Interview??!!

smiling_ru · Jan 9, 2003

I thought this had been posted before, but could not find it in a search.

There will be several people in the room interviewing you. The director, the clinical director, the head crna for one of the groups, the MDA who is affilitated with the program, the director of the nursing program, and possibly a crna from another group. The only one who will smile at you in the interview is the nursing program director.

Each person will take turns asking you a question, once you respond you will get no indication as to the accuracy of your answer, you will get the next question from the next person.

The questions are largely clinical

Know your pressors/dilators/inotropes, when to use what and why.

They tend to focus in your area, so if you come from a neuro background you will get more neuro questions etc.

Know basic ventilator management, what various settings mean

Expect an ethical question

Usual questions regarding why you are doing this, what you expect, and how you plan to handle the stress etc.

Although, not very personable in the interview, it may help you to know that to a person everyone in that room is normally friendly and they all care about the students that eventually start, and do everything they can to facilitate your learning once you start.

I wish you the best of luck! It is a really good program, getting better every year. Good clinical rotations with no limits on what you can do. one of the students that just started clinicals this month said he spent his first day doing a AAA, Craniotomy and an AV shunt.

megmermaid · Jan 10, 2003

I interview at Newman in Feb!

---trust me, I'm nervous too...

sandman · Jan 10, 2003

Thanks for the advice Smiling!! Also, good luck with your interview Megmermaid:D

CougRN · Jul 1, 2003

I was hoping that some of you that have interviewed recently with any school could share some of the questions you were asked. I'm preparing for an interview and was hoping for some actual questions you have to share that you were asked.

Thanks

Passin' Gas · Jul 1, 2003

Go to search, type in interview questions, specifiy the CRNA forum, limit search to six months. Several threads were started and this question was answered multiple times. Some threads to look at are "interview for school in three weeks", "questions" and "CRNA school".

You will find the schools are different in their interview process and questions asked. Your best bet is to go in with a positive attitude and answer clinically based questions to the best of your knowledge.

PG

CougRN · Jul 2, 2003

I realize this has been discussed but is there a reason we can't revisit it again? There has been a new group of people interviewing lately so lets share the knowledge. Is there something wrong with that? I don't see why we have to be so vague and not share actual questions with each other.

Thanks

gaspassah · Jul 2, 2003

in interviewed in feb. contrary to many friends (8) in the last couple of years to get into gas school, i had no clinical questions. i had to do a clinical for my bsn that was 120 hours and i did it following a CRNA at the hospital where i work, the only questions other than about me or personal life or "why i wanted to be a CRNA" focused on what i learned in that clinical. 15 minutes start to end. actually not nearly as bad as i had built myself up for. to make a suggestion tho, i prepped heavy on resp, blood gasses, and drugs, ie dopamine, levo, phenelepharine etc and what receptors that affected. beta adrenergic etc. but once again, not one question on that stuff.

seewhiterabbit · Aug 1, 2003

So WHY do some of you want to be a CRNA? I really don't know much about it all and from my research so far, I cannot come up with any good reasons except that it all seems so challenging and it seems to pay well.

Please Respond.

Originally posted by gaspassah
in interviewed in feb. contrary to many friends (8) in the last couple of years to get into gas school, i had no clinical questions. i had to do a clinical for my bsn that was 120 hours and i did it following a CRNA at the hospital where i work, the only questions other than about me or personal life or "why i wanted to be a CRNA" focused on what i learned in that clinical. 15 minutes start to end. actually not nearly as bad as i had built myself up for. to make a suggestion tho, i prepped heavy on resp, blood gasses, and drugs, ie dopamine, levo, phenelepharine etc and what receptors that affected. beta adrenergic etc. but once again, not one question on that stuff.

Rhon1991 · Aug 2, 2003

2 questions that come to mind from the old threads were:

how do you handle stress? (i think they meant in general, not necessarily at work)

as a srna, if you were told to do something a certain way (1 of 3 ways) but your own logic and textbooks tell you to choose another way, what do you do? i think that was phrased differently but that was basically the question.

if i think of any more i will post them. you will do FINE. good luck!!

renerian, BSN, RN · Aug 2, 2003

Good luck and let us know how it comes out! renerian

Athlein · Aug 2, 2003

Do whatever you have to do to allay the nervousness and anxiety you feel on interview day. Run ten miles, listen to relaxing music, whatever. Projecting a calm, confident demeanor will do much more for you than a dissertation on the cardiovascular system.

Practice solid, coherent answers to the basic questions - why you want to be a CRNA, what resources (family/finances/etc) you have to get through the program, what direct experiences have you had with the nurse anesthesia profession. Know these answers cold so that you do not spend minutes with vague, wandering replies and "um" and "uh"s.

Avoid "desperate student" syndrome. You know...that deer-in-the-headlights look that screams, "this is the only program I have applied to, and if I don't get in, I am screwed!". Formulate pertinent questions, which illustrate that you are knowledgeable about the strengths and drawbacks of their program. Do not sit there silently when they ask you if you have any questions for them! Be prepared to show them that you have done your research, and that they should want you as much as you want to get in.

Understand that you may be asked to explain any weaknesses in your application. Take the time to formulate honest, straightforward answers so that you are not put on the defensive or caught making frivolous excuses. If you made a D in intro biology, but you were taking 18 credits, and it was your freshman year, then say so. If you made a D because you partied and drank too much beer, then say that you entered college without the study skills to excel in the more rigorous classes, but that you redoubled your efforts and subsequently maintained a 3.8 GPA.

Resist the urge to suck-up or gush. No one likes a sycophant.

When it is all said and done, thank them earnestly for their time and for considering you as a future student. Salesmen and politicians know that your tag line is the last thing people remember about you. Make a professional exit.

Best of luck!