Re: Help! Six Panel ICU interview for new grad!!
had a similar interview process for the ICU job I just got at a hospital in a nearby large city just a bit east of you.
This particular hospital has a new grad residency (the only kind like it in the city) and the interview process was very rigorous. They take less than 20 new grads every semester for the whole hospital, and only a few in each area. Having said that, I would make every effort POSSIBLE to look your best, act your best, and put your best foot forward. Be assertive, but not over-bearing. Be honest, but also have an idea of what they are looking for. I interviewed with the recruiter, a 3-person panel over the program, and 4 or 5 people from the ICU floor (nurses and staff - I can't remember exactly how many. I blocked it out!).
My suggestions:
1)
LOOK PROFESSIONAL. Buy a suit. Put it on a credit care. I'm not kidding about this! Do whatever you have too, but look professional. Don't look like a cheap, broke college student! Don't wear open toe shoes, don't wear the black pants/blouse combo. Wear the suit with nice shoes, and a portfolio for your papers if you can.
2)
BE PREPARED. Take multiple copies of your resume, cover letter, transcript, letters of recommendation, and anything else that is pertinent to the interview. Ask ahead of time of you will need copies for each member of the interview commite, or if they will make packets for you. Make sure everything is up to date and there are no typos.
3)
Don't be nervous, but don't be overconfident. They realize you are a new grad! They realize you are a new grad applying to the ICU! Be assertive about your strengths, especially the type of ICU experience you had in clinicals and your part time job (if you had one). However, don't sound cavelier. And be preapred to tell them your weaknesses - no one is perfect. They are looking for someone who is excited about the ICU and wants to learn, but can be taught. They do not expect you to know everything. Most of the interview questions will be about how you handle social situations, conflict, your future in nursing, and why you want the job.
4)
Keep your audience in mind. They will likely ask questions like, "Have you thought about graduate school" or "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?" Don't say something like, "Well, I want to go to CRNA school and I know you need ICU experience," or "I am getting married in 3 months and we don't know where life will take us...." They look at that as a liability. These residency programs are very expensive, and they want to get their money's worth. Some programs even have 1-2 year contracts that require you to pay back a money if you quit before the contract expires. So be sure that this is something you will be willing to commit to for at least a few years. You want your goals and the hospital's goals to be similar.
5)
PREPARE and PRACTICE. I can't stress this enough. Do a web search on "interview questions" and "preparing for nursing new grad interviews". I think the Mayo Clinic website has some good info on preparing for an interview. Go through the questions you find and practice your answers. Practice outloud. Practice not sayins "Ummm...". This sounds dumb, but I did this and they literally asked me at least half of the questions I had looked over. I felt more confident because I didn't have to sit there are be stared at while I thought about the answers. Don't rehearse the answers, but just have an idea of what you would say. Oh, and if you don't know, just say "I don't know" or "I haven't had that experience yet, but if I did I would......".
http://www.mayoclinic.org/jobs/preparing.html http://nursejobs.com/nursing-interview-questions.aspx
6)
Remember why you are doing this! Remember why you went to school and that ICU is your dream job. Keep your goal in focus, and direct your actions towards reaching that goal.
Best of luck to you!!!!
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