New Grad Residency Interview at UCH

SubSippi · May 28, 2013

I read a lot about interviewing on here before I went on my interviews, and got really great advice. Here are a few things that I kept seeing over and over...

All new grads are on the same level, in the eyes of a hospital. That's why it's not as important to emphasize what you know, as it is to emphasize your ability to work well with others, respond positively to criticism, and and a desire to learn what they have to teach you, to build on the skills you learned in school. A positive attitude and flexibility are very important.

They'll ask a lot of "Tell me a time when..." type questions. In my opinion, the best way to prepare for these questions is to write a short paragraph about any significant patients you've helped take care of, why you remember them, etc. I read a million different examples of those types of questions on this board, but in my interviews I still got questions that I hadn't prepared for. Having a list of my patients fresh in my memory made it a lot easier to recall "a time when _____ happened." Also, keep in mind that these questions can be answered with examples from non-nursing jobs. I dealt with a lot more conflict when I was waiting tables, so when I was asked about a time I've experienced/had to resolve conflict I talked about that.

Definitely have questions to ask them about the end. I asked about typical nurse/patient ratios, how often (if ever) nurses get assigned more than that, if call is required for that job, the amount of new nurses vs. experienced nurses on that floor, patient acuity level, amount of aids/techs, how evaluations for new hires are handled, and if there are any opportunities for new grads to join committees or other hospital organizations. I also asked if new grads who are the most successful on their floor/unit tend to have certain characteristics in common, and what types of qualities they feel are most important when hiring new graduates. In both of my interviews, the people commented on how much they liked that question, and you can pretty much count on them not covering that already, so you'll definitely have something to ask. It's also a chance to point out that you have the qualities they're looking for. All that sounds like a mouthful, but it seriously took like, two minutes to ask all those questions.

If you have an ADN mention that you're planning on getting a BSN in the near future.

Shake their hands when you walk in and introduce yourself, don't just sit down and smile and wait on them to ask you stuff. One lady actually said "Oh, I love hand-shakers." Lots of people have mentioned that and they seemed to like it with me.

One more thing, from my own experience. In my first interview (after the initial hand-shaking) I acted like a complete spaz, my voice was really high and shaky, and I was talking really fast. I kept jumbling my words, and finally just stopped and said, "I'm not normally so jittery, I'm just nervous, this job is really important to me and I'm new with the interviewing process." Then they smiled, made some comments about about how they're just regular people and there's no need to be nervous. Anyway, my point with that is that I think if you know you're acting weird and anxious and not like yourself (which I feel may be common in first interviews), it might be better to stop and acknowledge the fact that you're just nervous. They ended up offering me that job, and I thought there was noooo way they'd want to hire me after that!

Hopefully you're a little bit more collected than I am. There's a lot of great advice here, if you're willing to look! Good luck!

Millissa · May 29, 2013

Very helpful! Thanks so much!

SoontobeRN123 · Mar 11, 2015

This is a long shot that you will see this post, but it is worth the attempt! Millissa, I'm from Portland, ME too! I'm wondering if you were offered/accepted a position at UCH and if there is any advice you can offer me. I am an accelerated student at USM. I'm graduating in August and intend to apply for the October cohort. Thanks in advance!