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Editor Interview Questions

"Responsible for reviewing and evaluating content, editors are highly attentive to detail, organized, and collaborative. In an interview, expect to be asked about how you work with deadlines, your toolbox of editing systems, and where you get your ideas for stories. Especially desirable are candidates with strong communication skills who can work well in teams."

Top Editor Interview Questions & How to Answer

Question 1

Question #1: What's your process to maintaining deadlines?

How to answer
How to answer: When working as an editor, you'll face deadlines when you must provide the work back to the writer or project manager. Highlight any tools you use to track and manage deadlines, such as a calendar or task management system. You can also use this question to describe your work ethic and situations in which you've faced and maintained tight deadlines for clients or team members. This question also works well to discuss your prioritization skills.
Question 2

Question #2: How do you maintain focus when handling the mundane aspects of editing?

How to answer
How to answer: Editors often face tedious and monotonous tasks, such as proofreading, checking sources, and fact-checking. When answering a question about maintaining your focus, talk about any processes you have in place to stay alert as you review other people's words. For example, if you read sentences aloud when assessing grammatical correctness or use a digital tool to check facts, describe these habits.
Question 3

Question #3: Describe your approach to offering constructive feedback.

How to answer
How to answer: An editor often has to provide constructive feedback to writers and content experts. They need to be able to do so in a way that benefits the other party while maintaining a professional and positive tone. Outline your communication skills and ability to provide feedback in a way that doesn't generate a negative or defensive response.

11,604 editor interview questions shared by candidates

The questions are not at all what you would expect. It is not to say preparing for the interview is useless, however, with reasonable qualifications, the interview is a walk in the park. If anything, the questions were more personal than anything else, more questions to see if you'll fit into the "family" atmosphere. ie "when's the last time you blew up," because they are apparently more concerned with the office dynamic than a successful and reputable publication, but I digress.

Managing Editor

Interviewed at Hometown Oneonta

3★
Mar 18, 2021

The questions are not at all what you would expect. It is not to say preparing for the interview is useless, however, with reasonable qualifications, the interview is a walk in the park. If anything, the questions were more personal than anything else, more questions to see if you'll fit into the "family" atmosphere. ie "when's the last time you blew up," because they are apparently more concerned with the office dynamic than a successful and reputable publication, but I digress.

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