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What questions come up in BCBA interviews, and how should I answer?

Common clinical, ethics and supervision questions, how to structure strong answers, and what to ask the employer.

By The Autism Kit teamUpdated Sep 27, 2026 · 2 min read
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The short answer

BCBA interviews usually cover clinical reasoning (for example, how you'd assess and treat a behavior), ethics scenarios, supervision and staff training, caregiver collaboration, and data-based decision making. Strong answers walk through your process: what you'd assess, what the data would tell you, what you'd try, and how you'd involve the client and family.

Key takeaways
  • Expect clinical scenarios, ethics, supervision and caregiver questions.
  • Answer with your process: assess, look at data, choose an approach, involve the family.
  • Use de-identified examples from your work.
  • Ask your own questions about caseload and support.

What clinical questions are common?

  • "A client's aggression has increased. What do you do?" Walk through functional assessment, safety, data review and a function-based plan. See What is a functional behavior assessment?
  • "Progress has stalled on a goal. What next?" Talk about checking procedural integrity, reviewing data, and adjusting prompts, reinforcement or the goal itself.
  • "How do you choose goals?" Mention caregiver priorities, assessment results and socially meaningful outcomes.

What ethics questions come up?

Interviewers often ask about the BACB Ethics Code's core principles: benefit others; treat others with compassion, dignity and respect; behave with integrity; and ensure your competence.1

  • "A parent asks you to add hours the data doesn't support." Explain how you'd recommend based on need and document your reasoning.
  • "You're asked to take a case outside your competence." Describe seeking supervision, training or referral.

What supervision questions come up?

  • "How do you train a new RBT?" Describe behavioral skills training: instructions, modeling, rehearsal and feedback, until they meet a criterion.3
  • "How do you give tough feedback?" Share a specific, kind, behavior-focused approach.

What should I ask the employer?

Try
  • What's the caseload, and how is it adjusted?
  • What are billable expectations?
  • How do you support assent-based practice?
  • What tools do you use for data and caregiver training?
Skip
  • Leaving without knowing the schedule
  • Assuming CEU funding is included

What can I do before the interview?

0 of 3 done

Read next: How do I find a good BCBA job?

Common questions

Some employers ask you to review a case, write a goal or interpret a graph. Practice explaining a graph out loud.

Sources

  1. Behavior Analyst Certification Board: Ethics codes. bacb.com
  2. Behavior Analyst Certification Board: BCBA Test Content Outline (6th ed.). bacb.com
  3. Parsons MB, Rollyson JH, Reid DH. Evidence-based staff training: a guide for practitioners. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2012. doi.org

This guide shares general information and our team's perspective, based on the sources above. It isn't legal, billing or certification advice: always check the BACB's current requirements, your state's rules and your organization's policies. How we write our guides.

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