Best practices and tips for doing the SAFAA

The School of Accounting and Finance Admissions Assessment, or the SAFAA, is a required admissions step for those who have applied to the Accounting and Financial Management (AFM) program and/or the Sustainability and Financial Management (SFM) program.

If you’re considering this program, here’s what you need to know about the SAFAA. First, it has two components: the video interview and the trait assessment. For the video interview, you have to record yourself answering three questions that will help assess your ability to communicate in a clear, concise, and professional way (don’t worry, you’ll know the questions in advance).

The assessment helps the School of Accounting and Finance, and admissions officers identify students who will be successful in AFM and SFM. We are looking for students who are not only academically strong but will also excel in the workplace.

Before attempting the actual submission, you can take unlimited practice attempts and review them in order to see how you’re coming across. When you review your practice sessions, in addition to critiquing your responses, pay attention to your body language and whether or not you’re maintaining eye contact.

The trait assessment, on the other hand, is a survey with 78 questions designed to assess your leadership, collaboration, adaptability, and problem-solving skills. Unfortunately, you can’t practice the trait assessment in advance, but don’t stress about it too much — it’s simply a way for the SAF to get to know you better. 

So, if you’re interested in applying to AFM or SFM, keep reading! I’ve pulled together some of my top tips for completing the SAFAA. 

Check your email

After you apply through OUAC and finish setting up your Waterloo Identity (WatIAm ID), you’ll receive an email explaining the next steps of the application process. This will be in the form of a to-do list. This email is your best friend. Read it over and over again. Not only does it list deadlines but it also talks about how the process works and everything you need to do for your application to be considered complete.

Mark your calendar

The questions for the SAFAA are available on the School of Accounting and Finance website and the platform where you submit your responses will be open as of early January. The deadline to complete and submit the SAFAA (part 1 and 2) for early offer consideration is January 10 - 14, 2025. If you miss the early offer deadline, you can complete the SAFAA between February 10 - 14, 2025 to be considered for rolling offers (March - May). Don’t worry, you’ll get these dates and SAFAA deadlines in an email.

Focus on being natural 

Try to not memorize your answers. The SAFAA isn’t just about the content of your answers but also about how you portray yourself and communicate your ideas. If you memorize what you’re going to say, it could sound awkward and forced. So, take the time to practise to ensure you feel confident and comfortable in your answers, and just be yourself! 

Practise smart

When you’re practising, try to find a quiet room with good lighting. Be sure to review your practice sessions after to look for things like eye contact, filler words (um, like, yeah), and body language. Don’t be afraid to try out different rooms, positions, or even outfits, and don’t worry about how many attempts it takes. I had to practise at least 15 times before I felt comfortable. 

Look before you click 

Make sure you click the “practice again” button after your practice sessions, not the “start interview” button. Trust me, you don’t want to do the actual interview thinking it was a practice round, because there’s no second attempt. This advice applies to the trait assessment too. Make sure you carefully read the options before clicking anything. This isn’t the time to be careless!

Avoid interruptions during the video component

When you’re doing the video component — even if you’re just practising — try to make sure you won’t have any interruptions. When I decided to do my official interview, I did it when my sisters weren’t home, and I let my parents know not to interrupt me for anything and not to make too much noise. It’s important to feel calm and focused during the interview.

Turn off your phone

Power off your phone if you’re not using it (or at least leave it in another room). There’s nothing worse than getting a call or a bunch of notifications while you’re trying to answer a question (remember, there’s no second attempt)!

And don’t overthink it! The traits assessment is pretty similar to a personality test and will have questions like these:

• Do your friends consider you to be a risk taker?
• Do you feel you have a strong work ethic?
• Do difficult conversations stress you out? 

When it comes to answering these questions, follow your intuition. Don’t overthink it and/or try to guess what the “right” answers are. For most of the questions there are no “right” answers; SAF just wants to learn more about you!

Keep track of the time

When you’re doing the video interview, there will be a timer available on the screen. You should have plenty of time, but still keep an eye on the timer to make sure that you don’t get cut off. Both components of the assessment only take about 10 minutes each, but the platform will give you a lot more time than that, just to be safe. 

My personal experience with the SAFAA was pretty successful, but if I could go back and change anything, I would definitely practise even more. I struggled with maintaining eye contact and I felt self-conscious in front of the camera. Knowing everything I know now, I could have solved these issues with more practice. 

At the end of the day, we want to find students who will be successful in AFM and SFM. If you practise for the SAFAA, remove any distractions, and focus on being yourself, you’ll do your best.