I scored well at sift but badly at interview. What usually causes that?
Why Strong Civil Service Written Evidence Can Produce a Weak Interview Score
Hello,
My SEO application scored 6 at sift, but my interview behaviour scores were mostly 3s. I reused the same examples and believed the interview had gone reasonably well.
The feedback says I needed more evidence of personal action and clearer answers to the questions. I do not understand how the same examples could move from strong to weak.
What usually causes this difference?
Quick Answer
A strong sift proves the written evidence met that assessment. Interview scores can fall when the spoken answer does not match the question, personal actions are less clear, reasoning is missing or follow-up probes expose gaps that the edited statement concealed.
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How I Would Diagnose the Drop From a Strong Sift to Interview Scores of 3
Continue reading to see how I would compare the written and spoken evidence and identify whether the main issue was structure, depth or delivery.
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