Tired of searching for CRNA Interview Questions??

Nursing Students SRNA

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I know there are so many aspiring CRNA's who are dreading the interview day. Let's make this thread the most resourceful for interviewing questions.

So share interviewing questions that you had or maybe questions that your friends have had....

Let's keep it going......

Some of my colleagues had questions listed below:

Why do you want to be a CRNA?

Identifying Myocardial infarctions on a 12 lead EKG

What are appropriate interventions for cardiogenic shock?

Discuss a mistake you made and how you resolved it...

What increases ICP? What is the normal ICP?

Ok lets keep it going!!! SHARE YOUR QUESTIONS AND ADVICE!!!!!

Lets make this thread a one stop shop....

Keep checking back.......

I will frequently post questions as I find out......

Thank You

Specializes in CVICU.
nesha2199 said:
I have just been invited to interview for an anesthesia program in Middle Tennessee- does anyone out there have any experience with MTSA's interview process?

Hardest interview I've ever had. You get to pick the specialty your most comfortable (CVICU, MSICU...etc) then you draw a pt scenario and they hammer you with questions about drug MOAs. I ended up having to explain drugs down to the effects on calcium in the sarcoplasmic reticulum inside the cell. Know your meds!!! Know your receptor sites, know all your dosages of your meds I.e. How different dosages of Dopamine act on different receptor sites... In my pt scenario (CV) I had a 54yom with a good index and high SVR and I had to "fix him" (switched his Neo gtt to Levo) my interview went well until the little b*tch senior SRNA tried to make herself look cool by hammering me with question after question about drug MOAs till I got one wrong. The MDAs were really nice though. It's actually a 2 part interview. The first part with the president of the school is very laid back and personal.

1 Votes
Specializes in Surgical ICU.
mmlpn said:
Hardest interview I've ever had. You get to pick the specialty your most comfortable (CVICU, MSICU...etc) then you draw a pt scenario and they hammer you with questions about drug MOAs. I ended up having to explain drugs down to the effects on calcium in the sarcoplasmic reticulum inside the cell. Know your meds!!! Know your receptor sites, know all your dosages of your meds I.e. How different dosages of Dopamine act on different receptor sites... In my pt scenario (CV) I had a 54yom with a good index and high SVR and I had to "fix him" (switched his Neo gtt to Levo) my interview went well until the little b*tch senior SRNA tried to make herself look cool by hammering me with question after question about drug MOAs till I got one wrong. The MDAs were really nice though. It's actually a 2 part interview. The first part with the president of the school is very laid back and personal.

Thanks for the insight. I have heard that it was pretty brutal and I am BEYOND nervous about it!! Did you end up getting in??

1 Votes
Specializes in CVICU.

No I ended up taking a spot at TWU. My buddy from work ended up accepting his spot and he loves it. I did take a tour of the "school" and they have some pretty top of the line sim labs. I didn't like that the seniors and juniors share one large classroom. The entire school is one classroom (seats 150 students), faculty offices, 1 library, and a student lounge. To cram 130-140 students in that small space seems ridiculous, but they manage it. A good aspect of MTSA is you begin your clinicals 16 weeks into the program. My buddy said the first 16 weeks is incredibly difficult as it is test after test after test, trying to weed out students. He said once the actual anesthesia part started it got much "easier". Good luck and study up! Review some of your CCRN stuff as well.

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Specializes in Surgical ICU.
mmlpn said:
No I ended up taking a spot at TWU. My buddy from work ended up accepting his spot and he loves it. I did take a tour of the "school" and they have some pretty top of the line sim labs. I didn't like that the seniors and juniors share one large classroom. The entire school is one classroom (seats 150 students), faculty offices, 1 library, and a student lounge. To cram 130-140 students in that small space seems ridiculous, but they manage it. A good aspect of MTSA is you begin your clinicals 16 weeks into the program. My buddy said the first 16 weeks is incredibly difficult as it is test after test after test, trying to weed out students. He said once the actual anesthesia part started it got much "easier". Good luck and study up! Review some of your CCRN stuff as well.

Thanks! I feel pretty confident in my knowledge base after 3 years in a pretty acute ICU, but I am hoping that I don't freeze up or say something stupid!

1 Votes
Specializes in CVICU.

I had 4 years of CVICU experience and the one student made me feel like a chump. Askin stuff no ICU nurse would need to know for their profession. But good luck man. I've got 3 friends from work interviewing for MTSA in Jan as well. Keep us informed!!

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Specializes in ICU-CCRN, MSN, CNM, APRN.

I'm flying in to Nashville and interviewing on January 12th...I am a nervous wreck. I have always been an icu float so I haven't had the luxury of being in one place. I think that definitely is going to hurt me. I don't even know which drugs to be studying. ..I have been just looking over dopa, dobutamine, levo, nipride...I'm at a loss...after reading some of the posts I feel like I should have saved my $500 in airfare ahhhhhhhhhh I hope I'm not the only one feeling like this.

1 Votes

I am in your exact situation KLMazzola and interviewing on the 12th...

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Specializes in CVICU.
MissSurgeRN said:
I'm flying in to Nashville and interviewing on January 12th...I am a nervous wreck. I have always been an icu float so I haven't had the luxury of being in one place. I think that definitely is going to hurt me. I don't even know which drugs to be studying. ..I have been just looking over dopa, dobutamine, levo, nipride...I'm at a loss...after reading some of the posts I feel like I should have saved my $500 in airfare ahhhhhhhhhh I hope I'm not the only one feeling like this.

You're not the only one. My 3 buddies in my unit are interviewing this week and have had their noses buried in their Stohlting books during their entire 12 hour shifts. The MTSA interview is by far the most intimidating interview I've ever had and they will definitely try to throw you curveball questions. When you go for the interview you get to pick a pt scenario and then that's all you talk about during the interview. It's good that you are studying dopamine, Levo...etc but if the pt in your scenario isn't on one of those drugs than they won't ask you about it. I'm not really sure why they have you list the drugs you use most during the application because they already know what drugs they are going to ask you in regards to the patient scenario you pick. For instance, I put Levo, Dopamine, Milrinone, nitro, and Nipride. My pt was a 54 yom post-op CAB on Epi, Neo, and propofol....so I didn't talk about a single medication that I had mentioned on my application. But even though I didn't mention these medications they still had me discuss Neo all the way down to the cellular level and the effects on the sarcoplasmic reticulum and all that good stuff... Kinda pointless to have you list the meds but it's the way they have been doing it for years. Good luck to you!!!

1 Votes
Specializes in Surgical ICU.

I'm freaking out at this point because I go in for my interview in less than 12 hours!!!!!! I keep reading the same thing over and over and I'm totally confusing myself. I haven't read the startling book, but I've gone over and over the clinical pharmacology one by Bertram Katzung. It's so confusing- especially because I never work with Dopamine, Nipride, ect. I'm in a surgical ICU so we only ever use levo, neo and epi- and also milrinone. In 3 years I've only had one dopamine gtt. I don't want to try and learn something that I have no real world experience with and end up sounding like an idiot.

1 Votes
Specializes in ICU-CCRN, MSN, CNM, APRN.
nesha2199 said:
I'm freaking out at this point because I go in for my interview in less than 12 hours!!!!!! I keep reading the same thing over and over and I'm totally confusing myself. I haven't read the startling book, but I've gone over and over the clinical pharmacology one by Bertram Katzung. It's so confusing- especially because I never work with Dopamine, Nipride, ect. I'm in a surgical ICU so we only ever use levo, neo and epi- and also milrinone. In 3 years I've only had one dopamine gtt. I don't want to try and learn something that I have no real world experience with and end up sounding like an idiot.

Nesha2199 where are you interviewing at?? I have decided whatever I know when I walk in I know...I was making myself crazy...I am still studying but if I don't know something it is what it is...but this is the most anxiety I have ever experienced in my entire life...I am interviewing on Monday

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Specializes in Surgical ICU.

MisssurgeRN, I'm interviewing at MTSA in Tennessee.

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Specializes in ICU-CCRN, MSN, CNM, APRN.

Me too! I am interviewing on Monday tho. Worked better with my crazy schedule this week which starts tomorrow with my CCRN test! Ahhhhh and we just got 3 feet of snow last night so hoping I get everywhere needed. I fly in Sunday to Nashville.

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