Can anyone tell me what happens at an exit interview?

[saadia]

I will be having one next week before i leave and can sort of guess the general questions but does anyone know what is the purpose of these interviews and if there is anything I should ask, I just don't want to miss something. Thank you

I think the purpose of them is for the company to find out if there is anything they could have done to keep you there in order to improve their processes for future employees. In my last one I had to fill in a questionnaire about how I found communication with my manager, working conditions, enjoyment of job etc and then just had a relatively informal chat with the HR woman. It's also for them to confirm that they've received all of their property from you so if it's on your last day you need to be prepared to give back your work mobile, work laptop etc if applicable.

In terms of prep I would just make a note of any feedback you want to pass onto the company. Try not to burn your bridges though as you never know when you may need them in the future so be polite and factual if at all possible.

Either discussing why you are leaving or why they fired you!

Thank you malteser17 and puddymuddles, will keep it polite and neutral and perhaps not mention that they REALLY need to shuffle the support staff around the school.

Yes as others have said, it is a chance to air things you have found positive/negative etc. Be honest as they can be useful for the school. At ours I was on a bank of staff who were offered to the leaver to choose from to be their "interviewer" so they could pick someone they were comfortable with and ideally not in direct, regular contact with so kind of impartial if you like. Hopefully it is the same for you. Pretty informal chat really but we do have a proforma of questions to guide it.