MSL Mock Interview

Master 35 MSL interview questions covering scientific expertise, stakeholder engagement, and clinical insights.

Question 12 of 35

Talk about a time when you had to work closely with someone who had a difficult personality. How did you handle that situation?

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Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.

Medical Science Liaisons need to have the ability to work with strong, dominant, and sometimes bullheaded personalities. These personalities can be found both in the internal stakeholders they work closely with and with the external key medical experts they work alongside. Your interviewer wants to know how well you work with others despite a difference in personality. Your ability to adapt to various people, regardless of a positive personality match, shows that you are a mature and professional MSD, even when factors are not entirely ideal.

Rachelle Enns

Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.

"In my current role, I have a team member who will sometimes scoff at other co-workers' ideas in meetings. To help creative spark, I knew I could not let this behavior continue. I approached this person to discuss our company culture and how his behavior disrupted the creative and innovative environment we always seek. It turned out that he did not want to work in our division as he felt the projects were too 'junior' for his experience. He ended up requesting and receiving a transfer. By initiating an open conversation with this person, we were able to uncover his need. We also met the needs of our team by protecting the positive culture we had worked so hard to create."

Ryan Brunner

Ryan Brunner has over ten years of experience recruiting, interviewing, and hiring candidates in the healthcare, public service, and private manufacturing/distribution industries.

Avoid extreme responses that include speaking negatively of others or naming people. Also, avoid telling the interviewer that you get along with everyone all the time. Most interviewers will interpret a cliche response like that as dodging the question. Focus on when your work personality or style was different from another person, but perhaps you still had to collaborate together. Discuss, in a positive tone, how you made it work!

Interview Coach

Jaymie

A real coach, not AI. I read every answer myself and write back with personalized feedback.

Typically responds within 24 hours.

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35MSL Interview Questions & Answers

Discovery

1.If hired as our next MSL, do you have the availability to travel regularly throughout the region?

Situational

2.Talk about a time there was a serious conflict on a team that you collaborated with. How did you resolve it?

Experience

3.Have you ever worked in a cross-functional environment as an MSL?

Communication

4.How would you describe the written communication skills you would bring to our organization as an MSL?

General

5.What are the components of a successful, and effective, presentation as a Medical Science Liaison?

Discovery

6.Why do you think companies need to employ MSL's?

Behavioral

7.Can you work under pressure as a Medical Science Liaison?

Behavioral

8.Do you consider yourself as someone who is direct and forthright with others?

Discovery

9.What do you hope to achieve in the first five years as our Medical Science Liaison?

General

10.Talk about the various administrative duties you are responsible for in your current job. Why are these duties important to the overall success of a Medical Science Liaison?

Operational

11.As an MSL, you often have to bridge the gap between research and front-line healthcare providers. How do you see yourself as building that bridge in this role?

Situational

12.Talk about a time when you had to work closely with someone who had a difficult personality. How did you handle that situation?

Situational

13.When have you had to think outside of the box to solve a problem?

Discovery

14.What does the word 'innovation' mean to you as a Medical Science Liaison?

Discovery

15.How would you define excellent customer service as an MSL?

Scenario

16.If you could not make a key physician happy, what would you do?

Behavioral

17.Talk about a time when you had to be extra diligent in order to meet a deadline.

Salary

18.If you were to be offered this MSL position, do you have any specific salary expectations?

Discovery

19.What gives you the most satisfaction working as an MSL in the healthcare industry?

Discovery

20.Highlight your top leadership qualities for me. How do they benefit you as a Medical Science Liaison?

Behavioral

21.Our MSL's play a critical role in the success of our organization. How can we motivate you as a leader, keeping you engaged in the job?

Behavioral

22.When change occurs in healthcare, it can create new problems. Do you see inevitable changes as inconvenient problems or opportunities to learn?

Discovery

23.With your education and a wide array of options, why did you choose a career path as a Medical Science Liaison?

Discovery

24.What do you like to do in your free time?

Direct

25.Have you ever provided training to physician and other healthcare leaders? If so, what aspect did you enjoy most, and what did you find most challenging?

Behavioral

26.What challenges do you anticipate if hired as our next Medical Science Liaison, and how will you meet those challenges?

Discovery

27.What are you most looking forward to in this role as our next MSL?

Discovery

28.How do you keep up to date on new technologies and trends in this industry and your career as an MSL?

Leadership

29.Tell me about a time when you took charge of a meeting. Was the outcome a positive one?

Discovery

30.What do you think our company's biggest challenge is?

Behavioral

31.When a problem requires a quick solution, how do you typically respond?

Operational

32.As our next MSL, how would you prioritize multiple duties calling at once when they all seem equally important?

Behavioral

33.Talk about the most challenging aspect of your current job. How did you overcome it?

Situational

34.Tell me about a time when your integrity was challenged. How did you handle it?

Discovery

35.When planning for a client interaction, presentation or report, how often do you create alternative scenarios to help you adjust to changing situations?