Prepare for 40 BAE Systems interview questions covering security clearance, systems engineering, and defense sector expertise.
Question 17 of 40
How to Answer
Graduation With Honors
Remember To
Deserved Promotion
Entry Level
Community Answers

Karrie Day is a certified career coach and strategist with a passion for helping her clients define and reach their professional goals. She offers career advancement services such as brand development, resume writing and critiques, job search strategies,
There are two ways to answer this question. You can either discuss an example of when you overcame obstacles to achieve something great or share a significant accomplishment or award you received and talk about what was challenging about it. Either way, you show your determination and focus on reaching your goal.

Kimberly is a freelance writer and editor with a decade of experience in the education field, including her time as a pre-kindergarten teacher.
"One achievement I am proud of is graduating from University as an honors student while working full time. This accomplishment showed me that I could dedicate myself to my career and reach the goals that I set for myself. It felt great to accomplish so much and earn recognition for my dedication."

Karrie Day is a certified career coach and strategist with a passion for helping her clients define and reach their professional goals. She offers career advancement services such as brand development, resume writing and critiques, job search strategies,
Remember to think of a situation that highlights your strengths and qualities that will be helpful for the job for which you are interviewing. Try to keep your answer as career-relevant as possible.

Karrie Day is a certified career coach and strategist with a passion for helping her clients define and reach their professional goals. She offers career advancement services such as brand development, resume writing and critiques, job search strategies,
"I was hired at a junior level in my last role. I had recently graduated and lacked experience. I worked a lot of hours to learn about my customers and their business through shadowing. I learned all of the systems available to me. I did a lot of research and sought out mentors to learn from. I was able to jump in and be effective in my role quickly as a result. Over a year, my customers started coming to me directly instead of the senior-level co-workers on my team. My manager began assigning me their work and letting me lead initiatives.
I set up a meeting to discuss my progress and a possible promotion. My manager said she wasn't quite ready to promote me because people in my position usually only get promoted every few years. She said I was still lacking experience. I let her know I understood and respected her position but felt I had demonstrated a commitment to the work and my customers beyond the usual and customary level of effort. I gave her examples of my excellence despite my time in the role and reminded her that she had even asked me to lead initiatives because my work had been outstanding. I thanked her for listening and assured her I would respect her decision.
A month later, review time came around. I was shocked to learn she promoted me to two levels in my role. She said she appreciated my humble response to our last conversation and that I gave her a lot to think about. She talked with several of my peers and customers, and they all agreed I would be able to continue to perform well and that I should be rewarded for working so hard to get up to speed and add value. She said I exemplified the type of spirit she wanted members of her team to have and that she was willing to make a compelling case to HR for the double promotion in my favor. I was proud of myself for standing up for what I felt I deserved."

Karrie Day is a certified career coach and strategist with a passion for helping her clients define and reach their professional goals. She offers career advancement services such as brand development, resume writing and critiques, job search strategies,
"I am the most proud of being selected as a BAE Systems intern last year. BAE Systems has a reputation for recruiting top talent. Landing an internship was a goal for most of the talented people in our junior class. I worked really hard in school to get excellent grades and learn as much as possible. I also invested a lot of time researching this company and the types of responsibilities I would have as an intern prior to my interview.
The most challenging part was to make sure that I gave my coursework the attention it deserved. I worked part time and volunteered while I was in college, and my schedule was hectic at times. I used a number of time management techniques to make sure that I stayed on top of everything.
I am so thankful that all of my hard work was rewarded with the opportunity to learn from the experts here at BAE Systems. I am looking forward to becoming a permanent part of the team soon if I am extended an offer for this position."

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Anonymous Answer
A few months ago my answer would have been moving to England with a suitcase and a couple of hundred of pounds in my pocket. This changed in November when I accepted my first-class honors degree with the OU. Whilst it is the biggest achievement I’m proud of, it was also the biggest challenge to complete a full-time degree, whilst working full and a part-time job at the time. It required great time management skills, and mostly giving up social life entirely!

Krista's Feedback
This is a great response. You should be proud of your hard work!
Anonymous Answer
A few years ago, I was selected as the Ph.D. candidate with a full scholarship and I’m very close to getting the Ph.D. degree. I’m so proud of myself as it is quite rare to get a full Ph.D. scholarship opportunity for a non-English native speaker in the business management field. It was challenging to complete the full-time Ph.D. degree while taking care of my two kids. It requires time management skills, multiple-task skills, and the ability to work under pressure and catch deadlines.
Marcie's Feedback
Wow! That is definitely an amazing accomplishment that will impress any interviewer! To further build out your answer, can you give more details about the challenges you encountered as you juggled earning the degree with family life and explain exactly how you overcame this? The more details you provide, the more meaningful and memorable your response will be to the interviewer. Great job!
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Written by Karrie Day
40 Questions & Answers • BAE Systems plc

By Karrie

By Karrie