Technical interview questions
"What steps do you take when a user says their computer is running slowly?" Check CPU and memory utilisation (Task Manager), identify processes consuming excessive resources, check disk space (low disk space slows systems), check for malware, check for pending updates running in the background, check startup items. If hardware resources are genuinely exhausted: consider whether the hardware needs upgrading, or whether an application is misbehaving. Document findings and resolution in the ticketing system. "How would you troubleshoot a user who cannot print to a network printer?" Confirm the printer is online and not in error state, confirm the user is on the correct network segment, check if the print spooler service is running (restart if needed), check the queue for stuck jobs, re-add the printer if it has disappeared, check firewall rules for cross-subnet printers. Work from most common to most unusual cause.
Behavioral questions and strong answers
"Tell me about a time you had to explain a technical issue to a non-technical person." The most common behavioral question for IT support. Strong answer: a specific user, a specific issue, how you explained it without jargon, and how you confirmed understanding. "I avoided using the word 'router' and said 'the box that connects your computer to the internet.' When they said 'oh the black box?' I knew they understood." Specificity signals you actually care about user communication, not just technical resolution. "Describe a situation where you had a frustrated or angry user." Strong answer: let the user express frustration without interrupting, acknowledge why it was frustrating from their perspective, explain what you can do and by when, keep your own tone calm. IT support specialists who cannot de-escalate frustrated users are a liability to any IT team.
Tools and ticketing questions
Know the tools common in IT support: ServiceNow, Jira Service Desk, Freshdesk, Zendesk, ManageEngine for ticketing. Remote desktop tools: TeamViewer, AnyDesk, LogMeIn, Windows Remote Desktop. Active Directory: user account management, password resets, group policy, OUs. Microsoft 365 administration: creating users, distribution lists, shared mailboxes, Teams sites. Basic ITIL knowledge is valued: know the difference between an incident (unplanned outage), a service request (planned, routine), and a problem (root cause of recurring incidents).
SLA and prioritisation questions
"How do you prioritise your support queue when you have multiple open tickets?" Strong answer: by impact (how many users affected?) and urgency (how critical is the service?). P1: business-critical outage affecting multiple users, respond immediately. P2: single user with complete loss of functionality, respond within two hours. P3: degraded but workable, respond within four hours. P4: minor or requests, next business day. Show you communicate proactively when tickets will take longer than the SLA target, rather than waiting to be chased.