Westpac's purpose, and what it means for your interview

Westpac's strategy page gives its purpose as "taking action now to create a better future". The same page says the most important thing is understanding what a better future means to its customers, then helping them get there.

You don't need to recite it in the interview. Use it to choose your stories instead. For questions about customers, ethics or working with others, pick a time you helped someone else get a better result, and say what you did and how they were better off.

Westpac's commitments, and how to show them

Westpac's careers site lists three commitments, which it calls a promise it tries to keep every day: Always Deliver, Safely; Make an Impact; and Own it. Older guides list a different set of values, so check the current page before your interview. The first three cards below cover the commitments, and the last two cover speaking up and teamwork, which several of the questions further down ask about.

Commitment 01
Always Deliver, Safely
What this looks like in an answer
Westpac describes it as tackling "the tough stuff" and finding solutions for customers that keep them safe and manage risk. In a story, that means seeing a hard task through without cutting corners.
How to show it
Pick a story where you finished something difficult and got a clear result. Put a number on it if you can: "we cut response times by 30%" tells the interviewer more than "we made it faster". If you can't measure it, describe what changed. Then add the "safely" part: a check you made, a risk you spotted, or a shortcut you decided not to take.
Commitment 02
Make an Impact
What this looks like in an answer
Westpac describes it as "making a real, sustainable difference" for customers and the communities it serves. In a story, that means noticing what someone actually needed, beyond what they asked for, and leaving them better off.
How to show it
Use an example where you looked past the literal request to the need behind it. Customer-facing work is ideal, but you don't need it. Helping a classmate who was stuck on a concept works, and so does realising a project stakeholder needed more context than they'd asked for. Community work counts too. A simple shape for the story: I noticed, I acted, and they were better off.
Commitment 03
Own it
What this looks like in an answer
Westpac describes it as taking accountability and doing what you say you will. In a story, that means taking responsibility for your part, including when something went wrong.
How to show it
Describe a time you made a commitment and kept it when it got hard, or a time you made a mistake and fixed it. Say what you did when you found the problem, who you told, and what you changed so it wouldn't happen again. A story about getting something wrong and putting it right can say more about you than one where everything went to plan.
Theme 04
Speaking up
What this looks like in an answer
Raising a concern or disagreeing when it would be easier to stay quiet. Westpac's commitments don't name it, but it's part of managing risk, and question 2 below asks about it directly.
How to show it
Think of a time you raised a concern, questioned a decision or pointed out a problem. Describe what was wrong, why you spoke up, how you did it, and what happened. Explain how you raised it, as well as why. "I raised it with my manager, explained why I thought it would hurt the result, and suggested another way" shows judgement as well as nerve. "I just told them they were wrong" shows neither.
Theme 05
Working as a team
What this looks like in an answer
Putting the team's result ahead of your own credit. One of the five priorities in Westpac's strategy is "Best Team, Trusted Experts", and in a rotational program you'll work in several teams.
How to show it
Avoid stories where you're the lone hero. Even when you led, say how you involved other people and give them credit. Use "we" for what the team did and "I" for your own part. A good example is a time you helped a teammate succeed, even though it cost you time or credit. "I noticed Sarah was struggling with the data model, so I stayed back on Thursday to work through it with her before the presentation" says more than "I'm a great team player."

Graduate business areas

Westpac recruits graduates into business areas. Each program is rotational, moving you through different roles and teams within that area. The areas on the current program page, which can change from year to year, fall into these groups:

  • Technology: Technology Engineering, Technology Cyber, Technology Rotational, and Data, Digital & AI. Be ready to talk about things you've built and the tools you used.
  • Finance: Finance & Accounting, Group Treasury, and Financial Markets & Treasury. Have examples that show you're careful with detail, and read up on how a bank manages its capital, funding and liquidity.
  • Risk: Risk, Customer Protection and Lifecycle Management, and Property Risk & Resilience. Stories about spotting a problem early and using sound judgement fit well.
  • Banking: Consumer; Business & Wealth; Regional, Commercial & Agribusiness; Corporate & Institutional Banking; and Global Transaction Services. Show that you care about customers, and read up on the kinds of customers the area serves, from households to large companies.
  • Other areas: Growth, Brand & Marketing; People; and Transformation. Bring examples from that field, such as a campaign you ran, a people or culture project, or a change you helped deliver.

The selection process

Westpac's graduate page describes four steps, then the outcome:

1
Online application
It takes about ten minutes. You answer some pre-screening questions, upload your CV and academic transcript (an unofficial one is fine), and choose up to three business areas and a location. Westpac asks you to answer the pre-screening questions carefully and truthfully.
2
Online assessments
If your application goes through, you'll be invited to complete online psychometric assessments, sometimes with only 48 hours to do them. Watch your email, including the junk folder, because Westpac can't consider your application if you miss the deadline. If you haven't done psychometric tests before, try a few practice tests so the format isn't new.
3
Video interview
A short, pre-recorded interview. Westpac says it uses this to learn about your motivations and your "Uncommon Mind" (its graduate pages ask for original thinkers). It isn't live, but you can't pause, stop or restart it, so practise answering on camera first and treat it as seriously as a live interview.
4
Assessment centre
The final stage is a virtual assessment centre with a behavioural interview and a business-related case study. You'll also meet people from the business, and Westpac encourages you to ask them questions, so prepare a few about the area you've applied for.
5
Outcome
Westpac says you can expect timely feedback on your application. For most programs, applications open in July and close in August, assessment centres run in September and October, and graduates start the following February. Institutional Bank programs recruit earlier, with applications and assessment centres in March and April.
Westpac and sustainability

Westpac's strategy page lists three focus areas for sustainability: climate transition, housing affordability and regional prosperity. Think about how each one affects what a bank does, such as who it lends to and on what terms. If you care about one of them, be ready to say why. If you don't know enough to say anything specific, read up on it before your interview.

Practise your answers out loud

InterviewZap asks you behavioural questions about your own experience, written from your CV and the job description you give it, and you can answer by typing or out loud. After each answer you'll see what was missing and a stronger way to say it, with a score for structure, specificity, relevance and impact.

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Westpac graduate interview questions

Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) for behavioural answers. The questions below are practice questions built around Westpac's commitments and the themes above. They aren't a list of what Westpac will ask.

Questions 1–10 · Practice questions for Westpac
Question 01
"Tell me about a time you put someone else's needs ahead of your own to get a better outcome."
What they want to know
Whether you'll put a customer or your team ahead of your own interests. It fits Make an Impact and teamwork.
How to answer it
Pick a time you took the harder option for someone else's benefit, such as a customer you went out of your way for, a teammate you helped at a cost to your own work, or credit you passed to someone else. Make it clear that you chose to do it, and say how the other person or team was better off. Avoid stories where helping them was also obviously good for you, because then it's hard to tell what you gave up.
Question 02
"Describe a situation where you challenged a decision or spoke up when something didn't seem right."
What they want to know
Whether you'll raise a problem when staying quiet would be easier, and how you go about it.
How to answer it
Use a real disagreement that you acted on. A mild difference of opinion won't give you much to talk about. Describe the context, why you were concerned, how you raised it (calmly, and with reasons) and what happened. It's fine if you didn't get the outcome you wanted, as long as you raised it well.
Question 03
"Tell me about a time you had to make an ethical decision under pressure."
What they want to know
How you decide when the easy option and the right one are different. Banks are heavily regulated, so they need people who do the right thing when nobody's checking.
How to answer it
Choose a real dilemma, where doing the right thing cost you something or wasn't obvious. "I could have cheated on an assignment but didn't" is too easy to tell them much. Walk through how you weighed it up and what made you decide, as well as what you did.
Question 04
"Give me an example of a time you worked effectively with a team to deliver a result."
What they want to know
How you work in a team, and whether the team got a real result.
How to answer it
Describe a team effort with a clear outcome. Be specific about what you did and how, and give other people credit for their parts. Don't make it sound as if you carried the team on your own.
Question 05
"Why Westpac, and what do you know about our business?"
What they want to know
Whether you chose Westpac on purpose, and know something about its strategy and the area you've applied for.
How to answer it
Before the interview, read Westpac's strategy page (the purpose and the five priorities), its sustainability focus areas, the page for your business area, and one or two recent news stories. Then connect them to what you're interested in. Saying it's Australia's oldest bank won't tell them much. A better answer links Westpac to you: "I want to work on how a bank this size updates its technology while millions of customers keep using it, and the technology rotations would put me close to that work."
Question 06
"Describe a time you delivered good work despite serious obstacles."
What they want to know
Whether you still deliver when things get in the way. It fits Always Deliver, Safely.
How to answer it
Be clear about what the obstacle was: time, resources, competing demands or uncertainty. Then walk through what you did about it. Make the result concrete. "We submitted on time and the client was happy" is weaker than "We submitted on time with everything complete, and the client extended the engagement."
Question 07
"Tell me about a time you received critical feedback. How did you respond?"
What they want to know
Whether you can hear criticism and do something with it. A graduate program comes with a lot of feedback.
How to answer it
Be honest. Pick feedback that was hard to hear, even if your first reaction wasn't great. Then show that you listened, thought about it and changed something. Spend most of your answer on what you changed.
Question 08
"How do you think about what good customer service actually means?"
What they want to know
How you think about customers, backed up by an example. It fits Make an Impact.
How to answer it
Go further than "treating people with respect". Link service to results: did the customer end up better off? You might talk about spotting a need before they mentioned it, or keeping a relationship going through a difficult moment. Finish with a short example so the answer isn't all theory.
Question 09
"Describe a time you had to learn something new quickly to contribute to a team or project."
What they want to know
How quickly you become useful in something new. Westpac's programs are rotational, so you'll change roles and teams during the program.
How to answer it
Describe what you had to learn, how you went about it, and how soon you were contributing. Focus on your method more than your speed: how you worked out what you needed to know, where you went to learn it, and how you used it with a deadline coming.
Question 10
"What does sustainability mean to you, and how does it relate to banking?"
What they want to know
Whether you've thought about it beyond a definition. Westpac says it aims to build sustainability into all five of its strategic priorities.
How to answer it
Skip the textbook definition. Give your own view of what a bank can do, through who it lends to and how, and connect it to one of Westpac's three focus areas. If you don't have a view yet, form one before your interview.
Prepare your examples early

The online assessments and the interviews test different things, and for the interviews you need stories. Before your video interview, write down a specific example for each of the commitments and themes above. Then practise saying them out loud, so on the day you're remembering something that happened rather than reciting a script.