up questions are where behavioural stations get hard: "What would you do differently?" or "How did the other person respond?" Go Doctor's AI interviewer runs voice-to-voice practice with dynamic follow-ups, so you find out whether your STARR examples hold up in conversation — not just on paper.