About me

I would like to comment on your recent blog entries regarding travel NP positions and interview questions.
I am also a nationally certified nurse practitioner. I had 8 years of general, good solid, RN experience in a hospital and clinic before applying to NP school and I have been an NP for 11 years and started our national placement firm 10 years ago.

I own the leading national recruitment firm for NPs and PAs (thats all we do) and our firm touches base with well over a thousand NPs a month from all 50 states. We post all our positions both travel and permanent on our website http://www.advancedpracticesolutions.com

Regarding interview questions and the entire process of finding a position-
Before even getting to the interview you must put your best foot forward. Remember that we represent not only ourselves, but an entire profession of incredible men and women. We are looked at as leaders and mentors and we must always present ourselves to the best of our abililities in both spoken and written word. We cannot stand at the table and request a six figure salary when our resumes have spelling errors and poor sentence structure.

Our email addresses should also reflect a professional image (when job searching at least) hotmama3@yahoo.com is not the way to attract the attention of Mayo Clinic.

Many of our candidates do not submit a cover letter in today’s market where candidates are fielding 4-5 offers. Again, please maintain a professional image by taking just a few moments to tell your prospective employer what you have done, what your passion is, and how you can help them. In our agency, if candidate backgrounds are similar, candidates who write an eloquent letter will get a higher recommendation from our firm.

A few more tips for the professional job seeker:
-Confirm your interview time and location the day before by email/phone. Bring emergency numbers to call in case you have a flat tire or accident en route.
-Research your potential employer on the web so you can formulate intelligent questions. Write down your questions ahead of time in case you get nervous.
-Bring a pen/portfolio to jot down notes. In your portfolio, have at least 2 copies of your resume handy. Often, other people are pulled in to your interview without advance notice.
-Shut your phone off prior to the interview or silence it. The vibrate setting is still distracting. Never, ever take a call during an interview. (you’d be surprised)
-Do not chew gum, eat candy, breath mints etc during the interview. Accepting coffee or a drink during the interview is fine.
-Dress professionally. For our younger NP colleagues, I would take out the piercings and cover tatoos if possible. I know its culturally appropriate, but most of us “boss types” are in are 40’s and 50’s and we still have a hard time adapting to this type of expression for a patient care position. (Just being honest and I do a lot of interviewing-sorry)
Hair and make-up do matter as does your choice of footwear. Hair should be neat however you choose to wear it, and make up should not be overdone. Polish your shoes and check your hose for runs. I bring an extra pair in my car when talking to professionals. I am doing some checking to see if bare legs are appropriate in the summertime and tights in winter and I am leaning toward yes. I still wear hose and a suit when meeting hospital CEOs to obtain placement contracts. Old traditions die hard.
-Never slam a former employer, there are tactful ways to describe an exit from a previous position. Say something like “we had differing expectations/opinions on ____________
-If you have something in your background consider disclosure. Its a sad day when a candidate has their 3rd and final interview and you find out they sued their former employer when checking references. If working with a recruiter, let them know the full story. We have hired several candidates who are years into recovery or had some criminal charge 10 years ago. We just need to know about it and then we can help present it in the best light if we feel you truly have changed.
-Lastly, make sure the fit is a good one or keep looking. We are seeing some disturbing trends of NPs staying in jobs just 9, 12 or 18 months in succession and hope to gather more data around this.

A good recruitment firm or travel firm is always free for candidates. Look for those firms who specialize in NPs and PAs and ask them questions about our profession that will differentiate the pros from the wanna be’s
Ask them how long their NP or PA division has been in business and what their method is for following up with you.

I hope information is helpful to NP job seekers and those wanting to pursue one of the best professions around.

As you develop your blog, please remember that those reading it may inadvertantly be patients who trust us (literally) at the cellular level. We diagnose them with cancer, we weep with them when we deliver terrible news, we rejoice with them when they beat a devasting illness or lose those 10 pounds and finally get their blood sugars in normal range. At times it is stressful to care for them, yet rewarding beyond measure. We all have “those days” but remember your blog is out there representing all of us who have worked incredibly hard to get where we are. Thanks for putting yourself out there!