Top 3 Qualifications Recruiters Focus on During a New Grad RN Interview

Nurses are passionate about people and caring for them, and that is the essential quality recruiters want to know more about in your early career. But that is a given that a well-trained recruiter will validate by asking questions other than, “Why did you become a nurse?”.

First and foremost, we want to know about your clinical experiences. Since that is essentially your only nursing experience, be ready to share the details on where you worked, type of unit and patient care you were on, how much direct care you were allowed to do, and what you learned from that experience.

Secondly, we’re interested in the transferrable skills you bring from other experiences. It’s helpful if you were a patient care tech or medical assistant prior to being an RN, but that is not required. If you were in retail, hospitality, customer service, admin, etc. you also bring great experience that will help in your delivery of patient care. Be ready to give examples of going above and beyond, prioritizing, handling a challenging customer, and ensuring accuracy as an example.

Lastly, it is VIP that we understand your passions and interests. This could be a tricky if you are too specific on your dream job; be sure to remain open. But knowing your career aspirations in advance helps a Recruiter to align you with the right opportunity to get there. We know you will be flexible to start where needed most (often a med/surg unit on a night shift), but it’s in everyone’s best interest to get you on the path to your heart’s desire. For example, if someone shares they want to be an ER nurse, I align them with a unit that is fast-paced, has clinical variety, a mix of acuity levels, with lots of admissions and discharges.

Prepare for the top 3 interview question themes (experience, skills, interests) by having answers ready to these questions and you’ll do great!

1. Tell me about the types of facilities and units you did your clinical rotations on.
2. What units did you prefer and why? Any that you didn’t care for?
3. Did your preceptor allow you to provide direct care (under supervision) or were you limited to shadowing?
4. What did you learn from your preceptor or clinical experience that you know you will apply immediately when you are on your own?
5. From your schooling and clinicals, have you determined a line of care that resonates with you? For example, some align more with cardiac care over neuro, or pediatrics over adults.
6. Is there a patient experience that you had that confirmed that you should be in that line of care? Give me the details (who, what, when, where, why).
7. What skills have you gained from your previous employment will help you be a successful nurse?
8. The nursing field is broad. Do you have initial goals on what type of Nurse you would like to be in 3 years?
9. What are you most excited about as you launch your nursing career? What are you most nervous about?
10. Tell me how my opportunity (type of healthcare facility, unit hiring, orientation program, growth potential) aligns with your experience, interests and goals.

I could keep going, but within 15–20 minutes, I could ask any variation of these questions and determine if what you want is something I can offer, and vice versa.

You’ve got this!