Candidate pre-screening questionnaire template: knockout questions before the first call

A candidate pre-screening questionnaire is a short set of questions an applicant answers before anyone calls them, to confirm the basics the job cannot do without: required licenses, schedule, location, work authorization and pay expectations, plus one or two short answers that give the phone screen a starting point. Keep it to five to ten questions that take under ten minutes, make every knockout strictly job-related, and never use it to ask what you could not ask in an interview.

The questionnaire replaces the first five minutes of a call, not the call itself. The recruiter phone screen template picks up where this leaves off. For the legal limits on what you ask, see illegal interview questions and ban-the-box rules.

What a questionnaire should and should not do

The pre-screening questionnaire template

Copy this into your ATS application form, a form tool, or an email. Replace brackets; delete sections that do not apply. Mark knockout questions internally, not on the candidate's form.

[Company] — [Role] — Quick questions before we talk
This takes about 5–8 minutes. There are no trick questions. If you
need an accommodation to complete this form or any part of our
process, contact [name, email].

About the role
- Location / setup: [on-site at ___ / hybrid ___ days / remote in ___]
- Schedule: [days, hours, shifts, overtime, weekends]
- Pay range: $[ ]–$[ ] [per hour / per year]

1. [KNOCKOUT] Do you hold a current [license/certification] in
   [state], or will you by [date]?
   ( ) Yes, current — license number (optional): ____
   ( ) I will by [date]
   ( ) No

2. [KNOCKOUT] This role requires [schedule]. Are you able to work
   this schedule?
   ( ) Yes   ( ) No   ( ) I'd like to discuss

3. [KNOCKOUT] Are you legally authorized to work in [country]?
   ( ) Yes   ( ) No

4. Will you now or in the future require sponsorship for
   employment visa status?
   ( ) Yes   ( ) No

5. The role is based [location/setup]. Does that work for you?
   ( ) Yes   ( ) Yes, with relocation   ( ) No

6. The pay range is $[ ]–$[ ]. Is that in line with your
   expectations?
   ( ) Yes   ( ) Somewhat below   ( ) Well below
   Optional: your expected pay: ____

7. When could you start if offered the role?  ____

8. In 3–5 sentences: tell us about a time you [the core task of
   the job, e.g. "reconciled a payroll that didn't balance" /
   "handled a patient who refused care"]. What did you do?

9. [Optional, role-specific] Which of these have you used
   regularly in the last two years? [ ] [system] [ ] [system]
   [ ] [system] [ ] none of these

10. Is there anything you would like us to know before we speak?

Thank you. We'll reply by [date] either way.

Versions by role type

Hourly and high-volume roles

Mobile-first, multiple choice, under five minutes. Candidates often apply from a phone between shifts. Keep questions 1 to 7, drop the written answer or make it one sentence, and add practical checks that are genuinely required:

- This role requires lifting up to [__] lbs [frequency]. Are you able
  to perform this, with or without reasonable accommodation?
  ( ) Yes   ( ) No
- Do you have reliable transportation to [site] for a [__] start?
  ( ) Yes   ( ) No   ( ) I'd like to discuss
- This role requires [a valid driver's license / forklift
  certification / food handler card]. Do you have one?
  ( ) Yes   ( ) No, but I can get one by [date]   ( ) No

The "with or without reasonable accommodation" wording matters. The EEOC's guidance says employers may ask whether applicants can perform job functions, including whether they can do so with or without reasonable accommodation, before an offer (EEOC enforcement guidance). Asking whether someone has a disability or a medical condition is a different question, and generally not allowed before an offer.

Only ask about transportation where it is truly needed, such as an early start with no public transit. Where it is not, the question can screen people out for reasons unrelated to doing the job.

Professional roles

Candidates for professional roles, especially passive ones, abandon long forms. Use questions 3 to 8 and make question 8 specific to the hardest part of the job. One good written answer tells you more than ten checkboxes.

Agency recruiters

Add a consent question before you send details anywhere, and a question about other submissions, so the answers feed a right to represent:

- Have you applied to, or been put forward to, any of these companies
  in the last 12 months? [list, if you can name clients] ( ) Yes ( ) No
- We will not share your details with any employer without asking you
  first. ( ) I understand

Questions to leave out

Scoring and knockout rules

Decide the rules before the first application arrives, write them down, and apply them the same way to every candidate.

1. Hard knockouts only for true requirements. A license required by law, a shift the job cannot change, work authorization. If the hiring manager says "we'd consider someone without it", it is not a knockout.
2. "I'd like to discuss" goes to a person. Never auto-reject that answer; it often hides a workable arrangement or an accommodation request.
3. Written answers get a simple rubric. For question 8: 0 = no example; 1 = a general description; 2 = a specific situation with what they did; 3 = specific situation, action and result, with detail you could check.
4. Check the knockouts for uneven impact. Every few months, compare pass rates across groups where you have voluntary self-identification data. A requirement that screens out one group much more than others needs a clear job-related reason.
5. Know what your software does. If a tool scores or ranks answers, rules such as New York City's Local Law 144 on automated employment decision tools may apply; see NYC Local Law 144 and AI hiring laws by state.

A filled example: medical assistant, outpatient clinic

Invented clinic, invented pay, to show how specific the questions should be.

Sending, timing and follow-up

• Show the range and schedule before the questions. Candidates answer more honestly when they know what they are answering against.
• Say when they will hear back, and reply to everyone, including those who do not pass. The rejection email templates include an early-stage version.
• Call within a day or two of a pass. A candidate who completed your form is warm now, not next week.
• Use the answers on the call. Open with question 8: "You wrote about the day the clinic fell behind; what happened next?" It tells the candidate their answers were read.

On that first call, the questionnaire answers become the phone screen's opening. Interview Signal can turn the job description into a question guide and tick off what has been covered as you talk, without a bot joining the call.