INTERVIEW SKILLS

INTERVIEW
An interview is a conversation with a purpose. The interview enables the employer to learn
about you, your personality, social skills, general abilities, potential, and whether you fit in
the organization.
RULES
The most effective way to prepare for the interview is to remember the ‘Three
Golden Rules’.
• Know the organization
In internet age, there is no excuse for you not to gather information about the organization.
Try researching as much as you can about the company, such as company web site and
annual reports. Read about their founders and company hierarchy. Try to find out whether
their businesses have changed. Try to understand why the company is expanding and its role
and expectation of new position. When there is a new position, companies are usually looking
for someone to fill very particular role in the company. Read any relevant press clippings.
Research the company’s competitors and their products. Such research allows you to assess
whether they would be a good fit for you.
• Know yourself
You must fully understand the job description of an advertised job. You need to
develop awareness about details such as:
• Accountability Level
• Performance Expectations
• Skills Required
• Work Environment
• Team Structure
• Management Style
• Hierarchy
• Know the job
Your personal attributes are extremely critical. How do you work under pressure?
What strategies do you use? What are your strengths? What type of management
style do you prefer working with? What keeps you motivated? How do you know
when you have been successful? How did you come to choose your course of
study?

TYPES OF INTERVIEW

One-to-one - Probably easiest to cope with as it is less threatening

 Probably easier to build rapport with the interviewer
 Could be one of a series of interviews as different specialists take turns to assess you
 Likely to be quite specific and focused as the interviewer could be directly involved in
your future work
Panel - Probably more challenging that one-to-one
 Could involve facing between three to six interviewers
 Popular with large organisations

Group - Consists of several applicants answering questions either individually or as part of the
group
 Could be given a topic to discuss as a group
 Could be asked to make a presentation either as a group or individually

Competency based
 Increasingly used by organisations which look at key skills and qualities such as
communication, problem solving and team work
 Questions based on providing examples of how you possess these skills and competencies
 Could involve detailed and persistent questioning – be prepared to be challenged

Assessment centre
 Multi-disciplinary method of assessing applicants
 Could involve up to two days of intensive interviewing, testing and exercises
 Could expect to experience all the above types of interview

Follow-Up Interview
 Follow-up interviews are almost always conducted in person and can last from an
hour to one or two days.
 Can involve either a single interview or a series of sequential interviews with
individuals and groups. Occasionally, a presentation, meals, and/ or social events are
included, depending on the nature of the job.
 There are multiple objectives to these follow-up interviews: to further evaluate
candidates’ match with the position, to choose among the top candidates, and to
“sell” the workplace and position to the candidates.

DURING THE INTERVIEW

Give a firm but gentle handshake when you meet your interviewer(s), sit when invited to do so,
make direct eye contact and remember to smile. From the moment you meet, your
communication with the interviewer forms part of the decision-making as to whether to recruit
you; in fact most decisions are made within the first three minutes! So, you need to be aware of
both your verbal and non-verbal communication skills.
Verbal communication
 Show genuine interest in the position
 Listen and answer the questions asked
 Never argue a point
 If you do not understand or hear a question, ask for it to be repeated
  Do not interrupt

Non-verbal communication
Appearance and mannerisms are VERY important – think of body language and facial
expressions
 Put your feet squarely on the floor or cross your legs at the ankle
 Put anything you are carrying on the floor
 Rest your hands in your lap
 Nod your head to show you are listening
 Do not fidget
 Be serious but do not forget to smile

THE TOP 10 COMMON INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

Interview questions can be categorized as,
• Traditional
• What is the greatest value you bring to the organization?
• Do you work well with terms?
• What is your leadership and management style?
• Where do you want to be in five years?
• Situational
• What type of person would you hire for this position?
• What would you do with an employee who is always late for work?
• Will you stop working if you get married?
• How would you ensure long-term success with our company within your first week?

• Behaviour-Based
 Describe a situation in which you had to adjust to change over which you had no
control.
 Describe the most demanding manger you have overworked for and tell me how you
adapted to his/her style.
 Sometimes we have jobs or projects that change on the way. Tell me about when this
happened to you and how you dealt with it.

The Star Method

• S=Situation (Describe the situation)
• T=Technique (What approach did you use?)
• A=Action (What action did you take?)
• R=Result (What was the result of your action?)

Some Interview Questions

You can expect to be asked some of the following types of questions in an interview.
Case Questions are often used by consulting companies to assess analytical and
problem solving skills. The interviewer presents a situation and asks you to discuss
possible solutions. A sample case question is, "Describe a managed care company
that you think is successful and explain why. What do they do that works? What are
their potential problems? What is your outlook for their future? What suggestions do
you have for their future?"

Behavioral or situational questions are used to assess how you would behave in
different circumstances and to predict your behaviour in future, similar situations. An
interviewer may ask, "Tell me about a time when a team you were working on was
unable to proceed due to some interpersonal conflict. How did you respond, and what
role did you play on the team?"

Role-play questions entail the interviewer asking you to put yourself in another role and
decide how you would handle a specific problem.

Industry-specific questions are questions regarding the latest trends or issues in the
industry. An interviewer may ask, "If you were a CEO of Microsoft’s main competitor,
what actions would you take in the on-line services market?"

Brainteasers questions are quick questions where the obvious answer is not necessarily the
right answer such as, "Which would you rather receive: fifty thousand pennies or a
10x10x10 room filled with pennies?"

1. Tell us about yourself.

• What makes you special? Why should we hire you?
Tips: Prepare several selling points about yourself. Give a quick “elevator speech” that
overviews your experience and achievements.
2. What are your greatest strengths and weaknesses?
• How do you perceive your talents and abilities as a professional? Will you be an asset to our
organization?
• How honest are you being about yourself with us? How realistic are you
Tips: Sell yourself. If you don’t promote your strengths, nobody else will. Prepare six or
seven responses. Be “confidently humble.” Present your weakness as a positive. Don’t talk
too long or emphasize your downfalls.

3. What motivates you?

• What are your values? If we hire you, will you easily get distracted by a higher pay?
Tips: Prepare several selling points about your values. This can include how much you like
to contribute to the society or if you like leadership, variety or security in a certain job. Try to
resist saying money is the only motivating factor!
4. Why are you interested in working here?
• How dedicated are you? Do you have a passion for this type of work?
Tips: Keep your answer simple and to the point. Stay away from responses such as,
“Many of my friends have worked here.”
5. Why should we hire you?
• Can you convince us you’re “the one?” Can you sell your “product?”
Tips: Make a powerful statement about the value you’ll bring to their organization.
6. Where do you see yourself five years from now?
• Will you only be here for a year before moving on, or are you committed to staying
here for a while? Are you a stable person? Can you set goals for yourself?
Tips: Be aware that they might not want to hire someone who will only be around for
a year or two. Feel free to say that you have one goal at the moment: to be the
very best employee for that particular job.
7. How do you define success?
• How ambitious are you?
Tips: Emphasize on your need to be successful at whatever you do and show your
passion for the particular role you are being interviewed for.
8. Would you be willing to pursue an extra certificate or credential?
• How is your attitude? How flexible are you?
Tips: Tell the interviewer how important professional growth is to you.
9. Are You Still Employed and If Not, Why Not?
• Are you committed? Will you stay with current position if employed? If not, why not?
Tips: If you aren’t, you can still use your answer to this question to shine a light on
your positive features. For example, if you were laid off or terminated, focus
less on the actual termination and more on what you learned from the whole
process.
10. Do you have any questions for us?
• Are you prepared to ask questions? How interested are you in this position?
Tips: List five or six questions on an index card. Ask at least one question, even if all of
your prepared questions have been answered. Never say, “No, you’ve answered all of my
questions.”

Tell me about yourself?

"Tell me about yourself" does not mean tell me everything. Just tell me what makes you the
best and fit the job requirements.
What qualifications are important for a nurse to have?
They must be expert at analysing tell-tale signs of diseases common among school children
of all ages. They exercise good judgment every day in deciding whether to send a child for a
check-up by a specialist.
Are there any desirable personality traits that a nurse should have?
Nurses are generally friendly, caring, gentle, and sympathetic. They are able to explain
concepts and situations clearly, yet without upsetting patients unnecessarily. School nurses
must be particularly caring and careful, since they work with children who are
psychologically vulnerable patients.
What is your greatest weakness?
"I am always working on improving my communication skills to be a more effective
presenter. I recently joined BETS, which I find very helpful."
Do you find that communication skills are important for a school nurse?
Communication and interpersonal skills are of the utmost importance. Nurses must
communicate effectively with senior medical personnel and the school staff. But they must
especially be good at communicating with school children.
What is your greatest strength?
This is your time to shine. Just remember the interviewer is looking for work related
strengths. Mention a number of them such as being a good motivator, problem solver,
performing well under pressure, being loyal, having a positive attitude, eager to learn, taking
initiative and attention to detail. Whichever you go for, be prepared to give examples that
illustrate this particular skill.
What measure or measures do you take as a school nurse to prevent disease among
children?
Most importantly, nurses keep a sharp eye out for signs and symptoms of disease or any
health problems. If they notice anything suspicious they report it to parents, with a written
recommendation to visit a specialist. Other preventive measures are vaccines administered at
school, and health education for the children.
Why did you leave your last job?
Here you will need to be careful as there are many possible answers you could use, just
remember to NEVER talk negatively about any prior or current employer to a potential
employer. No one wants to think that in a few years’ time you could be saying the same about
them. A possible reason could be to say you were looking for better opportunities, for you to
grow professionally, or you were looking for the chance to work abroad.
Why are you interested in this particular nursing job?
Why should we hire you?
You need to only share how you meet almost all the criteria they seek, and also have two to
three additional abilities that they might not even know they need…yet. They need to know
you are a candidate who can not only meet their needs now, but will also be valuable for
where they want to go in the future.
Why did you choose your specialty area of nursing?
Whether the area of specialization is ER, Occupational Health, Community Health, ICU or
any other, the key to answering interview questions about your nursing career choice is to be
very specific about why you chose it. What influenced you in your choice? How did you
explore your options? Highlight how your strengths are best utilized in this area and how it
suits your personal competencies.
What is your greatest accomplishment?
This is somewhat similar to the “what is your greatest strength?” question and can be handled
along the same lines. You want to pick an accomplishment that shows you have the qualities
that the company puts value in and that are desirable for the position you’re interviewing for.
The fact is you may have several accomplishments you could pick from. Pick one that will
have the most impact.
Describe a decision you had to take quickly regarding a patient.
This nursing question is looking at your judgment. Take the interviewer through the process
you used to evaluate the situation and the criteria you used to make your decision. Show how
you are able to rapidly assess the situation and then commit to the most appropriate action.
What can we expect from you in your first 90 days?
• You'll work hard to determine how your job creates value -- you won't just stay busy, you'll
stay busy doing the right things.
• You'll learn how to serve all your constituents -- your boss, your employees, your peers,
your customers and suppliers and vendors...
• You'll focus on doing what you do best -- you'll be hired because you bring certain skills,
and you'll apply those skills to make things happen.
• You'll make a difference -- with customers, with other employees, to bring enthusiasm and
focus and a sense of commitment and teamwork...
• Then just layer in specifics that are applicable to you and the job.
Tell us about a time where you disagreed with a colleague over the management of a
patient.
Are you able to work as part of a team? Do you display sufficient maturity in dealing with
health care colleagues? What resources did you use to diffuse the situation- listening to your
colleague's reasons, gathering information to make sure you had sufficient understanding of
the situation? Focus on what you, as a nursing professional, learned from the experience.
What are your salary expectations?
What changes have you contributed to established practices to improve patient care?
Nursing interview questions like this are designed to explore your ability to show initiative
and to assess and implement new procedures. It also looks at your motivation to go beyond
the routine of your nursing job to think about how you can improve on current patient care
protocols. Important skills used would include attention to detail, close observation, critical
thinking and judgment.
How would you deal with a doctor who was rude?
Are you a team player?
Emphasize teamwork behavioural examples and focus on your openness to diversity of
backgrounds. Talk about the strength of the team above the individual. And note that this
question may be used as a lead in to questions around how you handle conflict within a team,
so be prepared.
Nursing work often involves a number of daily frustrations. Tell me about some of the
frustrations you have dealt with recently.
Dealing with daily frustrations is part of most jobs. Your examples should highlight your
ability to demonstrate perseverance, reasonableness and common-sense in the face of
common frustrations. Prove you are resilient and able to deal with daily frustrations.
What challenges are you looking for in this position?
The best way to answer questions about the challenges you are seeking is to discuss how you
would like to be able to effectively utilize your skills and experience if you were hired for the
job. You can also mention that you are motivated by challenges, have the ability to
effectively meet challenges, and have the flexibility and skills necessary to handle a
challenging job. You can continue by describing specific examples of challenges you have
met and goals you have achieved in the past.
What have been your most significant nursing job accomplishments to date?
This would be a good place to insert into your nursing job interview a two-minute story that
details achievements relating to this particular travel nursing job. Highlight personal
involvement in a case or situation: Describe how things were when you arrived, how you
affected change and the measurable results. Discuss hard work, long hours, pressure and any
important issues that were resolved.
What experience do you have in this field?
Why do you want to work with us?
More likely than not, the interviewer wishes to see how much you know about the company
culture, and whether you can identify with the organization’s values and vision. Every
organization has its strong points, and these are the ones that you should highlight in your
answer. For example, if the company emphasizes on integrity with customers, then you
mention that you would like to be in such a team because you yourself believe in integrity.
Have you ever had a conflict with a boss or professor? How was it resolved?
For example: “Yes, I have had conflicts in the past. Never major ones, but there have been
disagreements that needed to be resolved. I've found that when conflict occurs, it helps to
fully understand the other person’s perspective, so I take time to listen to their point of view,
and then I seek to work out a collaborative solution. For example . . .” Focus your answer on
the behavioural process for resolving the conflict and working collaboratively.
If your previous co-workers were here, what would they say about you?
"They'd say I was a hard worker" or even better "John Doe has always said I was the most
reliable, creative problem-solver he'd ever met."
Describe your management style?
The situational style is safe, because it says you will manage according to the Situation,
instead of one size fits all.
What did you like or dislike about your previous job?
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What types of people do you find it difficult to get on with?
They want to know what you do to ensure an effective working relationship with such
individual’s communication skills
A possible answer for this question could be:
“I get on with all types of people, but get frustrated when working with those who don’t share
my work ethic. In these situations, I find that by developing a good rapport the person, letting
them know how important their contribution is to getting the job done, and appealing to their
better nature………things get done.”
How are you when you're working under pressure?
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What have you done to improve your knowledge in the last year?
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What have you learned from mistakes on the job?
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Describe your dream job?
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Tell me about any issues you've had with a previous boss?
Arrgh! If you fall for this one you shouldn't be hired anyway. The interviewer is testing you
to see if you'll speak badly about your previous supervisor. Simply answer this question with
extreme tact, diplomacy and if necessary, a big fat loss of memory. In short, you've never had
any issues.

CHECKLIST

DO
 Remember that first appearances count – how you dress and act
 Smile, make eye contact and acknowledge all members of an interview panel
 Shake hands in a firm but gentle way, not crushingly strong
 Wait to be asked to sit down
 Make sure you sit correctly and comfortably before starting
 Show interest
 Answer the question asked
 Keep positive at all times

DO NOT
 Be late
 Fidget or look at your watch
 Argue
 Put anything on the interviewer’s desk
 Say anything negative
 Appear indifferent
 Appear aggressive or act in a superior way – nobody likes this!
 Show too much interest in money and holidays