Nurse Interview Questions Let You Test the Waters Before Jumping In

Here’s what YOU can ask them, and what they’ll ask you!

More an opportunity than an obstacle, an interview between you and the prospective employer give you the chance to find out as much as possible about a future travel nursing job.

While it’s true, the interviewer poses most of the job interview questions, you, the applicant have the same opportunity to gain a sense of what it will be like to work there before you’re actually committed—so definitely make the most of it!

Nursing job interview questions for RNs looking for job info Q&A could go a little like this:

• Are you capable of wise and fast decision making and can you provide an example of this?--This is the perfect opportunity to describe an incident in which you handled a difficult patient and/or resolved professional differences with a colleague, and in the end improved patient outcomes.

• What changes have you contributed to established practices to improve patient care?--This is a brilliant segue into detailing specific challenges and frustrations that affect all RNs. You can prove your resourcefulness in dealing with and resolving these issues.

• What was a typical day in your previous travel nursing job like?--When you take your interviewer on a verbal tour of your last job, it gives him or her an idea of how you adapted quickly to new situations. Demonstrate your flexibility and your willingness to be part of a medical team.

• Where did you get your training and what qualifications and certifications do you have?--We encourage you to have documentation on hand of your nursing credentials; this question presents the ideal time to present them to the interviewer; it’s also a wonderful opportunity to explain what drew you to the area of practice you’re interviewing for today.
• Why are you the right person for this nursing job?--If you can, reference similarities between this position and previous assignments. Talk about what you learned in earlier jobs and how those skills and acquired knowledge will see you through the next one.

Here's some questions to ask your potential employer:

• What is your orientation like for travelers? Will it be a general or specific to my unit?
• Can you tell me about the unit where I'll be working?
• What systems do you use for charting and documentation?
• Are you employing other travelers? How do they like it in your facility and in the unit where I'll be based?
• Do you have other travelers on the floor? How many?
• Does your organization have a specific nursing management or patient care philosophy?
• What do you feel is the most important skill for a traveler in your facility?
• How would you describe the surrounding neighborhoods and communities? What is there to do?

We hope you use this information as a reference before your next assignment. Your phone interview provides the opportunity to weigh the pros and cons of the travel nursing job in question, and decide if the two of you are a match!"