Interview tips - PLEASE!

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Specializes in Med/Surg; Psych; Tele.

Help! I have an interview this Friday for a cardiology practice. I have almost a year and a half of med/surg experience and a few months on tele. I listed on my resume that part of my future objective is to become a Cardiac NP, so they know that.

I hate interviews! I feel like I always freeze up. Any helpful tips would be greatly appreciated!!!!

Thank you!

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Be yourself.

Take charge of the interview...Ask them more (pertinent) questions than they ask you (How do you handle ______? What's your nurse to pt ratio?)

Confidence is key. Don't overdress...remember, employers need us more than we need them...It's our market to command...

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Specializes in emergency.

Actually I disagree,

IMO wear your best!

Dont over bear them with questions, just enough to find out if YOU want to work for them.

ALso, know who you are interviewing for and think about their objectives. If they are looking for someone to work up front for the next 10 years...then telling them your dreams of advanced practise and eventually leaving them..might not be the right communication strategy!

Basically,research the job, if you really want it, ...tell em what they want to hear!

Good luck

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Specializes in telemetry.

Dress professionally and comfortably. Ask about the average number of years tenure for nurses on that unit (nurse turnover) - it shows satisfaction, tenacity, and cohesiveness - some place that's worth tolerating. Be open, honest, and positive. Be able to say what your best abilities are and also what your weaknesses are. I had an interviewer ask me about a good nursing experience I had had. To describe it - like, "describe a time when you had a positive experience with a coworker." Clinicals are not very much to draw from, buts thats all I had. Was also asked about a bad experience ...describe a negative experience with a coworker (staff nurse, clinical instructor, whatever). I guess how you describe it gives a good picture of your attitude and ability to learn from situations. Hope that helps.

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If they offer you the job ask to job shadow for a day. That way you can see what it is really like and see if you are a good match for the position. Try before you buy!

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Specializes in Case Management.

Agree with all above, also agree to dress for success. Regarding the negative questions, there always are one or two thrown in there. Think ahead of time about an experience where you took initiative to turn the situation from a negative to a positive. One question that I used to get a lot--what is your biggest fault, or something like that. I would always take it and turn it around to a positive. I would say my biggest fault is my inability to let go of a problem, I look for a solution to every problem that comes my way. I will never come to you with a problem without also having one or two possible solutions for it. See, take the negative in the question and turn it around to make you look good! hope it helps and good luck!

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Specializes in Med/Surg; Psych; Tele.
Be yourself.

Take charge of the interview...Ask them more (pertinent) questions than they ask you (How do you handle ______? What's your nurse to pt ratio?)

Confidence is key. Don't overdress...remember, employers need us more than we need them...It's our market to command...

Excellent advice...Thank you! It's just that this will be new territory for me, so conveying that confidence is going to be a challenge (but doable!). Well, I will say this...I'm sure it's easier to get a job when you have a job anyway!

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