Registered nurse interview questions

Six questions to practice out loud

Written by AI from registered nurse job postings. Each one is the kind of question a registered nurse interview asks, and each tests one of the five skills you are scored on.

1. QUESTION 1 · ROLE RELEVANCE

   Tell me about yourself and why you chose nursing, in under two minutes.

   They are listening for: One reason you chose nursing, told as a moment rather than a slogan.

   What a strong answer includes

   One reason you chose nursing, told as a moment rather than a slogan. Then the one or two clinical experiences that prepared you for this unit, and why this unit. Weak answers recite the resume or end on 'I love helping people.'

2. QUESTION 2 · CLINICAL JUDGMENT

   Tell me about a patient whose condition changed on your shift. What did you notice first, what did you do before help arrived, and how did you escalate?

   They are listening for: The first sign and the numbers: what changed from baseline, and when.

   What a strong answer includes

   The first sign and the numbers: what changed from baseline, and when. What you did at the bedside before anyone arrived, who you called and what you said, in a clear order such as SBAR. End with what happened to the patient. Weak answers say 'I called the doctor' and stop there.

3. QUESTION 3 · COMMUNICATION & WARMTH

   A patient's daughter stops you at the nurses' station, upset that nobody has explained her father's new medication. Walk me through what you say to her.

   They are listening for: Acknowledge the worry before the facts.

   What a strong answer includes

   Acknowledge the worry before the facts. Check that the patient wants her told, then explain the medication plainly: what it is for, what to watch for and who to call, and ask her to say it back. Weak answers get defensive about the last shift or bury her in terms.

4. QUESTION 4 · STAR STRUCTURE

   Tell me about a shift when you had more to do than time to do it. How did you decide what came first, what did you delegate, and what did you hand off?

   They are listening for: One line on the setup: how many patients and what made the shift heavy.

   What a strong answer includes

   One line on the setup: how many patients and what made the shift heavy. Then the order you chose and the reason, what you gave a nursing assistant or a colleague, and what you passed on at report. Weak answers list tasks with no reasoning, or claim nothing slipped.

5. QUESTION 5 · SPECIFICITY & EVIDENCE

   Tell me about a medication error or near miss you made or caught. What did you do in the first few minutes, who did you tell, and what changed afterward?

   They are listening for: The drug, the dose and what went wrong, in plain words.

   What a strong answer includes

   The drug, the dose and what went wrong, in plain words. What you did for the patient first, who you told, and that it was reported the way your unit requires. Then the check you added afterward. Weak answers claim it has never happened or blame someone else.

6. QUESTION 6 · CLINICAL JUDGMENT

   Tell me about a time you questioned an order or a plan because you thought it was not safe for your patient. What did you check, who did you go to, and how did it end?

   They are listening for: What the order or plan was and what worried you, with the data behind it.

   What a strong answer includes

   What the order or plan was and what worried you, with the data behind it. What you checked before you spoke, who you raised it with, and where you would have gone next if the answer did not satisfy you. End with the outcome for the patient. Weak answers either follow the order silently or describe a fight.