Discuss a time your morals were questioned.
When you join the FBI, you may find yourself in life or death situations. You may be privy to information that challenges the beliefs and ideas you hold to be true. If you are ever working undercover, you may need to participate in or witness activities you usually wouldn't.
The interviewer would like to know where your morals lie. Pause and think about when you were asked to do or say something that made you feel uncomfortable. Identifying your standards will help you think of an example of a time your morals were in question.
Focus your answer on the situation, how you knew it was not right, and how you stayed true to your moral compass. The interviewer wants to hear that you will always stick to your morals even under challenging situations if hired.
Avoid saying that you caved in and did not follow your morals or ethics in a particular situation. If you give in and do not follow what you truly believe, the interviewer will see that you may have difficulty making correct decisions and might be a liability to the bureau.
When responding to this question, remember to be adamant about following your moral compass in all situations. You want the interviewer to know that noting could compromise your morals and ethics as a Special Agent.
"When I was attending University, I was asked to participate in a hazing ritual. Although it was a somewhat humorous tradition, the idea made me uncomfortable because I felt that it was a breach of other peoples' personal space. I chose not to participate, and it was lucky that I did not because the evening unfolded with a couple of campus arrests and suspensions. It's important to me to listen to my intuition in all situations, including those that challenge my moral compass."
"I have a strong sense of morality, integrity, and I am dedicated to my career, and would do nothing to jeopardise the opportunities ahead of me. What I can offer is an occasion early on in my law enforcement career, when a lawyer with questionable ethics offered me a bribe to change my testimony in favor of her client. It was quite a sum, one that, as this lawyer put it, would ensure I didn't have to work another day of my life. Of course, this was just a promise, coming from a lawyer with questionable ethics, working for an unsavory character, as it were. And, of course, I declined and reported the situation to my lieutenant immediately. I made a vow to uphold justice when I became an officer. My position is unwavering."
Community answers are written by other candidates practicing this set. Reading how others frame the same question is one of the fastest ways to sharpen your own.
Anonymous Answer
I recall two years ago at my current job, I took a vacation, but my boss forgot to deduct the hours from my remaining time off balance. I waited two weeks to see if she would fix the error, but when it was clear to me that it had slipped out of her mind, I sent her an email to remind her. Honestly and integrity is at the core of everything I do in life, cheating, and taking extra time off was not acceptable to me.
Krista's Feedback
Fantastic example of honesty! Many people would have let this slide, but you show that you have an exceptional level of integrity. Great response.
