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CST · Interview questions

CST interview questions: what to practise and how to answer

A practical bank of original prompts for the current CST interview domains, organised around the evidence, judgement and spoken structure candidates need to demonstrate.

Last verified: 6 October 2026Parent guide: CST

Original preparation prompts, not recalled or official questions. The described stations and 0–6 rubric are confirmed for 2027. Practice prompts are Interview Bank originals.

ContentsHow to approach it

How to approach it

What a strong answer needs to show

Portfolio and presentation questions

Strong answers use one clear piece of evidence, make your personal contribution explicit and finish with learning or impact.

  • Know which examples best demonstrate commitment, leadership, teaching, QI and teamwork.
  • Avoid listing portfolio items without explaining what you actually did.
  • Prepare a concise presentation structure that survives interruption and follow-up.

Management and professional judgement questions

These questions test safe judgement, communication and escalation rather than the ability to recite a generic framework.

  • State the immediate risk before discussing longer-term process.
  • Separate what you would do now from what you would document, escalate or review afterwards.
  • Show how you would use senior, nursing and multidisciplinary support.

Clinical questions

Clinical cases should sound like safe CT1-entry reasoning: recognise deterioration, start structured assessment and involve appropriate senior help early.

  • Lead with ABCDE or another clinically appropriate structure when the patient is unstable.
  • Prioritise resuscitation and escalation before exhaustive differential diagnosis.
  • Explain what new information would make you change your plan.

Original practice questions

Questions worth practising aloud

These are original preparation prompts written around published domains and entry-level expectations. They are not recalled interview questions.

  1. Tell us about an achievement that best demonstrates your readiness for Core Surgical Training.
  2. A colleague repeatedly arrives late and leaves work for the rest of the team. How would you manage the situation?
  3. You are asked to review a postoperative patient who has become hypotensive and confused. Talk us through your priorities.
  4. Describe a time you received difficult feedback. What did you do with it?
  5. Two unwell surgical patients need review at the same time. How would you prioritise them and organise help?
  6. Tell us about a quality-improvement project where your own contribution changed the outcome.

Common mistakes

Where otherwise good answers lose clarity

  • Giving a framework without applying it to the actual scenario.
  • Claiming team achievements without making personal ownership clear.
  • Escalating vaguely rather than saying who you would contact and why.
  • Giving registrar-level operative detail instead of safe CT1-entry priorities.

Preparation plan

How to practise this deliberately

  • Prepare six to eight high-quality personal examples rather than dozens of weak ones.
  • Practise every answer aloud and under a realistic time limit.
  • Use follow-up questions to test ownership, safety, reflection and prioritisation.
  • Review the current official CST recruitment page before the interview.

Continue into practice

Practise the answer, not just the reading

Spoken CST practice is launching soon. At launch, choose a Question bank prompt, work on your answer and use structured feedback to improve it. Explore the practice experience while you prepare with these free questions.

Explore CST practice

Official source

Check the live recruitment guidance

Interview formats can change between cycles. This focused guide should be used alongside the official source below and the full CST guide.

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