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Laboratory Technician interview questions (2026)
Researched, current questions asked in real laboratory technician interviews (Science & Pharma), with what a strong answer actually does. Questions marked 2026 are the newer, AI-era questions employers now ask.
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What they assess
- Practical lab skills
- Accuracy & attention to detail
- Health & safety
- Organisation & throughput
- Supporting the lab team
The questions to expect
Which techniques and equipment can you run confidently — and how do you check a piece of kit is fit for use before you start?
List honestly (pipetting, pH, balances, centrifuges, spectrophotometry…), then the checks: calibration status, cleanliness, logbook. Never oversell — they may test you.
Talk us through preparing a solution or dilution accurately — say, a 1-in-100 dilution of a stock.
Calculation out loud, right glassware and pipette, labelling with contents/date/initials, and recording it. Some interviews include a quick maths check — practise.
An instrument fails midway through a batch of samples. What do you do?
Secure the samples first, log the fault, tell the lab manager, quarantine affected results and don't improvise repairs. Sample integrity is the priority.
Tell us about a time your attention to detail caught an error before it caused a problem.
A mislabelled tube, a transposed figure, an odd control value — small catch, real consequence avoided. This story is the core of the job; have it ready.
How do you manage sample tracking, stock control and record-keeping — have you used a LIMS?
Name any system you've used, or describe your manual discipline: barcode/logbook habits, stock rotation, reorder points. Traceability is the word to use.
What does COSHH mean for your daily work, and how do you handle a chemical spill?
Assessments before use, PPE, datasheets, spill kit procedure and reporting. Show safety as habit — where you'd look, who you'd tell.
Several scientists need your support at once and everything is 'urgent'. How do you prioritise?
Ask about real deadlines, sequence by impact, communicate what you can and can't do by when. Service with a spine — labs run on technicians who manage this.
Why laboratory work — and where would you like your technical career to go?
The hands-on appeal plus a growth line: registered scientist route, specialist techniques, an HNC/degree part-time. Employers invest in technicians with direction.
Labs are adding automation — liquid handlers, robotic sample prep. How do you feel about working alongside it?2026
Automation shifts your value to setup, QC and exceptions — say you want to run and maintain the robots, not compete with them.
What does good documentation look like in a lab or trial — and why does it matter so much?
ALCOA in your own words: attributable, legible, contemporaneous, original, accurate. Then the habit — recording in real time, never backfilling.
Tell us about a time your results didn't match what you expected. What did you do?
The scientific reflex: check the method and instrument before doubting the sample, repeat with controls, report honestly. Unexpected results aren't failures.
What do you do if an SOP seems wrong, outdated or impossible to follow as written?
Never silently deviate: flag it through the change/deviation process, follow the current version meanwhile unless it's unsafe. Compliance plus initiative.
Preparation notes
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Turn this into a plan
A list of questions is a start; a programme is what changes the outcome. Intervooh builds a day-by-day plan for your exact laboratory technician interview — company research, story building with an AI coach, spoken practice with delivery feedback, and scored mock interviews.