10 Most Common Nursing Interview Questions to Prepare for

As a result of the recent pandemic, there has been a significant surge in demand for skilled nurses across the country. In order to land the perfect nursing job you have your sights on, you need to showcase your relevant strengths, skills, and qualifications during the job interview to impress hiring managers and get hired.

Nursing job interviews are very different in scope than job interviews in most other professions. Because a nursing career revolves around healthcare, stressful situations involving quality care of patients are part of everyday life for nurses.

Job interview questions for nurse practitioners are multifaceted. They show potential employers the level of experience, soft skills, and hard skills a nurse possesses to be a valuable part of a team. At the same time, they provide valuable insight into a nurse’s demeanor to see if it fits with the hospital’s standard of patient care they provide. As such, nursing job interviews can feel intimidating for even the most experienced nurses.

But the nursing job interview doesn’t have to be a nerve-racking experience if you properly prepare. In this article, we’ll go over how nurses can effectively prepare for their job interview so that they can go into it with confidence. We’ll then look at the most frequently asked job interview questions nurses should prepare to be asked. Lastly, we’ll list some great questions nurses should ask the interviewer during their job interview to learn more about the position while impressing hiring managers at the same time.

Coming prepared for your nursing interview shows potential employers that you’ve done your research and are a serious candidate. Make the most of your nursing interview by following these tips:

• Know your nursing resume inside and out. Hiring managers will want you to walk them through your career path; therefore knowing your resume like the back of your hand is crucial.
• Make sure to dress appropriately. Even though nurses typically spend most of their time in nurse uniforms, that doesn’t mean you can show up to the interview in whatever attire you feel like wearing. Make sure to show up to the interview wearing conservative business attire.
• Practice maintaining a consistently warm and positive demeanor. Nursing is all about maintaining good relationships. Aside from constantly communicating with patients and their family members, nurses frequently communicate with doctors and other members of the medical staff. Therefore, maintaining a kind and empathetic attitude is crucial for nurses. Practice artfully displaying basic manners during your interview to showcase your excellent interpersonal skills with potential employers.
• Practice keeping your emotions in check. This is some great career advice not only for nurses but also for all professionals. Every profession has its fair share of difficult situations or difficult coworkers. Therefore, learning to manage your emotions in similar situations is a valuable skill set. This is especially true for nurses, given their stressful and often frantic working environment.

During a nursing interview, you will be asked questions that provide the perfect opportunity to showcase your nursing skills and knowledge regarding patient care, staffing relationships, time management, and problem-solving in a fast-moving healthcare environment.

Therefore, it’s crucial to prepare answers that demonstrate your qualifications and experience in maintaining the best possible quality of care for patients.

Here are common questions you may encounter during a nursing job interview tips:

1. How well do you work with other nurses, doctors, and other staff in a healthcare team?
2. How do you deal with difficult patients?
3. How do you handle workplace stress?
4. What do you usually do when your replacement does not arrive?
5. How do you approach disagreements with doctors?
6. How do you handle a busy workload?
7. How do you handle intense situations such as an outbreak?
8. What’s your approach to managing patients with pain management problems?
9. When asked for a personal diagnosis outside the workplace, what’s your typical response and approach?
10. What are your career goals for the next few years?

Regardless of the questions and answers you prepare for, there are a few things you should always do when answering them:

• You should always remain professional and enthusiastic.
• Prepare answers that best showcase your greatest strengths and competencies as a nurse and team player.
• Always make sure to incorporate into your answers specific examples of times where you utilized your nursing skills and experience to resolve a conflict or achieve the desired outcome.
• When possible, ask follow-up questions and have a list of your questions to ask about the employer and work environment – this showcases your communication skills and proves that you’ve “done your homework.”

A nursing job interview isn’t all about nailing interview questions with excellent answers. Nurses also need to come prepared with meaningful questions to ask the interviewer. Asking the right questions also allows you to learn more about the position, hospital procedures, and available resources.

Below are some questions nurses can ask during their interviews to impress hiring managers:

• Is there a mentorship program in place?
• What qualities do most successful nurses possess?
• What are some typical first-year assignments?
• What is the nurse-to-patient ratio?
• How much autonomy are nurses given in regards to patient care?