Nursing Mock Interview

Practice 50 Nursing interview questions covering clinical scenarios, patient care priorities, and ethical decision-making.

Question 1 of 50

What motivates you to provide top-of-the-line nursing care?

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Community Answers

Elisabeth Walter

Elisabeth Walter is an experienced Recruiting Consultant and Enrollment Advisor.

Most people who go into the nursing profession are naturally attracted to helping people who are most in need of help. They thrive on helping patients through very tough times by providing both medical care and emotional support. No matter how many years of experience a nurse has, they must stay motivated in order to provide top-of-the-line nursing care. Nursing, while often a very rewarding career, can be exhausting and emotionally draining, so it is important for nurses to be able to stay motivated in their current work environments. The interviewer is asking this question to determine what motivates the candidate and to determine if their environment would be a good fit for the candidate. To successfully answer this question, the candidate should provide details as to what motivates them to become a better nurse. A more successful answer would include a specific example of a situation that motivated a candidate to continue or better their nursing practice.

Elisabeth Walter

Elisabeth Walter is an experienced Recruiting Consultant and Enrollment Advisor.

"When I began my pursuit of a nursing career in college, I knew that I was born to help people when they are at their most vulnerable. In any environment, whether it be outpatient, inpatient, or skilled nursing, making a positive difference in the day of each of my patients is what drives me to become a better nurse, and it makes all the hard and emotional days worth it. Because I know I am making a difference in the lives of others, it is easy for me to get up and come to work each day."

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.

"During high school, I knew that nursing was my true calling in life when my grandmother was ill in the hospital and I watched the great care she received while there. During my clinical rotations through nursing school, I had the awesome opportunity to work in several specialty areas and in each one, I found myself in a great place internally just being able to help patients. The opportunity on the Med/Surg unit at your organization has me very excited to be able to help patients and family members when they are at their most vulnerable, and the fact that I will be able to help patients and their families is what will drive me to become a better nurse and provide the best care possible."

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.

"As I've progressed through my career as a nurse, I've had the opportunity to work on a Med/Surg unit, Home Health and in a Family Practice clinic. While each job was very unique in the patients that I worked with on a day to day basis, seeing the joy in their eyes and hearing the thanks in their voices for me being their nurse has given me all of the motivation I have needed and has pushed me to be a better nurse over the years. I have worked my entire career to be able to finish it working in the women's health clinic at your organization, and to help the needs of the patients there will be my primary motivating factor moving forward."

Kelly Burlison

Kelly Burlison is an experienced healthcare and quality measurement professional with experience interviewing in the healthcare field focusing on IT.

"Going into nursing, I initially thought that the simple fact that I was helping others would be motivation enough; however, at the time, I did not recognize how stressful and emotionally draining nursing can be. So, throughout my career, I have found additional motivation by leading quality improvement projects to improve patient outcomes in my clinical unit. By leading the clinical team of nurses and physicians in developing interventions, collecting data, tracking metrics, and ultimately determining if we have improved patient care and outcomes, I have found much motivation to improve my nursing skills and to become a better nurse and leader. I hope there are opportunities to participate in such projects at your organization while I fulfill my clinical duties as well."

Tabitha Cumpian

Tabitha Cumpian is an RN Lead with experience in multiple clinic specialties and has functioned as a program manager.

"I knew from a young age that I wanted to be a nurse. I find everything medical to be fascinating. I enjoy helping others and being able to teach them along the way things they are able to do in their daily lives to improve or maintain their health. Something that motivates me every day is knowing that our patients choose us to be their care providers. Nowadays there are many provider options available, but they have chosen to come to our facility. Knowing they made that choice I want to do all I can to help them return to a state of health, happiness, and independence."

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Anonymous Answer

What motivates me is my patients recovering and leaving the hospital. We realistically see patients at some of the toughest points in their lives. Being able to come in, work a shift, and see the patients improve little by little until they're ready to return to their life is the greatest reward there is.

Rachelle's Feedback

Your answer is so authentic and heartfelt - any interviewer should appreciate this approach.

Anonymous Answer

What motivates me to give top-of-the-line nursing care are my experiences with bad nursing care. I have experienced family members in another country receiving poor nursing care and died because of it. My passion as a caregiver combined with these experiences will ensure my patients receive the care that I wish I could have given my family members.

What motivates you to provide top-of-the-line nursing care?

50Nursing Interview Questions & Answers

1.What motivates you to provide top-of-the-line nursing care?

2.How do you stay current on the latest health research?

3.Tell me about a time when you committed a medical error in your nursing career. How did you handle it?

4.How have you responded when your supervisor asked you to work an additional shift to fill vacancies?

5.How do you prioritize when multiple patients and procedures demand your attention at once?

6.Describe your typical relationship with physicians you work with.

7.Tell me about your education.

8.Tell me about a time in which you had to handle an irate physician, co-worker, or patient. How did you handle it and what were the results?

9.Are you specialized in a particular area of nursing, i.e. neo-natal, pediatric, geriatric, or women's health?

10.Describe a recent issue you had with a doctor or co-worker's decision. How did you handle it?

11.How do you make seamless transitions on shift changes?

12.Tell me about a time when you had to assist with an administrative project or task. What did the project/task entail and which software programs did you while completing the tasks?

13.How do you approach providing patient discharge instructions or patient education?

14.What precautions do you take with a patient in poor health?

15.Tell me about the greatest challenge you have faced in your nursing career? How did you overcome it?

16.Tell me about a time when you cared for a patient whose values or beliefs were different from your own. How did you handle the situation?

17.Tell me about your experience and abilities in collecting lab samples, such as blood, tissue, and and other specimens. Elaborate on the entire end-to-end process of collection.

18.What was your least favorite patient? What was the situation.

19.Tell me about your IV skills. Are you able to start an IV?

20.Why are you leaving your current position?

21.How many patients is a full workload for you?

22.Tell me about a time you had to communicate bad news to a patient. How did you effectively communicate that news and what was the outcome?

23.Tell me about the most stressful situation you've had to deal with in the workplace.

24.What is your work availability? Are you able to work nights? Weekends?

25.Talk about a time you had to communicate a complicated medical issue to a patient or their family. How did you go about relaying the message?

26.Tell me about an experience when you had to use ACLS, BLS, or PALS protocols in your nursing practice.

27.Talk about a time that you had to deal with a significant change in your work procedures or in your workplace. How did you handle that change?

28.We are interviewing several candidates for this position. Why should we hire you?

29.Do you have any questions about the specific requirements or responsibilities of the job?

30.Tell me about a time that you had to deal with an unexpected emergency on the job. How did you handle that situation?

31.Are you able to handle the physical requirement of the job?

32.Tell me about a time when you have recognized that a patient is in a difficult or dangerous situation. How did you respond and what was the outcome?

33.Tell me about your experience supervising or mentoring other nurses.

34.How do you approach the documentation of patient records? Do you have specific strategies that you use?

35.Have you ever been disciplined or asked to resign from a nursing position?

36.Can you tell us about what attracted you to a nursing position with our facility?

37.What did you like the best about your last position as a nurse?

38.Can you describe a career nursing role model and why?

39.What professional organizations do you belong to and which ones would you like to join in the future?

40.Do you carry professional liability insurance? Why or why not?

41.Which nursing publications do you subscribe to and which one is your favorite?

42.How much supervision do you want or need in your role as a new nurse in a new position?

43.What are your professional nursing goals?

44.What are your goals in reference to furthering your education?

45.Do you have plans to pursue certification in your chosen field?

46.Do you have nursing management or leadership goals?

47.How much orientation time do you feel is reasonable?

48.How will you promote a culture of teamwork and collaboration?

49.Tell me a bit about yourself.

50.What are your greatest weaknesses?