Gaining valuable feedback from real applicants is the best way to assess the candidate experience you are providing.
And there is no better way to get this feedback, than by sending out a candidate experience survey and asking direct questions to your candidates.
Learn what candidate experience survey questions you should be asking, how to ask them, who to ask and more – in order to improve you hiring process and hire the best talent.
We’ve also included a free downloadable survey template.
Contents
- Candidate experience survey questions
- Why should you conduct candidate surveys?
- How should you conduct candidate surveys?
- Candidate experience survey template
Candidate experience survey questions
Issuing candidate experience surveys is a great way to improve and streamline your recruitment process. In order to get the most out of your surveys, asking the right questions is key. You should split your questions into three types:
- Open-ended questions
- Multiple choice questions
- Yes/no questions
Open-ended questions
Open ended questions are great for getting more in-depth feedback from applicants: open-ended questions give applicants the opportunity to give more nuanced feedback without being forced into choosing from a pre-determined set of answers. Here are some examples of effective, open-ended candidate experience survey questions:
Q1: What job did you apply for and why?
Why ask this question?
This question is essential, as different hiring managers will often responsible for managing different job vacancies. The recruitment process might also be different or longer depending on the department, so it’s important to know what role the applicant was applying for. Adding “why” to the question gives candidates a chance to expand on the reasons as to why they were attracted to your company – giving you some good insights into your employer brand.
Q2: Did you enjoy the recruitment process at [company]?
Why ask this question?
This question allows applicants to speak freely about your hiring process, while giving customisable feedback and offering their personal opinion. When a candidate enjoys an interview process, they’re more likely to recommend the company to friends and colleagues and maintain a positive image of the brand itself. Therefore, it’s important to know exactly why (or why not) a candidate enjoyed your hiring process.
Q3: Would you apply for a position at [company] again and why?
Why ask this question?
The answers to this question will reflect the impression made by your company during the interview process, and if your company presented itself as a good place to work. If you want to attract and hold onto the top talent, you want to ensure that both the hiring process and work environment itself is attractive to competent candidates.
Q4: We’re always trying to improve our hiring process. Please detail any aspect of the application process with [company] that you disliked:
Why ask this question?
While surveys can be conducted anonymously, some candidates might nonetheless feel compelled to be polite, or will avoid being overtly critical when providing feedback. It’s therefore a good idea to allow at least one open-ended question where the candidates are encouraged to express what they disliked about the application process, to draw out some areas of improvement for your team.
Q5: How would you describe the [company] recruitment process to friends or colleagues?
Why ask this question?
Whether or not a candidate would be willing to recommend your company to others will reflect how they truly feel about your company’s hiring process: nobody is going to damage their credibility by recommending an unpleasant experience to their friends or work colleagues.
Multiple choice questions
Multiple choice questions are useful when analysing specific aspects of the application process and reviewing their efficiency: such as the questions asked, the length of the process, and the interview itself.
Q1: Do you agree with the following statement? My interviewer(s) asked relevant questions about the job and understood the requirements for the role:
Agree/ Slightly Agree / Disagree
Why ask this question?
Some candidates might be put off a company if the recruitment team appears to follow a standardised approach to all job vacancies. While standardised questioning can help find the most qualified candidate and eliminate bias, a minimal understanding of the role must be demonstrated nonetheless.
Q2: Did the hiring process enhance your understanding of the role?
Yes, the information was clear and helpful / My understanding remained the same
/ No, the hiring process left me with more questions than answers
Why ask this question?
You want to ensure that your hired candidate arrives fully prepared to undertake the work described, and that you don’t waste other applicants’ time. This question can help improve the accuracy of job advertising and better target suitable future candidates.
Q3: Timewise, I found the hiring process to be: (select one)
Engaging and time-efficient / Too brief, and I was left feeling unprepared / Too lengthy
Why ask this question?
Having a lengthy recruitment process can give applicants a negative impression of your company: it might appear that your company is disorganised, as well as feel time-wasting for unsuccessful applicants. Knowing if your process is too long is key to ensuring a positive experience for future candidates.
Q4: In comparison with other companies you’ve interviewed with, your experience with [company] was:
Better / Similar or the same / Worse
Why ask this question?
As a company, you want to understand your competition and ensure that highly desirable candidates choose you over your competitors. Having a positive hiring process can give you an edge over your nearest rivals.
Q5: How did your personal views about [company] change after the hiring process?
My opinion stayed the same / My opinion changed for the better / My opinion changed for the worse
Why ask this question?
This is a great way to find out if the hiring process has been unpleasant for your applicants. In general, candidates will be able to accept a job rejection without developing a negative image of the company – so if this does occur regularly, it indicates that an overhaul of the hiring process is needed.
Yes/No questions
Yes/No questions are an efficient, rapid way to get lots of essential and honest information from your applicants. These should typically go at the end of your survey, as a quick-fire overview of the recruitment process.
Q1: Yes/No: My recruiter was warm and friendly during the interview process.
Why ask this question?
You want to ensure that the recruiting team are making the best impression with your candidates.
Q2: Yes/No: The job description matched the role described in the interview process.
Why ask this question?
Ensuring that your company posts accurate job advertisements and descriptions will increase the likelihood that the right applicants put themselves forward, while also preventing wasting other candidates’ time.
Q3: Yes/No: My requests for updates on my application were responded to swiftly by a member of the recruitment team.
Why ask this question?
Candidates tend to develop a negative image of companies that keep them hanging for weeks on end without any update on their application.
Q4: Yes/No: My recruiter was able to answer all questions I had about the role.
Why ask this question?
Selecting the right candidate will be dependent on having a knowledgeable recruiting manager. Negative responses to this question will demonstrate that not enough information is being distributed to interviewers.
Q5: Yes/No: Overall, I was happy and satisfied with my experience applying for a role at [company]
Why ask this question?
When considering internal reviews of the hiring process, you could use this question as an effective metric as to whether or not an overhaul is necessary. As a company goal, you could try to maintain a score of above 80% in “yes” responses to this question.
Why should you conduct candidate surveys?
Conducting candidate experience surveys is beneficial both for your company and for future job applicants.
- Improved recruitment process – By allowing candidates to give helpful feedback, your company will be able to identify weaknesses and improve your hiring process, making your company more attractive to top talent.
- Candidate relationships – Candidates appreciate hearing back from employers, even when the reply isn’t accompanied by a job offer. A candidate survey shows that you care about the applicant experience.
- Positive employer brand – By proving that you care about the applicant experience, you promote a positive brand image and increase the likelihood that former applicants recommend your company to other job hunters.
How should you conduct candidate surveys?
You can conduct candidate surveys in person, over the phone, or via email. Each of these options comes with its own benefits and disadvantages:
- In person – In person candidate surveys can be beneficial for your company, as you can ask follow-up questions and press for further information if need be. One downside to in-person candidate surveys is that some applicants won’t feel comfortable being entirely honest about negative aspects of the process, either through politeness or through fear of not being considered as a candidate in the future.
- Email – Email is the most convenient and comfortable ways for people to fill out surveys, and easy for teams to send out multiple times. Candidates are much more likely to be honest and direct via an email survey, as they won’t feel compelled to please the interviewer sitting opposite them. However, email is also the easiest communication method to ignore.
- Telephone – A candidate survey can also be taken via telephone, although this also has its drawbacks. While a candidate might be more forthright on the phone than in person, the nature of a corporate phone call might make them feel rushed, resulting in skewed or inaccurate answers.
Candidate experience survey template
Many thanks for taking the time to complete our candidate survey and helping us to continually improve our recruitment process. Once you’ve answered all if the questions below, please send your completed form to [name] at [email address].
Part 1.
Please provide as much detail as you can for each answer.
Q1: What job did you apply for and why?
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
Q2: Did you enjoy the recruitment process at [company]?
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
Q3: Would you apply for a position at [company] again? Why?
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
Q4: We’re always trying to improve our hiring process. Please detail any aspect of the application process with [company] that you disliked:
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
Q5: Would you recommend colleagues and friends to apply for a job at [company]?
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
Part 2.
Please circle the answer that applies.
Q1: Do you agree with the following statement? My interviewer(s) asked relevant questions about the job and understood the requirements for the role:
Agree
Slightly Agree
Disagree
Q2: Did the hiring process enhance your understanding of the role?
Yes, the information was clear and helpful
My understanding remained the same
No, the hiring process left me with more questions than answers
Q3: Timewise, I found the hiring process to be: (select one)
Engaging and time-efficient
Too brief, and I was left feeling unprepared
Too lengthy
Q4: In comparison with other companies you’ve interviewed with, your experience with [company] was:
Better
Similar or the same
Worse
Q5: How did your personal views about [company] change after the hiring process?
My opinion stayed the same
My opinion changed for the better
My opinion changed for the worse
Part 3.
Please answer Yes or No to the following statements:
Q1: My recruiter was warm and friendly during the interview process.
Yes / No
Q2: The job description matched the role described in the interview process.
Yes / No
Q3: My requests for updates on my application were responded to swiftly by a member of the recruitment team.
Yes / No
Q4: Yes/No: My recruiter was able to answer all questions I had about the role.
Yes / No
Q5: Overall, I was happy and satisfied with my experience applying for a role at [company].
Yes / No