Five Common Nursing Interview Questions, and How to Answer Them

Ready to don your best business attire (and pull on your lucky underwear, just to be safe)? It’s interview time! If you’re looking for a job in the nursing field, there are bound to be a few common questions you’ll be asked in your interviews over and over again — so make sure you have answers ready that will put you at the head of the interviewing pack. Take note of these five common nursing interview questions and answers so you can ace the ‘view without breaking a sweat:

“I see that you’re a recent nursing graduate — how are you prepared to take on the demands of this full-time role?”

Recent grads, you’ll have a tougher time convincing your interviewer that you’ve got the right stuff to take on the job, so reach into your deep well of experience to answer this question. Don’t just talk about the experience you gained from your nursing program; be sure to mention the clinic you worked at in college, your internship at the nursing home, and how you assisted with that mobile blood drive. Sure, you may be technically new, but when you tally up all of the positions you’ve held that are tangentially related to nursing and medical care, you’ll find that you might have close to a decade of experience already! Plus, highlighting experience from your years in college or even prior signals to the interviewer that this is demonstrably a life-long passion of yours, which is impressive.

“Why did you choose (specific area of nursing, like ER, ICU, FNP, etc)?”

This is where you let out your inner geek, since it’s a chance to show off your in-depth knowledge about a particular area of nursing. Be specific and give examples of why you’re particularly suited to the area you chose — if you’re working in the ER, for example, highlight how you thrive on the unpredictable nature of the role and how you enjoy not knowing what each new day in the ER will bring. If you can highlight why you chose your particular area over other specializations, that’s even better, since it shows how deeply you understand the field of nursing as a whole.

“Describe how you work under pressure.”

Nursing is a particularly high-pressure field, so interviewers are keen to weed out the weaklings. The key to answering this question, then, is to not only describe how you work under pressure but to give a specific example of when you had to do so. Did you manage to keep things under control at your old job by seamlessly switching to paper receipts and manually collecting patient data when your entire database unexpectedly shut down? Mention that! If you don’t share specific examples of high-pressure situations you’ve already encountered, then that’s a red flag to the interviewer that you might be too green for the job.

“Why do you want to work in the nursing field?”

Let’s be clear: “Because I care about people” is NOT a good answer, even if it’s true. There are lots of jobs out there that allow workers to care for others and make a true difference in people’s lives — so you need to get into the nitty gritty of why you chose nursing specifically. Maybe you come from a long line of nurses and yearned to carry on the tradition, or maybe you’re drawn to how nursing combines specialized medical knowledge with more face-to-face time with patients than doctors typically get. Whatever your reason, make sure it’s unique to you.

“Can you describe a time when you had to deal with a difficult family member?”

You’ve probably assumed you’ll get lots of questions about how you’ve worked with patients — but dealing with irate (and possibly grieving) family members is also par for the course, so don’t let this question take you by surprise. Here, you can highlight how you understand the underlying issues of why family members may become difficult; the stress, worry, and state of uncertainty they’re under leads them to become short and snappy. One of the main ways a nurse can help, then, is by being a good listener and allowing the family member to air their grievances — simply allowing them to vent will help them feel more in control. So describe how you would listen, empathize, and then reassure the family member that the patient is getting the best care possible.

Taking the time to practice your answers to common nursing interview questions can make the difference between being a blubbering mess in the interview room or projecting an aura of confidence. Just remember, always be honest with your answers!