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PwC Apprenticeship Competency Questions — With Answer Guidance
PwC uses competency-based questions at the video interview and assessment centre stages. Here are the questions to expect, mapped to the competencies they test — with guidance on what strong answers look like.
Competency Questions by Area
Commercial acumen
“Tell me about a time you demonstrated commercial acumen.”
“Give me an example of when you had to show commercial acumenunder pressure.”
What strong looks like
A specific STAR answer with a clear individual role, measurable outcome, and genuine reflection. Avoid: describing what “the team” did without isolating your contribution.
Collaboration
“Tell me about a time you demonstrated collaboration.”
“Give me an example of when you had to show collaborationunder pressure.”
What strong looks like
A specific STAR answer with a clear individual role, measurable outcome, and genuine reflection. Avoid: describing what “the team” did without isolating your contribution.
Communication
“Tell me about a time you demonstrated communication.”
“Give me an example of when you had to show communicationunder pressure.”
What strong looks like
A specific STAR answer with a clear individual role, measurable outcome, and genuine reflection. Avoid: describing what “the team” did without isolating your contribution.
Leadership
“Tell me about a time you demonstrated leadership.”
“Give me an example of when you had to show leadershipunder pressure.”
What strong looks like
A specific STAR answer with a clear individual role, measurable outcome, and genuine reflection. Avoid: describing what “the team” did without isolating your contribution.
Problem solving
“Tell me about a time you demonstrated problem solving.”
“Give me an example of when you had to show problem solvingunder pressure.”
What strong looks like
A specific STAR answer with a clear individual role, measurable outcome, and genuine reflection. Avoid: describing what “the team” did without isolating your contribution.
Resilience
“Tell me about a time you demonstrated resilience.”
“Give me an example of when you had to show resilienceunder pressure.”
What strong looks like
A specific STAR answer with a clear individual role, measurable outcome, and genuine reflection. Avoid: describing what “the team” did without isolating your contribution.
The STAR Framework
S — Situation: Set the scene briefly (1–2 sentences). Enough context, no more.
T — Task: What was your specific responsibility? What was expected of you?
A — Action: What YOU did — not "we". Be specific. This is 60% of the answer.
R — Result: Quantify if possible. What changed? What did you learn?
Preparing Your Stories
Aim for 5–7 strong STAR stories before your first interview. You should be able to adapt each story to answer multiple different competency questions — a good teamwork story can often be reframed to show communication or resilience too.
Examples can come from school, part-time work, sport, volunteering, or any other experience where you had a genuine individual responsibility.
Want the full prep pack?
PwC Apprenticeship Prep Pack
Application stages, competencies, real interview questions, commercial awareness, and a pre-submission checklist — in one complete pack.
Read the free PwC pack →