Nursing University Interview Questions
Your nursing interview
From 2013 onwards, all primary nurse training will be in the form of a degree, with most nurses attending a university rather than simply training at a hospital nursing school. This means that nursing students will have to go through the standard UCAS application process, including university interviews. So what kind of nursing university interview questions could you be asked?
Subject specific nursing university interview questions
You will be asked a range of questions designed to assess whether you have a realistic idea of exactly what a nursing course, and a nursing career involve. This is designed to sort serious candidates from those who may have an idealistic or romanticised idea of nursing. Typical questions could include:
- Why do you want to be a nurse?
- What experience do you have of nursing as a career?
- What do you think is a typical day for a nurse?
- What do you think will be most challenging about this course?
- What is the hardest part about being a nurse in the UK today?
- Are you interested in a specific area of nursing and if so why?
- What media resources do you use to learn about nursing issues?
- Describe the role of the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
Personal nursing university interview questions
Clearly, your personal skills will have a big influence on your potential success as a nurse, so you will be asked a number of questions about your attitudes and your approach, such as:
- What do you think are the most important personal qualities of a nurse?
- Describe how you have demonstrated these qualities.
- What might stop you from being a good nurse and how are you managing this issue?
- Nursing can be incredibly stressful; how do you cope with stress?
- Give an example of how you have worked well in a team
- How would you help a patient who has been given bad news about their condition?
- Describe how you would deal with an angry and aggressive patient
- How would you deal with the death of a patient you had a good relationship with?
Ethical nursing university interview questions
You will encounter a number of ethical issues over the course of your nursing career, and your interviewers will want to assess how you will deal with these. For example:
- What is your opinion on euthanasia?
- Do you think the NHS is properly funded by government?
- What is the biggest challenge facing nursing in the next ten years?
- What would you do if you suspected a patient was storing up drugs for a suicide attempt?
- If you were in charge of the NHS budget, how would you prioritise the distribution?
- Do heavy smokers deserve to be treated on the NHS?
- If a patient disclosed abuse to you, in confidence, what would you do?
- Should well off patients contribute to the cost of their care?
- Describe an ethical issue facing the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE): what would be your advice to them on this?
