TIPS FOR
COMPLETING A
TRAINING &
EXPERIENCE
EVALUATION
SANTA MONICA COLLEGE PERSONNEL COMMISSION
WHAT IS A TRAINING & EXPERIENCE
EVALUATION QUESTIONNAIRE?
Intheaboveexample,youwouldselecttheresponsethatbestreflectsyour
background.Insomecases,theresponsesareveryobjectiveandclear cut;for
example,in“samplequestion#1”above,ifyouhave2yearsofexperience
performingcustomerservicework,thenyouwouldselectionresponse“C”.
However,theremaybeinstanceswhereresponsesaremoredescriptive,andless
quantitativeinnature.Forexample,considerthefollowingquestion:
Justlikeamultiple choiceexamoraninterview,aTraining&Experience Evaluation
isatypeofassessment. Specifically, a T& EE is a structured, systematic tool
forevaluatingacandidate’seducation and/or experience that is beyond
theminimumrequirementsforagivenposition. TheT&E E is completed as part
cftheonlineapplication,andwilltypicallyconsist of a series of questions
pertainingtoyoureducationorexperience.
For each question, you will be asked to select the response(s) (A, B, C, D, etc.) that
best match your background. Each question has a pre determined point value; the
number of points you receive for each question is based on the response you
select. The maximum number of points obtainable in most T&EEs is equal to 100.
Your total score on the T&EE will be equal to the sum of the points you obtain for
each question. An example of a T&EE question is shown below:
SampleQuestion#1:Howmanyyearsoffull timeexperience(40
hoursperweek,12monthsperyear)doyouhaveinacustomer
servicerole,whichincludedresponsibilityforattendingto
customers’needsandresolvingcustomercomplaintsbyphoneor
in person?
A)Lessthan1year
B)Atleast1year,butlessthan2years
C)Atleast2years,butlessthan3years
D)3yearsormore
SampleQuestion#2:Whichofthefollowingresponsesbestdescribesyour
HIGHESTlevelofexperiencemanagingandoverseeingprojectsintheareaof
employeetraininganddevelopmentforaperiodofatleast1year?
A)Idonothaveexperienceinthisarea
B)Ihaveassistedhigher levelemployeeswithday to dayactivitiesinsupportof
projectgoals,butdidwasnotresponsibleformanagingtheproject.
C)Iservedinaleadroleonaproject,whereIwasresponsibleforproviding
guidanceandworkdirectiontootherstaffmembers.
D)Iwasresponsibleforoverseeingandmanagingadefinedportionofaproject,
whichincludedresponsibilityforactivitiessuchassettingdeadlines,assigningwork
tostaff,andreviewingworktoensurecompletion.AlthoughIwasaccountablefor
thespecificpartoftheprojecttowhichIwasassigned,ultimateaccountability
restedwithhigher levelstaff.
E)Iwasresponsibleforoverseeingandmanaginganentireproject,whichincluded
responsibilityforactivitiessuchasidentifyingandsecuringresources,setting
deadlines,ensuringqualitycontrol,andaccountabilityforthefinalprojectresult.
Whenansweringquestionsthataremoredescriptive,andlessquantitativein
nature(suchastheexampleabove),youmaysometimesfindyourselftorn
betweentwoormoreresponses.Giveyourselfthebenefitofthedoubt,andselect
thehigheroftheresponsesyouareconsidering.Forexample,ifyouweretorn
betweenresponses“B”and“C”above,selectresponse“C”.
Aspartofthe“validation”process,theraterswillreviewallinformationthatyou
includeinyourapplicationmaterials;iftheratersfeelthatyourresponseis
insufficientlysupportedbasedontheinformationyouprovide,theywillloweryour
scoretobeconsistentwiththelevelofexpertiseyouindicatedinyourapplication.
However,donotintentionallyexaggerateyourbackgroundinanefforttoachievea
higherscore.
Allquestionnaireresponseswillbereviewedbysubjectmatterexperts(SMEs),
andmaybesubjecttoverificationthroughreferencechecks;candidateswhoare
foundtointentionallyandsignificantlyfabricateorinflatetheirbackgroundsmaybe
disqualifiedfromparticipationincurrentandfutureemploymentopportunities.
WHAT IS A TRAINING & EXPERIENCE
EVALUATION QUESTIONNAIRE?
CONT'D
HOW WILL MY T&EE BE REVIEWED?
Follow UpforSampleQuestion#1
Pleaseprovideinformationwhich
supportstheresponseyouselectedfor
theabovequestion.Inyourresponse,
pleaseincludethefollowing:
1.Theorganization(s)whereyou
obtainedyourcustomerservice
experience.
2.Yourjobtitle(s).
3.Adetaileddescriptionofthecustomer
servicedutiesyouperformed.
4.Thedateswhenyouperformedthese
responsibilities(beginningandending
month/year)andthenumberofhoursper
weekandmonthsperyearthatyou
worked.
5.Thenameandcontactinformationof
thepersonwhosupervisedyouduring
thistime
Asmentionedabove,foreachquestion,SMEswillcomparetheresponse
youselectedwiththeinformationcontainedinyourapplicationmaterials.
Toobtainspecific,targetedinformationregardingyourbackground,
youwillbeaskedtoanswerfollow upquestions.Thesefollow upquestions
oftenimmediatelyfollowaT&E Eitem,andwillbeusedbyratersto
determineifyourresponsewasadequatelysupported.
Forexample,followupquestionsfor“samplequestion#1”and
“samplequestion#2”mightread asfollows:
Follow UpforSampleQuestion#2
Pleaseprovideanexamplewhich
supportstheresponseyouselectedfor
theabovequestion.Inyourresponse,
pleaseincludethefollowing:
1.Theorganizationwhereyouobtained
thisexperience.
2.Yourspecificroleontheprojectanda
detaileddescriptionofthedutiesyou
performed,includinganyresponsibility
youhadforestablishingprojectgoalsand
timelines,identifyingandsecuring
necessaryresources,andoverseeingthe
workofotherteammembers.
3.Thedateswhenyouperformedthese
responsibilities(beginningandending
month/year).
4.Thenameandcontactinformationof
thepersonwhosupervisedyouduring
thistime.
Additionally,youshouldmakesurethattheinformationyouinclude
inthefollow upquestions(e.g.,previousjobs,jobdutiesperformed)
isalsoincludedinyourapplicationandresume(ifapplicable).By
ensuringthatyoureducationandexperienceisconsistently
communicatedacrossthedifferentpartsofyourapplicantpacket
(onlineapplication,questionnaireresponses,etc.),youcanhelp
sendaunifiedmessagetotheratersregardingyourpreparationfor
thisposition.
Eachfollow upquestionwilllistthespecificpiecesofinformation
thatyoushouldprovide(forexample,“adetaileddescriptionofthe
dutiesyouperformed,includinganyresponsibilityfor…”).Itiscritical
thatyouanswereachpartofthefollow upquestionwithsufficient
detail,sothatpeoplewhoareunfamiliarwithyourbackgroundcan
understandexactlywhatyouaretryingtosay.Readeachfollow up
questioncarefullyandmakesuretoincludeallrequested
information.Failingtoprovidetheinformationrequestedwilllikely
causeareductioninyourscore,andmayimpactyourlikelihoodof
obtainingajob.
HOW WILL MY T&EE BE REVIEWED?
CONT'D
WHAT CAN I DO TO PERFORM MY BEST ON A
T&EE?
Herearesomegeneraltipsforprovidingfollow upresponses:
Asmentionedpreviously,ifyoufindyourselftornbetweentwo
responseoptions(A,B,C,D,etc.)whenansweringaT&E SQitem,
giveyourselfthebenefitofthedoubtandselectthehigher(more
complex)option.Iftheratersfeelthatyourresponseisinsufficiently
supportedbytheinformationinyourapplication,theywilladjustyour
scoreaccordingly.
Whenrespondingtofollow upquestions:
Donotrespondtoafollow upquestionbywriting“refertoresume”.Often
times,thefollow upquestionswillaskyoutoprovidealevelofdetailthat
maynotbeaddressedinyourresume;assuch,evenifyouhaveattached
aresume,takethetimetoprovideadetailedandthoughtfulanswertothe
follow upquestion.Unfortunately,failuretoprovidetheinformation
requestedinthefollow upquestionwilllikelyresultinadownward
adjustmentofyourscore.
Trynottouseacronymsortermsthatareuniquetoaspecific
employer/company(company specificcomputerprograms,etc.).Ifyoudo
useacronymsorcompanyjargon,makesurethatyouexplainwhatthese
termsmean.Remember,yourresponsesshouldbewrittensothatpeople
fromoutsideofyourworkplacecanunderstandthem.
Itisokaytousetechnicalterminology(forexample,whendescribing
experienceintheITorFinancialfields),butthetermsshouldbecommonly
usedintheindustryandunderstandabletootherexperts.
Itisalwayssafertoprovidemoredetailsinsteadofless.Muchlike
interviews,detailsprovidespecificinformationaboutwhatyoudidin
previousjobs,andcanhelptheratersbetterunderstandthenuancesof
yourwork.Thebettertheratersunderstandwhatyouhavedone,thebetter
theywillbeabletoevaluateyourbackgroundandexperience.However,
makesurethatthedetailsyouprovidearerelevanttothejobandthe
questionbeingasked;donotincludeunrelatedinformationthathasno
relevancetothejob. Itneverhurtstogetasecondopiniononyourfollow -
upresponses. It mayhelpyouidentifyanyareasthatare
unclear,sothatyoucanclarifythembeforesubmittingyourapplication.