High-Quality Responses to Open-Ended Questions

Introduction

As a student, you are often asked to provide responses to open-ended questions. This also happens in interviews or discussions. Responding to an open-ended question requires that you create an answer as opposed to choosing one from a list. A high-quality response to an open-ended question is a developed response. It includes the following two elements:

It is relevant to the question
It shows your thinking with a reasonable amount of depth

If someone asked you for a developed green plant, would you give them the plant on the left?

Two plants grow in pots side by side. The pots and plants are against a perfectly white backdrop and floor. The plant on the left is yellow but very small, with only one stem. The plant on the right is green, healthy, and large with many stems and leaves.

Relevant

High-quality responses are relevant to the question. Consider a course assignment about time management. In the assignment, you are asked this question: "Why is time management important to you as a student?" Note the two sample responses below.

Not Relevant. Fruit is good for you. For example, if you eat fruit with lots of fiber, it can help with digestion. Fruits can be a natural sweet food, which is much better for you than candy.
Relevant. If I manage my time, I can learn while also not becoming discouraged. When there is a lot of coursework to do, I can feel tired and overwhelmed. However, when I set aside time to study, I usually find that I have enough energy to complete work a little at a time. After a week of diligent studying, I am amazed at what I have accomplished!

When responses are not relevant, they don't fit or match the question. This weakens your message.

Closeup of a ball pit full of multicolored balls about 3" in diameter. One hand places a king chess piece into the pit with the thumb and index finger.

Shows Your Thinking

Showing your thinking follows one basic formula: make a point and support it. A point is a simple statement. It can be a fact, claim, opinion, reflection, or any kind of simple statement. Supporting a point means you add relevant detail such as one or more examples. Consider this job interview question: "Why do you want to work for our company?" Note the sample responses below.

Does Not Show Your Thinking. I am good at customer service.
Shows Your Thinking. I know that you value high-quality customer service, and I want to build a career on customer service. I have experience in customer service and feel I could make a significant contribution to your company’s efforts in this area. For example, in my last job, I became the top salesperson for the last 12 months, while my company's revenues grew by record levels.

Sometimes, questions ask you to make more than one point. In those cases, you make multiple points and support each one.

Conclusion

There are two sets of sample responses above. In each set, the second one is relevant and shows your thinking. You may be asked to write or speak responses to open-ended questions. Make them high-quality responses! This helps you communicate your thoughts in a way that others can understand your thinking. The more you do this, the more you learn and are noticed by others as someone who communicates well.