Questions asked in nursing job interviews
How would you describe your skills as a team player?
How will you deal with difficult doctors?
How will you deal with difficult patients and/or their families?
How will you handle unexpected circumstances, such as being short staffed and having to perform a treatment you have not done before?
Tell me about yourself and how you came to enter the nursing profession?
What are your key strengths? What do you do best?
Is the expanding role of nurses a benefit or a danger to the medical profession?
What are your key areas for development? What are you not so good at?
What is your experience in nursing?
If you see a patient verbally abuse another nurse. What is your response?
What kind of feedback would I obtain from your patients if I asked them?
For this nursing position we are looking for a candidate who is able to take personal responsibility for their own objectives, setting priorities and scheduling work. Please tell me how you would do this?
Describe how you would manage a relative in crisis following a sudden death?
If one of your colleague seems to be suffering from stress. What do you do?
If one of your Nursing staff repeatedly calls in sick even though you suspect they are not telling the truth. As Nurse Team Manager how would you respond to this person and what would you do to resolve the situation?
Would you have any concerns if we did a background check on you? What would we find if we did a background check?
Where do you see yourself in three years time?
What is your career aim and how will you achieve this?
When did you qualify and how do you keep up to date with changes in the Nursing guidelines and other healthcare approaches?
What experiences outside nursing have you found useful in your medical career?
How would you rate your communication skills? What is the difference between a manager and a leader?
Tell us about your experience of managing a team of people.
Have you ever been in a situation where you have had a conflict with a colleague?
Give an example of a situation where your work was criticized.
What are the major training and development needs of the people in your department? How did you identify them? What are you doing about them?
What methods do you use to encourage open communication with staff and management?
What qualities do you admire most in people?
What kind of managers does you like the most?? Why?
Describe your management philosophy and management style.
Some managers supervise their employees closely, while others use a loose rein. How do you manage?
What recent changes have you noticed within the health service and what is your opinion of these changes?
How do you keep yourself professionally updated in Nursing Career?
What would you like to do to continue your professional development?
What new practices do you know of are taking place in the hospital?
Imagine that one of the senior nurses is doing something that you do not agree with. How would you deal with this situation?
What are the attributes of a good nurse? Which of these attributes do you have?
What nursing organizations or trade bodies do you belong to?
What journals/trade magazines do you read?
What are your key areas for development? What are you not so good at?
Why did you choose nursing as a Career?
How you respond to interview questions is important. Giving a detailed response is much better than providing short, brief or vague answers. Imagining the interview panel knows nothing about nursing or midwifery may help you to answer the questions fully and describe your actions thoroughly. Speak clearly and remember to use examples wherever possible to help illustrate the point you are making. The interview panel may ask you to elaborate on your answer by providing more information or details so be prepared for elaborate answers.
Below are some examples of nursing interview questions you can ask a potential employer.
What is the nurse-to-patient ratio?
Is there support staff on the unit to assist nurses?
In what ways are nurses held accountable for high qualities of practice?
What professional development opportunities are available to nurses?
How much input do nurses have regarding systems, equipment and the care environment?