Interviewing for a PA Job? Follow These Tips

If you’ve scheduled an interview for a physician assistant position, congratulations! You are well on your way to an exciting new job opportunity. To prepare, you’ll want to take a few key steps to help ensure you deliver a killer interview. Here’s what you can do.

Tips for acing your physician assistant interview

It’s completely normal to have a few pre-interview jitters. But by taking the time to be well-prepared, you’ll be able to ease your nerves and be your most confident self on the big day. Just follow these tips to prepare:

1. Make sure your resume is performance-ready. Your potential employer has likely already seen a copy of your resume. But it’s always a good idea to bring another copy with you to your interview. Make sure your resume is up-to-date with your most recent physician assistant job experiences. Review the description of the physician assistant job to which you’ve applied and structure your resume to highlight the skills that make you uniquely qualified for it. Double check to make sure your resume is typo-free.
2. Look sharp. Arriving at your interview looking polished and professional shows your dedication to your career. You can’t go wrong with an interview suit, but dress pants or a skirt and a button-down shirt or blouse are also appropriate. Get a fresh haircut and make sure your shoes are in good condition. For women, minimize make-up and jewelry.
3. Anticipate common interview questions. Though you may get a few curveballs, for the most part, you can be prepared for the types of questions you’ll be asked during your interview. These might include:
   1. What do you know about this facility? It’s important to do your homework and research the organization. This can also help you figure out if you have any questions about the facility or the position beforehand.
   2. What will you contribute to this position/Why should we hire you? With this question, you get the chance to reiterate the high points of your resume. Talk about past job experiences you’ve had, how you’ve helped other facilities, and how your skill set could offer similar help to this position.
   3. Describe a difficult job experience and how you handled it. As a physician assistant, you’ll need to be able to work well with both patients and other healthcare professionals. Use this question to describe your conflict resolution skills.
   4. Why did you decide to become a physician assistant? You can describe your passion for your career when you answer this question. Also, with this question, you have a great chance to use a short story to help illustrate your reasoning. Stories can offer a more personal view of you to a hiring manager.
4. Prepare a question or two to ask the interviewer. After you’ve done your own research of the position and the facility, you’ll be able to come to your interview armed with some questions of your own. This helps show your interest, but also helps you to figure out if this is the job for you.
5. Arrive 15 minutes early. Check Google maps so you know ahead of time where you need to be for your interview and how long it will take you to get there. Plan to arrive 15 minutes early. This will give you a little time to review your interview questions, breathe and relax before your interview.

Smile, because you’ve done your best

Confidence is an important quality during an interview. It shows you’re sincere and that you trust in your own abilities. When you’re well-prepared, you’ll be on the right track to give the hiring manager a big smile and confident hand shake, and sail through your interview with flying colors.

Are you looking for your next physician assistant job?

Once you’ve sharpened your interview skills, give KTE Services a call. We’re a medical staffing agency that will work with you for a physician assistant job that fits your requirements. To learn more, contact one of our experienced recruiters.