Landing a job interview is an exciting step towards becoming a practical nurse. The best way to ensure you ace your interview is to prepare for it extensively beforehand. However, preparation can sometimes feel challenging since you won’t know what questions the interviewer will ask.

Fortunately, some questions tend to arise more often than not in job interviews for practical nurses. Knowing what these questions are will give you the confidence you need to impress potential future employers. Here are three commonly asked questions for practical nursing applicants and how to best answer them.

1. Be Prepared to Explain Why You Want a Practical Nursing Career

“Why do you want to be a practical nurse?” is a question that is asked in almost every job interview for practical nurses. While you’ll have your own personal reasons for choosing practical nursing as a career, make sure you frame your answer in a way that shows how you’re an asset to patients and employers.

One option is to talk about how much you enjoy helping people, which shows employers that you’re compassionate and likely to be a good fit for the nursing profession. Or you can mention how you like the fast-paced and dynamic nature of healthcare workplaces. If possible, try to incorporate a personal story that inspired you to become a practical nurse. For example, maybe you had a relative who was a practical nurse or you once received excellent care yourself. These personal touches help you stand out and make your answers more engaging.

2. Your Practicum Can Help You Tackle Questions About Patients’ Complaints

Interviewers often ask would-be practical nurses how they handle patients who complain about their care. This can be a sensitive issue since it is tempting as a job applicant to avoid any mention of patients being dissatisfied with the care you provide. However, whether fairly or not patients sometimes complain, especially given that they may be unwell, stressed, or confused. How you respond to complaints will show the interviewer a lot about your ability to perform well in difficult circumstances.

If possible, use an example from your practicum during your practical nursing training as this will provide concrete evidence of how you handle challenging situations. While the example you use will be specific to your own experience, try to highlight how you maintained a level head during the situation and how you helped to resolve the patient’s complaint. You can also mention learning about professional communication in your practical nursing courses and how that knowledge helped you communicate more effectively on the job.

3. Use Your Practical Nursing Training to Illustrate Your Experience and Qualifications

During the interview, you’ll probably have to answer at least a few questions about what qualifications and experience you have. Since qualifications and experience are considered extremely important, you should have your answer to these questions ready beforehand.

If you completed the Canadian Practical Nurse Registration Exam, which your practical nursing programs will fully prepare you to take, and became a Licensed Practical Nurse, mention this fact both in your resume and during the interview. Also, talk about the clinical experience you acquired during your training and how it relates to the position you’re interviewing for. Remember, when talking about your experience, don’t just say where you worked and for how long. Instead, let the interviewer know what your job duties were, who you worked with, and what a typical day looked like.

Do you want to pursue a practical nursing career?

Contact Discovery Community College to learn more about our programs.