Interview questions for nurses
These are the questions to prepare for in a job interview for nurses: 7 job-specific questions with tips for good answers, the most common questions in every interview, and questions you can ask the employer. With Selja you can also practise the interview for the exact job you have applied for.
Job-specific questions for nurses
Why did you choose to become a nurse?
Answer personally and honestly, and link your motivation to the ward or patient group you are applying for.
Tell me about a demanding situation with a patient.
Anonymise the patient. Use STAR, and bring out your professional judgements and how you looked after the patient.
How do you prioritise when several patients need you at the same time?
Show that you assess urgency professionally, delegate and ask for help when needed. Give an example from a busy shift.
What do you do if you discover an error, for example in medication?
Patient safety first: you make sure the patient is safe, tell the doctor in charge and your manager, and report the incident. Show that you are open about mistakes, including your own.
How do you deal with relatives who are frightened or angry?
Show that you listen, stay calm and give clear information within the rules of confidentiality. Give an example if you can.
How do you look after yourself in a job with rotating shifts and a high pace?
The employer wants to know that you will last. Say what you do to switch off, and that you speak up when the workload gets too heavy.
How do you work with doctors and other health professionals?
Give an example of working across professions, and show that you dare to speak up when you are worried about a patient.
Common questions in every job interview
Tell me a little about yourself.
Keep it to one or two minutes. Start with who you are professionally, highlight two or three experiences that are relevant to the job, and finish with why you are applying right now. Skip your whole life story.
What are your greatest strengths?
Choose two or three strengths the job actually requires, and give a short example of each. A strength without an example is just a claim.
What is your greatest weakness?
Choose something real that is not crucial for the job, and explain what you are doing to improve. Avoid tired answers like saying you are a perfectionist.
Why did you apply for this job?
Link what you know and enjoy to what the job involves. Mention two specific things in the job ad that appealed to you, not just that you need a job.
What do you know about us?
Read their website, recent news and LinkedIn page beforehand. Mention something specific, such as a product, a client or an initiative, and say why it interests you.
Tell me about a time you solved a difficult problem.
Use STAR: briefly describe the situation, what your task was, what you did, and what the result was. Spend most of the time on what you did yourself.
Tell me about a time you made a mistake.
Choose a real mistake, take responsibility without blaming others, and spend most of the time on what you did to put it right and what you do differently now.
Tell me about a disagreement with a colleague. How did you resolve it?
Show that you listen and focus on the issue, not the person. Finish with how you worked together afterwards.
What are your salary expectations?
Research the pay level for the job beforehand. Give a range instead of a single figure, and justify it with your skills and responsibilities. The hourly pay calculator here can help you convert between hourly and annual pay.
When can you start?
Check your notice period before the interview, and give a concrete answer. If you are flexible, say so.
Answer with the STAR method
When you are asked for an example, the STAR method gives an answer that is concrete and easy to follow:
- Situation: Where were you, and what happened? Keep it short.
- Task: What was your responsibility or goal?
- Action: What did you do, step by step? Spend most of your time here.
- Result: What was the outcome? Include numbers if you can.
Questions to ask the employer
What is the staffing like on a normal shift?
Tells you a lot about workload and patient safety on the ward.
How are the working hours organised, and how much evening, night and weekend work is there?
Perfectly normal to ask in healthcare. You need to know this before you accept.
How long is the training, and will I work alongside an experienced nurse at the start?
Shows that you care about doing the job safely and correctly.
What does a normal week look like in this job?
You get a concrete picture of the daily work, and can see whether the tasks match what was in the job ad.
What are the most important goals for the first six months?
Shows that you are thinking about delivering from the start. The answer tells you what is actually expected of you.
How do you measure success in the role?
You find out what you will be assessed on, and whether the goals are clear or vague.
What are the biggest challenges the person who gets the job will face?
A mature question that gives an honest picture of the job. Feel free to say briefly how you would tackle them.
Practise the interview with Selja
The best thing you can do before the interview is to practise the questions for that exact job out loud. Interview practice in Selja creates questions from the job ad and your CV. You answer by speaking or writing and get feedback on every answer, so you know what to say differently before it counts.
- See the interview questions for your profession for free.
- Create your CV and cover letter for the job in under a minute, so you get the interview first.
- CV example for nurses
- How to prepare for a job interview
Frequently asked questions
What do they ask in a job interview for nurses?
You get both common questions, like "Tell me a little about yourself", and job-specific questions, for example: "Why did you choose to become a nurse?" and "Tell me about a demanding situation with a patient."
How do I prepare for an interview for nurses?
Read the job ad and find the three most important requirements. Prepare a short example for each, ideally with the STAR method, and practise out loud. Have two or three questions ready for the employer.
Is there a tool for practising an interview for nurses?
Yes. With interview practice in Selja you practise the interview for the exact job you have applied for, speaking or writing, and get feedback on every answer. You can see the most common interview questions by profession for free, and Selja also creates your CV and cover letter for the job in under a minute.