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Nursing Interview Tips and Interview Questions

After you have the basic qualifications covered, eventually you’ll have to face an interview. It’s essential that you prepare for this interview in advance. If you have the answers prepared and practiced beforehand, your mind will be at ease to handle the tough questions that you may come across.

When it comes to tough interview questions, the interviewer is not looking for a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer. What they’re looking for is how comfortable will you be in handling a new situation, where an answer is not known yet.

A little practice in the following questions could help you a lot to get the position.

Basic Questions 

  1. So, tell me a little bit about yourself.
    This is the most common interview question, and surprisingly most people don’t answer it right. The real question behind this is, ‘Let’s have a chat. Give me a 1-2min summary of your education, qualifications and how you suit to this role’. They’re not asking about your hobbies, high-school or things you do on a weekend.
  2. Why did you choose nursing?
  3. Did you do some other part-time work during studies?
  4. What are your strengths?
  5. What are your weaknesses?
  6. How much do you know about us and this position?
  7. Why do you want to work here?
  8. How would your friends describe you?
  9. How would your past-employer/lecturer describe you?
  10. What are the questions you have for us?

 

Behavioural Questions

  1. Give me an example of a situation where you had a conflict with someone (professional or personal) and how you handled it.
  2. Give me an example of a high-pressure situation you had to work in, and how you handled it.
  3. What was the most difficult patient/hospital situation you’ve had?
  4. Give me some examples of team projects you’ve done, and the outcome.

 

Situational Questions 

Beyond these, you’re likely to be asked some situational questions, where they would give you a scenario, and ask how you would handle it. So the answer for this should be based on how you would approach the situation with safety as a priority and care and compassion.