Pre-Screening
Mervin
Aborginal Housing Advisor
Thunder BayOnce you have submitted your online application, you will receive an e-mail confirming that your application has been received.
The first step in our screening process is a review of the information you submitted as part of your application. This includes your resumé, cover letter, and answers to the pre-screening questions and eligibility requirements. All applications are reviewed by a member of the selection committee.
At this point, you may be contacted for a pre-screening phone interview to explore your qualifications in more detail. If you are contacted regarding your application and require accommodations, please discuss these requirements with the HR representative.
Testing
Language Requirements
Language testing is conducted when a position is designated as bilingual (English/French). At CMHC, we have our own language tests. However, if you have completed Public Service language tests within the last five years and have valid results, you can submit them for consideration.
About the Official Language Tests
Our official language tests assess your proficiency in reading, writing, understanding and speaking in French and/or English. The tests for reading, writing and understanding are web-based. The speaking test is a short conversation with one of our official language experts, in person or over the telephone.
To find out more about our language tests, please consult the Guide to Second Language Proficiency Tests.
Job-Related Tests
You may be asked to take a job-related test so that we may assess your skills and knowledge. We will let you know in advance if a test will be administered.
Interviewing
We ask behaviour-based questions during our interviews. This means you will be asked to give examples of situations you have been involved in that demonstrate a particular competency. A competency is a combination of skills, knowledge and behaviours required to achieve results in a job. Read CMHC’s of Behavioural Competencies to increase your knowledge of the required competencies.
Behaviour-based questions are structured to probe your past behaviour in specific situations in order to assess your ability to carry out the requirements of the job. The following are all examples of behaviour-based questions:
- “Tell us about a situation when you had to manage several projects with competing deadlines.”
- “Describe a situation when you had to analyze a complex issue and provide recommendations.”
- “Tell us about the most difficult work relationship you have encountered to date.”
We provide you with the behaviour-based questions in advance of your interview. Receiving these questions in advance gives you the opportunity to prepare complete and meaningful responses. See the Application Tips section to learn more about how to prepare for a behaviour-based interview.
In addition to behaviour-based questions, you may be asked knowledge-based and situational questions. Interviews typically last between 60 and 90 minutes.
References
We ask that you bring at least three references with you to the interview. Please include each reference’s name, e-mail address, phone number and relationship to you (for example, supervisor, colleague, client, direct report). Your references should include supervisors who can speak directly to your performance. When possible, please include your current supervisor as a reference.
If you have limited work experience, you can provide personal and academic references. What’s important is that your references can speak to the examples you used in response to the behaviour-based questions.
Offer
After the interview, the hiring manager will contact you to let you know your status. If you are the selected candidate, the hiring manager will discuss the offer and a potential start date. Prior to starting your new position, you will need to go through a security screening process.
When Can I Expect to Hear Back?
If you applied for a position but did not move forward in the staffing process, you will receive an automated notification at the completion of the staffing process.
