Staff/Peer Second Interview

[dh101]

I have a question regarding staff/peer interviews and was wondering if anyone had experience with this and could share any tips or advice? I have a second interview that is set up with 3 nurses from the unit to see if my personality will match the units overall staff and I am not sure what to expect! I've already gone through the formal interview process with my initial panel interview. I had never heard of this type of interview before and was hoping to get some advice to help direct me with my interview prep. I think in general I will be reviewing what I review for my standard formal nurse interviews, as well as review behavioral based questions. I also will ensure to identify specific example to utilize in my responses. I am very excited for this opportunity and experience and will make sure I am true with my personality and highlight my values with the team. Thank you in advance!

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

Congratulations on the second interview! You must be doing something right.

Peer interviews are basically to see if you are someone the staff wants to work with. They can be formal or informal, and the questions they ask can range from the ones about the resume they have right in front of them to something esoteric such as "If you were a vegetable, which vegetable would you be?" (Or at least, a colleague of mine swears she was asked that once.)

The philosophy on peer interviews on my unit is this: "We can teach you how to take care of our patients; we want to know if you're someone we want to work with." This is particularly hard for introverts; extroverts will have no problems with it. You want to be seen as someone who will be a team player, who is dependable, and who is eager to learn.

Good luck! Let us know how it goes.

[nutella, MSN, RN]

It depends on the hospital - some offer staff guidelines for those interviews with questions to ask . But some are very informal and they want to just see "how and who you are" and it is my experience that those tend to ask more about "what would you do in xyz case".

Those peer interviews are also important for the person who comes to the interview.

I went to a peer interview one time and thought the job would be great (ICU) but when I interviewed with the staff I realized right away that I would not be able to work there and after 30 minutes I thought that I would only take this job if the last one available on earth...

My suggestion is to prepare some questions you want to ask them and to be open. Dress professionally.

[dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN]

As someone who does a lot of peer interviews, PLEASE remember to dress professionally and bring copies of your resume. Please don't bring a Big Gulp cup, breakfast from McDonald's or your kid. (True stories, lol.)

Definitely ask a few questions at the end. Makes it seem like you are interested in working with the unit.

[dh101]

Thank you so much for such great advice. I appreciate it greatly and I will ensure to bring these tips with me into my peer interview. I feel more confident now in what to do in order to prepare adequately for this type of interview and I am extremely excited to experience it. Ill ensure to update on how it goes :)

Thanks & Best.

[Sour Lemon]

They can be formal or informal, and the questions they ask can range from the ones about the resume they have right in front of them to something esoteric such as "If you were a vegetable, which vegetable would you be?" (Or at least, a colleague of mine swears she was asked that once.)

I was asked several of those types of questions during one peer interview. I felt like I was competing in a beauty pageant ...very awkward.

Another peer interview was more practical and I got asked things like, "How do you feel about answering calls lights for patients not assigned to you?"