Labor and Delivery Interview

No advice but congrats on the interview and it would be my dream position also. Good luck and I will keep my fingers crossed for you!

Hello, tana_sou.

I am an "old" new grad who just finally got a job at my dream hospital after graduating in January. So hang in there, you just graduated and you have this amazing interview opportunity. That's great! Are you meeting with a Nurse Recruiter or are you being sent straight to the Nurse Manager?

Before getting this job I interviewed at four other hospitals. The Nurse Recruiter is a screening interview and wants to see if you fit with the hospital's culture. They focus on behavioral questions that require you to give specific examples of how you dealt with a stressful or difficult situation. Most of the recruiters I met with had a sheet of their official hospital interview questions. You can expect to be asked tell me about yourself, why you want to be a nurse, why this hospital, why this unit. Sometimes they ask you to run through your resume.

Some behavioral questions Nurse Recruiters have asked me:

1. Tell me how you dealt with a difficult patient/family member/coworker

2. What are you strengths and weaknesses and give an example of each.

3. Tell me about a mistake you have made in clinical and what you did about it.

4. Tell me about a time you found something that went unnoticed about the patient (like you walked into the room and the patient's status changed) and what you did about it.

5. Tell me about a time you worked in a group. What was your contribution?

6. What is your greatest accomplishment?

With Nurse Managers, you never quite know what questions to expect. They have different interview styles and my friends and I have noticed it has a lot to do with "chemistry", if he or she thinks you are someone he or she wants to work with and would fit on the unit. I have found Nurse Manager questions to be more specific about how you might perform on the job or get along with people. They usually want to know your short-term and long-term career goals and how this position is a match for your goals.

I even had an interview for L&D. I was asked a question about what I would do if I suspected child abuse or domestic violence, why maternity, tell me a positive experience about your maternity clinical, tell me about a difficult patient or family member.

With the Nurse Manager who hired me, our interview was more of a conversation and she asked me about goals and what effect I might have on the unit. I asked a lot of questions and was very enthusiastic and displayed how I am willing to learn and how I would advocate for the patients. She offered me the job fifteen minutes into our conversation.

The other jobs I interviewed for usually went to a nurse with experience. But this Nurse Manager loved New Grads because they have a fresh perspective. New grads seem to be considered a "flight risk" because they are expensive to train and often don't stay on the unit that long. Display enthusiasm and passion for helping people and maternity and also a willingness to learn. I think that will really help you compete with experienced nurses.

Good luck and let us know how your interview goes!!

Also, I had posted a question about what to expect before my L&D interview. Here is a link to a page someone sent me:

https://allnurses.com/ob-gyn-nursing/help-l-d-587981.html

Also, one last word of advice, find out whatever you can about the hospital, their L&D dept, and the nurse manager. Also, find out if the hospital is Baby Friendly. For the job I was offered, I read a lot of their website and read one or two of their employee newsletters. You can learn a lot about what they look for in an employee. I think the Nurse Manager was impressed that I knew the direction the hospital was heading towards.

Thanks for the information I.am.a.nurse!

The position I shadow and interview for was for a new grad position in labor/delivery I met with the nurse manger and a staff nurse who was in charge of the new grad program. The interview was not what I expected. I thought they would ask me more of the formal questions like behavior questions, scenarios or my details about my clinical experiences...but they really didn't.They didn't go much into my resume either so I'm really kind of nervous. I think over all I spent more time asking questions than they asked me. They did ask questions like "tell me about yourself" "favorite clinical instructor" "do you enjoy withing solo or with a partner", but really not that many questions. They had a folder with my name on it that I'm assuming held my information that I sent in like reference letters and resume etc. I remember the nurse recruiter saying that she would put a folder together to send to the nurse manager which I assume that is what that is. However throughout the interview the nurse manager didn't really refer to the info in the folder. Though I think the interview went smoothly and decent. I smiled and showed my enthusiasm throughout the interview and the nurse manger seem to smile and giggle a lot. To be completely honest I'm totally confused on how the interview turned out. Now I suppose I'm in a waiting game, they didn't tell me how long it would be until they made a decision and foolishly I forgot to ask. However the position is said to start in November and their only looking to hire two candidates. Also I did also meet briefly with the nurse recruiter and HR but didn't really interview with them it was more of a meet and greet. The Nurse manager said she would contact me either way when a decision has been made. So hopefully I get an offer I'm praying and wishing this works out.

How long did it take for you to receive a official offer?

Also are you currently working for Duke University Hospital?

Hello, tana sou.

Nurse Manager interviews are pretty unpredictable. Maybe she wanted you to shadow to see how you might fit in with the other staff. It's really good that you asked questions, that shows you really want to work at the hospital. Every interview style is different, I have found that they ask less behavioral questions. Did you get her business card or the card of the recruiter? Send thank-you notes right away and you can send an additional email to the recruiter asking when they expect to make a decision. That is one of the most important pieces of information they were supposed to tell you. The recruiter is usually the one who offers you the job.

I got a job at New York-Presbyterian/ Columbia University Medical Center. The Nurse Manager hired me during the interview and the recruiter called with the official job offer later that day. But the waiting time really varies. Drawing from the experiences of my classmates, you are usually contacted within the specified time. One friend of mine was offered a job a month after his interview. He didn't hear by the promised time and called the recruiter.

So, don't stress out. You did your best and survived the interview. You may not know exactly where you stand, but there is nothing you can do now but wait. You probably did much better than you think. In the meantime, don't stop applying to other hospitals, especially the places your classmates have been getting jobs. Good luck!!!!!

Hello ALL,

I'm really hoping for some advice and tips.

I am a new grad who graduated in May 2010 and still have yet to land her first nursing job. After months and endless letters of rejections I finally received a call from Duke University Hospital to interview next Wednesday for a new graduate (SNIP) position on their labor and delivery unit. I am completely ECSTATIC:yeah: I never thought I would even have a chance to interview as a new grad for a L/D unit. As much as I would love any nursing position....I REALLY REALLY WANT THIS. This job would absolutely be a dream job. It is the specialty that sparked my interest in nursing to begin with.

So if you have any suggestions on how I can stand out and WOW the nursing managers during my interview that would be greatly appreciated. Certain questions they might as a new grad....specify questions relating to L/D unit? Anything would be helpful.

Thanks for the help in advice:)

I had an interview for a SNIP position at DUH too. They offered me the job about a week later! My interview went exactly like yours! The folder was on the table and was never touched... Did you end up getting an offer?

@NurseToun Congratulation for getting the job offer!

I unfortunately did not get the job offer as much as I wanted to be on a labor and delivery unit. But a few weeks later I had an interview with UNC Hospital on the pediatric unit and I received the job offer!! I'm in the new grad program which started about 2 weeks ago in the beginning of October. I'm very happy with the outcome so far; during the interview I felt a better connection with the managers and staff at UNC so hopefully that is a good sign.

But as a new grad to another I wish you good luck with the SNIP program and I hope you have a wonderful first year experience and more to come!!

Hello, tana sou.

Nurse Manager interviews are pretty unpredictable. Maybe she wanted you to shadow to see how you might fit in with the other staff. It's really good that you asked questions, that shows you really want to work at the hospital. Every interview style is different, I have found that they ask less behavioral questions. Did you get her business card or the card of the recruiter? Send thank-you notes right away and you can send an additional email to the recruiter asking when they expect to make a decision. That is one of the most important pieces of information they were supposed to tell you. The recruiter is usually the one who offers you the job.

I got a job at New York-Presbyterian/ Columbia University Medical Center. The Nurse Manager hired me during the interview and the recruiter called with the official job offer later that day. But the waiting time really varies. Drawing from the experiences of my classmates, you are usually contacted within the specified time. One friend of mine was offered a job a month after his interview. He didn't hear by the promised time and called the recruiter.

So, don't stress out. You did your best and survived the interview. You may not know exactly where you stand, but there is nothing you can do now but wait. You probably did much better than you think. In the meantime, don't stop applying to other hospitals, especially the places your classmates have been getting jobs. Good luck!!!!!

Hi i.am.a.nurse,

I am thinking way ahead here as I wont start school for my BSN (accelerated program at Columbia) but I was wondering what your process was for job hunting? How long did it take you and how did you find the market in NYC? I am really looking to work in L&D in a hospital in the NYC area but as I will graduate with the clinical rotations (part of school) as my only experience I dont know if finding a new grad job in L&D in NYC is like saying I would like to win the lottery. Any thoughts/advice you have are greatly appreciated!!

Hi, for those of you who interviewed at/ work for Columbia Presbyterian... I interviewed with the nurse recruiter, Mr. Matthews this morning and stupidly left without asking for his contact information. Does anybody have an e-mail address for him? I would like to send him a follow-up/thank you e-mail and am going crazy now trying to get his contact info! Thanks!!