Administrative Assistant Interview Questions (Canada)

What to expect

Administrative Assistant interviews in Canada (NOC 13110) test composure, calendar logic, and judgment under interruption. Hiring managers typically open behavioural, then move to scenarios (a double-booked exec, a missed flight, a confidential leak), then close on tools and culture fit.

See the matching NOC 13110 guide, the resume example, and the cover letter example.

Behavioural questions

1. Tell me about yourself.
2. Why do you want to work here?
3. Tell me about a time you handled a difficult coworker.
4. Describe a time you had to meet a tight deadline.
5. Tell me about a mistake you made at work and what you learned.
6. Walk me through a time you had to learn something new quickly.
7. Describe a situation where you had to push back on a stakeholder.

Administrative Assistant-specific questions

1. Walk me through how you'd manage two executives whose calendars conflict daily.
2. How do you prioritise when three urgent requests land at once?
3. Describe your process for booking complex international travel.
4. How do you keep confidential documents secure across SharePoint and email?
5. What's your approach to expense reports — Concur, manual, both?
6. How would you onboard a new hire in their first week?
7. How do you handle a board member's last-minute request the night before a meeting?

Culture-fit questions

1. Where do you see yourself in 3 years?
2. What's your salary expectation?
3. Why are you leaving your current role?
4. How do you handle feedback?
5. What's your preferred working style — independent or team-based?
6. Do you have questions for us?

STAR-method sample answer

Question: Tell me about a time you had to fix a scheduling conflict at the last minute.

Situation. Last quarter at Maple Leaf Capital, our CEO and CFO were both invited to the same regulator briefing in Ottawa with 18 hours' notice.

Task. I had to reschedule three pre-existing meetings, secure flights and hotels for both, and brief the regulator's office on attendees by end of day.

Action. I cleared the conflicting meetings via a templated apology that offered three rebook windows, booked two flexible Air Canada fares within the corporate-travel cap, and emailed the regulator's office a confirmed attendee list with bios.

Result. Both executives attended the briefing on time, the three rebooks were accepted within an hour, and we stayed within the trip-budget envelope.

Smart questions to ask back

1. What does success look like in the first 90 days?
2. Who would I be working with day-to-day, and how is the team structured?
3. What's the biggest challenge facing this team right now?
4. How is performance measured and reviewed?
5. What do you enjoy most about working here?

Related guides

• STAR interview method
• Common interview questions Canada
• When to follow up after applying