Nurse Extern Interview!!

U.S.A. Arizona

Published

So I have an interview in about three weeks with St Joe's for their Nurse Extern position. I was wondering if anyone could give me advice on questions or anything for that matter. I've never personally worked in a hospital and I don't want that to hinder me, because I know I can do great! My only problem is that I tend to get nervous in interviews and I don't always find the right words to express what I want...

ADVICE!!!

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Specializes in RETIRED Cath Lab/Cardiology/Radiology.

Try doing a site search (top right yellow bar area, below the tabs) for "interview questions" or "extern interview questions" and I'm sure you'll find a few helpful previous threads asking the same question.

Good luck! :)

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Specializes in RETIRED Cath Lab/Cardiology/Radiology.

I copied the first three hits after entering the words "extern interview questions:"

allnurses.com/forums/f50/nurse-extern-interview-283913.html

allnurses.com/forums/f50/can-we-make-sticky-interview-questions-88629.html

allnurses.com/forums/f50/advice-resume-apply-nurse-extern-program-47556.html

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I did not think that you can extern when you have not completed Block 1....has that changed?

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The externship doesn't start until January 5th I believe, they just require that you be done with block I by December 31st. I guess they start interviewing quite early, it was a total fluke that I found the job posting, but definitely a good one :-)

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I externed at St. Joes (loved it) and was asked the standard interview questions at my interview.

1) Tell me an example where you felt you made a difference in someones life.

2) What are your strengths/weaknesses

3) Why do you want to work in xyz?

etc. I can't remember the rest right now. What really helped me was getting my answers down pat. I even wrote out questions and wrote out answers to those questions and then memorized them. Always remember that if they ask you something negative about yourself, ex. what is your biggest weakness, then turn it into something positive ex. "In the beginning of nursing school I found organizing all my daily activities was a bit of an adjustment, so I"ve come up with a planner and I've been able to really benefit from scheduling myself so much so that I now have extra time". This is just off the cuff right now, but you get the point.

Relax during the interview. It's really not that stressful and they really DO want to hire you. You know there's a committment to St. Joes if you're hired as an extern? They'll train you as an extern, but they're expecting you to work there after NS, if not you have to pay to get out of your contract. The benefit though, is if you love working there then you're pretty much guaranteed a job there after you graduate. Also, if you extern in an area you end up not really liking, you can switch to another area after 6 months.

Good luck I'm sure you'll do great

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Specializes in Telemetry & PCU.

There are tons of books at the local library on job interviewing skills and will cover hundreds of the questions that are asked.

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I was not aware that there was a commitment afterwards, but I don't think that is going to deter me away from still trying. Externing there will help me get more experience with what I am doing in class and also like you said, if I like it there then I'm pretty much guaranteed a position when I graduate. I've heard such great things about St. Joes, so I have a good feeling about it!

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The externship doesn't start until January 5th I believe, they just require that you be done with block I by December 31st. I guess they start interviewing quite early, it was a total fluke that I found the job posting, but definitely a good one :-)

That's pretty cool!! Good luck with the interview!

If you've had it already, let us know how it went.

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