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How to use screen recording questions

Screen recording questions let candidates record their screen while narrating their response. This is ideal for walkthroughs, portfolio presentations, technical demonstrations, and any task where you need to see how a candidate approaches something.

What screen recording questions are

Unlike live video calls, screen recording is asynchronous. Candidates record their screen at their own pace, and you review the recording later. You see exactly what they're doing on screen while hearing their explanation.

This works well for:

  • Walking through a portfolio or work sample

  • Demonstrating a technical skill or coding task

  • Presenting a slide deck or document

  • Showing how they would solve a problem or approach a task

  • Sharing a Google Drive file, Figma design, or other online resource

Screen recording is one of several media response types available when creating questions:

Screen recording question type in the question editor

Creating a screen recording question

  1. Go to your Jobs list and open the job you want to edit

  2. Click Edit and navigate to the Questions step

  3. Under Media Responses, click Add new

  4. Enter your question text—for example, "Record your screen while creating a Google Doc and explaining your process"

  5. Select Screen Recording from the Response type dropdown

  6. Set the Maximum duration for the recording

  7. Toggle Required if candidates must answer this question

  8. Click Save to save your changes

Best practices for screen recording questions

Be specific about what you want

A vague question like "Show me your work" produces vague responses. Instead, guide candidates with clear instructions:

  • "Walk us through your favorite project in your portfolio. Explain your role, the challenges you faced, and how you solved them."

  • "Share your screen and demonstrate how you would approach this coding problem. Talk through your thought process out loud."

  • "Open your resume in Google Drive and highlight the experience most relevant to this role. Explain why."

Set appropriate time limits

For walkthroughs and demonstrations, 5-10 minutes is usually sufficient. For complex tasks, consider up to 15-20 minutes. Keep in mind that longer recordings are harder to review quickly.

Use additional information for context

Click the Add context button on the question card to provide background, links, or instructions. You can include formatted text, code blocks, links, or even an instructional video.

For example, if you want candidates to review a design file, include the link in the question context.

Settings that affect screen recording

Retakes

You can allow candidates to record multiple attempts. Go to Additional settings and set the number of retakes under Question Retakes. Candidates will see a Retake button with remaining attempts shown.

For tasks where you want to see a polished response, allow retakes. For more spontaneous or authentic responses, consider disabling retakes.

Thinking time

If you enable thinking time, candidates see a countdown before recording starts automatically. Thinking time and retakes cannot be used together—if thinking time is on, retakes are disabled for that question.

Thinking time works well when you want candidates to prepare mentally before recording begins.

Learn more about how thinking time and retakes work.

Showing questions in advance

If you enable Show questions in advance in Additional settings, candidates can see all questions before they start recording. This gives them time to prepare, especially useful for screen recording tasks that require opening files or applications.

What candidates see

When candidates reach a screen recording question, they'll:

  1. See your question text and any context you added

  2. Click to start recording and choose which screen or window to share

  3. Record their screen while speaking into their microphone

  4. Preview the recording before submitting

  5. Retake if allowed, or move to the next question

Screen recording only works on desktop and laptop browsers. Candidates using phones or tablets cannot complete screen recording questions. Consider providing an alternative question type for mobile users or letting candidates know to use a computer.

What you see as the reviewer

You'll see the candidate's screen recording alongside their other responses. You can:

  • Pause and replay the recording

  • Add time-stamped comments and ratings

  • Share the recording with team members

  • Download the recording if needed

If AI transcripts is enabled for the job, the recording will also include a searchable transcript.

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