“What are your areas of growth as an educator?” is essentially asking what your weaknesses are. This is a great opportunity for you to speak about how you continuously and thoughtfully improve your practice.
How to Answer “What Areas Need Improvement?” Interview Question
Here’s a guide on how you can answer the interview question on areas that need improvement.
Kali Wolken, Career Counselor at The Lookout Point, a company focused on career and mental health counseling for women, gives this directive:
Taura with Stewart Leadership adds:
Pick something that isn’t essential to the day-to-day activities of the job you’re interviewing for. For example, don’t highlight poor timekeeping for a job requiring daily tracking.
Instead, pick something that you are genuinely working on. Andrew Fennell, former recruiter and Director at StandOut CV, and leading resume writing company, suggests:
Maureen, a career coach with Bravely, the only coaching solution built to provide transformative company-wide coaching for every employee at all levels, shares another insightful approach to this interview question:
3 Best Example Answers To “What Areas Need Improvement?”
Upon reviewing a typical example answer to the interview question, “what areas need improvement,” you can get a clear glimpse of how to craft your responses. You can get a template from the examples below for future use.
Here are some example answers that cover different work scenarios:
That’s something I’ve been thinking through myself as this is my first application for employment. Even though I had to overcome obstacles and take exams that tested my strengths in school, I know that the business world is on an entirely different playing field. Therefore, it was hard to identify problem areas before I worked at the company for at least a few weeks. Even so, I can’t claim to be perfect, and I am sure I will identify areas that need improvement. When conscious of my flaws, I may try to remedy the situation and eliminate them.
This example gives an approach that best suits a newbie in the employment field. It reveals one’s present ignorance of their weaknesses as far as it concerns the work. However, the respondent acknowledges their imperfection and readiness to learn, an attitude that employers would appreciate.
I was skilled at dealing with customers over the phone because of my previous position. Unfortunately, that leaves an opportunity with customer support email correspondences. One or two misspelled words can completely change the meaning of an email, which is why I think it’s essential for customer service representatives to employ caution when communicating with clients via electronic mail. That’s why I’ve been studying the most effective strategies for ensuring that email correspondence with clients always goes off without a hitch.
I debated whether to list “communication skills,” “presentation skills,” or “being more patient with colleagues” as areas for growth on my job application. And in the end, I chose to include them all. Not because I have trouble conversing with others or giving speeches to an audience. Even though I’m somewhat competent in both areas, I know how important they are in the professional sales world and would like to get even better. I believe one should always strive to improve and never settle for mediocrity.
What will you want to achieve in your answer?
While this question can seem like an awkward position to be placed in, you can use it to your advantage.