Two-Approach Job Assistant and Career Information Guide

You made it under the top candidates and should prepare yourself perfectly for the job interview in advance. An ideal starting point is our free Interview Assistant that you might work through before continuing with this more specific Guidance for Nursing Job Interviews. In the general Interview Assistant you find everything you need, inclusive general interview questions the interviewer might ask you and those YOU might want to ask.

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Interview Nursing Guide for a perfect preparation of your Nursing Job Interview

Before going to the interview, many nurses outline information that they want to obtain and questions that they want answered. Apart from the general interview questions, you should also practice answering typical nursing interview questions ahead of time:

• What do you consider a stressful clinical situation and how you manage it?

• How will you deal with difficult doctors, difficult patients and/or their families?
•  How do you define professionalism of a nurse and how did you demonstrate this in your activities. What behaviors and characteristics contribute to that image?
• Describe an encounter with an angry or frustrated patient and how you handled it.

• What is your experience with handling unexpected circumstances, such as having to perform a treatment you have not done before or being short staffed?
• Describe the most challenging patient experience you’ve had. Explain why.
• What are the motivating factors for your personal happiness and for satisfaction in the workplace?
• Give me an example of when you had to make a quick decision. What were the results?
• Tell me about an important goal you set for yourself and how you were successful in achieving it.
• Tell me about a time when your performance did not meet your expectations.
• Tell me about a time when you received difficult (or less than positive) feedback from your supervisor. How did you respond to the feedback? What changes did you implement as a result?
• What do you understand under pro-active and give me an example of a time when you behaved this way.
• Tell me about a situation in which you had to work with someone with whom you were uncomfortable. Describe the working relationship that developed and your influence on this relationship.
• Describe a situation or relationship which suffered from poor communication. What happened and how did you resolve it?
• What personal qualities do you feel are important to be successful in this position? Which of these qualities do you possess? Give an example of how these qualities have helped you in your present position.

• Describe a situation where you persuaded an individual or group to follow your course of action rather than their previously stated position.

• What was the hardest job you held, and what did you do to get through it?

• In order to prepare for behavioral interview questions, you should know your strengths, be ready to offer examples of past actions and results, listen carefully, fully understand the question before answering, ask for clarification if needed, make your answers as specific as possible, and be genuine.

Prepare a list of your own interview questions to ask your interviewer. In our Interview Assistant you’ll find a list of general questions you might consider to ask. Below are some examples of nursing interview questions you should ask a potential employer.

• What is my position within the organizational structure?

• What are my primary daily tasks? How is a typical day on the job (including shifts, etc.)?

• What is for you the ideal candidate for this job?

• What is the nurse-to-patient ratio?

• Is there support staff on the unit available to assist nurses?

• Who is my supervisor and is his/her supervisory style?

• What are the training opportunities? What professional development opportunities are available to nurses?

• How do you evaluate performance and how often?

• In what ways are nurses held accountable for high qualities of practice?

• As a nurse, how much input do I have regarding systems, equipment and the care environment?

• Which advancement potential do I have? (be careful with this question - you don’t want to sound like you consider this job only as a stepping stone).

A good strategy involves writing questions so that they are clearly stated and they are not forgotten in the tense atmosphere that often exist in an interview situation.

Time spent reflecting on personal views in advance will be valuable during the interview.

Be aware of illegal interview questions!

Various federal, state, and local laws regulate the questions prospective employers can ask. In general, an employer’s questions on the job application must be related to the job for which you are applying. If the interviewer asks you an illegal question, you have three options. First you can refuse to answer the question, second you are free to answer or third, you can examine the intent behind the question and respond with an answer as it might apply to the job. For instance, if your interviewer asks, “What are you going to do with your children when you have to travel?” You might answer, “I can meet the travel and work schedule that this job requires.”

The following are examples of illegal job interview questions:

·         How old are you? or what is your birth date?

·         What is your marital status?

·         With whom do you live? 

·         Do you plan to have a family? When?

·         What are your child care arrangements?

·         How many kids do you have?

·         Have you ever been arrested?

·         How much do you weigh?

·         Do you have any disabilities?

·         Tell me about your medical history

·         Have you had any recent or past illnesses or operations?

·         Are you a US citizen?

·         Where were your parents born?

·         What is your native tongue?

·         When did you graduate from college?

·         To what clubs or social organizations do you belong?

·         How is your family’s health?

·         If you have been in the military, were you honorably discharged?

Take to the Interview:

·         Notepad with questions

·         Professional license

·         List with your Security Number,  names with addresses and telephone numbers of references

·         Cardiopulmonary resuscitation card,

·         Hepatitis B vaccination and TB skin test results that are less than 12 months old

·         Copy of your resume

Resources

Hirsch, A. S. (1996). Interviewing. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Bozell, J. (1999). Anatomy of a job search: A nurse’s guide to finding and landing the job you want. Springhouse, PA: Springhouse Corporation.

Farley, J. I. (1998, September 20-26). Interviewing strategies that work. National Business Employment Weekly, p. 25, 28.

Vallano, A. (1999). Careers in nursing: Manage your future in the changing world of healthcare. New York, NY: Kaplan Books.

The Complete Guide to Successful Interview Nursing Students and Alumni, Mary M. Somers Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing Baltimore, Maryland.