How to answer "tell me about yourself" in a Kenyan interview
Speak for about a minute in three parts. Role: what you do now. Results: one or two things you achieved that matter for this job. Reason: why you applied for this job. Skip the life story. The panel has your CV; they want to hear you choose what matters.
In Kenya the question often comes as "Introduce yourself", "Briefly tell the panel about yourself" or "Take us through your CV". They are all the same question, and they are usually the first thing the panel hears from you. A clear first minute makes the rest of the interview easier.
Key takeaways
- Answer in about a minute: Role, Results, Reason.
- Skip the life story: start with what you do now.
- "Introduce yourself" and "take us through your CV" are the same question.
- Your Results set you apart from candidates with the same papers.
- Always end on why you applied for this job.
The life-story habit
Many Kenyan candidates were taught to introduce themselves the way we do at school or at a family gathering: "My name is Wanjiru. I was born in Murang'a, I am the third born in a family of five. I went to primary school at..., then secondary school at..., where I scored... in KCSE." By the time they reach their current job, half the minute is gone and the panel has heard nothing about the role.
There is nothing wrong with your background. It just belongs later, if it belongs at all. Start where the job starts: with what you do now.
Your name is fine to say, especially on a phone or online interview where the panel may not have your CV open. One sentence, then straight to your role.
Role, Results, Reason
- Role. Your current job or course, where, and for how long. "I am a sales executive with an insurance company in Nairobi, and I have been there for three years."
- Results. One or two things you did that match the job advert. Pick them from the advert's main duties. "I grew my portfolio of SME clients from a standing start, and last year I was the top seller in my branch for medical cover."
- Reason. Why this job, now. "I want to move into a team lead role, and your position includes coaching new sales staff, which I already do informally."
The Results part is what makes your answer different from every other candidate with the same degree. Two people can both have a BCom and three years in sales. Only one of them grew the SME portfolio.
Six Kenyan sample answers
1. Graduate after attachment
Example (illustration): "I have just completed a Bachelor of Commerce, finance option, at Kenyatta University. During my three-month attachment at a county treasury, I helped prepare the monthly expenditure reports and found a set of payments coded to the wrong vote head, which my supervisor then corrected. I enjoy work where accuracy matters, which is why I applied for your graduate trainee programme in finance."
One concrete thing from the attachment beats listing every course unit.
2. TVET electrician moving to solar
Example (illustration): "I am an electrician with a diploma in electrical engineering from a national polytechnic, and I have worked for four years with a contractor in Kisumu, mostly on commercial wiring. Over the last year I have installed solar backup systems for two schools. I want to work full-time in solar, and your company is growing installations in western Kenya."
Shows the move is not a jump but a direction he is already taking.
3. Nurse moving from a county hospital
Example (illustration): "I am a registered nurse with five years at a county referral hospital, the last two on the maternity ward. I have trained new nurses on the ward and helped set up our checklist for high-risk deliveries. I am applying to your hospital because you are opening a new maternity wing, and I want to bring that experience to a bigger unit."
The Reason ties directly to something the employer is doing now.
4. Teacher moving into an edtech company
Example (illustration): "I have taught mathematics at a secondary school in Machakos for six years. I started using short online quizzes with my Form Three classes and saw homework completion go up across the year. Your customer success role is about helping schools use your platform, and I have been on the teacher's side of that problem."
Turns classroom experience into exactly what the company sells to.
5. Home from work in the Gulf
Example (illustration): "I am a front office supervisor in hospitality. I spent four years at a large hotel in Dubai, the last year supervising a team of six on night shift. I have come home to Kenya for good, and your resort in Diani is the kind of busy, international property where I have done my best work."
The time abroad is a strength. One sentence explains the move home.
6. From mobile money agent to bank sales
Example (illustration): "For five years I have run my own mobile money and airtime shop in Kitengela. I serve over a hundred customers on a busy day, and I built a list of regular business customers who trust me with their float. Your sales officer role is about bringing small businesses to the bank, and those are the people I already know."
Self-employment counts as experience. Say it with confidence.
Adjust it for the kind of interview
| Interview | What to change |
|---|---|
| Phone screening with HR | Shorter, about thirty seconds. Role and Reason, one Result. HR is checking that you fit the basics. |
| Panel interview | The full minute. Pick Results that match the duties in the advert, because each panel member scores a different part. |
| Graduate trainee or internship | Your course is your Role. Use the attachment or a project for Results, and give more time to the Reason: why this programme. |
| Final interview with a director | Lean on Results and the Reason. They have read the earlier notes; they want to know what you will add. |
On an online panel
On a video call the first minute matters even more, because the panel is still checking whether they can see and hear you. The Public Service Commission's instructions for online video interviews ask candidates to "start your video once admitted" and to position the camera so that you are "quite visible throughout the interview duration".
So test your camera and sound before you join. Then, when the chair says "Please introduce yourself", start with your Role straight away. If you are asked to repeat because the line dropped, give the same first sentence again calmly.
If you think in another language
Many people interview in English while thinking in Kiswahili or their mother tongue. Panels know this. What they listen for is a clear structure, not a perfect accent.
- Learn your first sentence by heart. Once you start well, the rest follows.
- Keep sentences short. "I run payroll for two hundred staff" is easier to say and to hear than a long sentence.
- Avoid Sheng and office slang in the interview, even if the panel is relaxed.
- Pause instead of filling. "Eeh" and "like" between every phrase make you sound unsure. A short pause sounds calm.
What makes it fall flat
- Starting with birth, family or school results, unless the job is your first and school is your Role.
- Reading your CV in order. They have it. Choose.
- Talking for three or four minutes. About one minute is enough.
- Personal details such as marital status, religion or tribe. Not needed and not what they asked.
- Empty words. "I am hard-working, honest and a team player" proves nothing. One result proves more.
- Forgetting the Reason. If you never say why you applied, the answer has no ending.
Your Reason is a short version of another question you will probably meet. Our guide to why should we hire you shows how to build the full answer, and your Results are the same stories you need for competency-based interview questions.
Practise until it sounds like you
Write your three parts as three bullet points, not a script. Say them out loud until you can do it without looking. Time yourself, then record it on your phone and listen once. Change any sentence that you stumble on.
In a video interview on your laptop, the ClapAssist AI interview assistant can show a short prompt from your CV when the question is asked, so your best Result is in front of you. It understands English and many other languages. Some employers do not allow AI help in interviews, so check the rules first: is ClapAssist safe?
Sources
Outside pages that back the advice above, opened and checked on the date shown.
- Instructions for Online Video Interviews, Public Service Commission of Kenya. Checked 29 Oct 2026.
Md Emteshal has 2 years of experience in SEO and writes guides for ClapAssist, but is not a recruiter or a career coach. The interview advice in these guides comes from the sources listed on each page, which are opened and checked before publishing.