Pharmacy Intern (interviewing techniques)

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ice712

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Can somebody offer me some interviewing techniques from experience? I really suck at interviewing : ( I got an interview invitation from a pharmacy store and the interviewer asked very mean questions, very unfriendly just by that look. I didn't get the position as an intern. I really try to find a year-around internship with one of the chain stores in southern California, but I am just too nervous and sometimes speechless when asked unexpected questions ... can somebody give me some helpful suggestions on how to overcome this? Thanks in advance!

PS. I don't have any leadership experience, how should I answer such questions? And also I am a P1 student.
 
You were doomed, if they didn't like you (that visibilly) no kind of answer would have saved you.
 
You were doomed, if they didn't like you (that visibilly) no kind of answer would have saved you.
It's not that obvious; he actually called and let me know that he currently couldn't offer me a position because there are areas I need improvement on and he would like to meet me a few months later and see whatever I need to improve improves. I don't know if he is being courteous by saying that, but it's just too discouraging...
 
It's not that obvious; he actually called and let me know that he currently couldn't offer me a position because there are areas I need improvement on and he would like to meet me a few months later and see whatever I need to improve improves. I don't know if he is being courteous by saying that, but it's just too discouraging...

This is a shot in the dark, but I want to say that he was trying to put you on the spot and see how you'd react to a person who isn't in a very good mood. I don't know about your pharmacy experiences in the past, but I'm a P1 intern for a grocery store and I have to say that I get crap from customers even though the store I work at draws a bit more mature of a customer base. Hell, in the retail setting, you're gonna get angry customers who are more than willing to vent.

The interviewer probably didn't see that you were mentally ready to handle a verbal onslaught and wanted to check up on you a couple months from now to see if you've built up thicker skin. I don't know to be honest. Take this advice with a grain of salt.
 
Ice, i'm the same way. I hate interviews! In fact, I did not get into pharmacy school on my first try because I tend to freeze up and get so nervous. I'll I can say is practice, practice, practice! Do mock interviews if you have access to that at your school. I practiced with my aunty and girlfriend who were excellent at interviews and I owe getting accepted to pharmacy school to them. Find someone who is great at interviewing and practice with them a lot! Before you know it you'll be comfortable and will be ready to answer even the tough questions.
 
Write your own questions .. start with the easy ones (ie whats a situation where you went above and beyond expectations)

Write the answers down.

Practice with self, with mirror, with family. . Not until you know it cold but until you can make your own answer on the fly.

Also do more tough q's like what wil be the best and worst things you bring with you to the job ... or .. what does pharmaceutical care mean to you?

Dont forget the stupid questions that can slip in..

Ive had some (job) interviewers ask me "why pharmacy, why pharmacy school,"
I didnt have easy answers cause the last time I genuinely had to answer that was 2009. So be aware of those things.


Another method is to think from the top down .. broadly .. take some notes. .

What do you have to offer to this work environment.. what are their needs , how will you help fill them... why do they want YOU versus other candidates.

...once youve typed up some pages of notes along these lines and practiced a bunch , your confidence boost will help get you the job.. your great answers will cement the offer.


Hth. Just finished my final round of new grad job hunting. Im not too great a candidate on paper --- the interviewing practice helped me a lot.


Ps. Google for interview questions too, and cv/resume/cover letter advice.

Ps. Always apply and maintain all contact with jobs either in person or over phone.

As far as leadership goes.. they arent looking for a single answer if they ask this (havent been asked personally) ... but my backup answer was to talk about a situation at a past job where I took initiative to get something done.

Edit: another good tip i received is to memorize the job description (ie the duties or expectations part) .. then try to turn each question they ask into a reference back to what you are bringing that will allow you to rock the job duties.
 
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Write your own questions .. start with the easy ones (ie whats a situation where you went above and beyond expectations)


Write the answers down.

Practice with self, with mirror, with family. . Not until you know it cold but until you can make your own answer on the fly.

Also do more tough q's like what wil be the best and worst things you bring with you to the job ... or .. what does pharmaceutical care mean to you?

Dont forget the stupid questions that can slip in..

Ive had some (job) interviewers ask me "why pharmacy, why pharmacy school,"
I didnt have easy answers cause the last time I genuinely had to answer that was 2009. So be aware of those things.


Another method is to think from the top down .. broadly .. take some notes. .

What do you have to offer to this work environment.. what are their needs , how will you help fill them... why do they want YOU versus other candidates.

...once youve typed up some pages of notes along these lines and practiced a bunch , your confidence boost will help get you the job.. your great answers will cement the offer.


Hth. Just finished my final round of new grad job hunting. Im not too great a candidate on paper --- the interviewing practice helped me a lot.


Ps. Google for interview questions too, and cv/resume/cover letter advice.

Ps. Always apply and maintain all contact with jobs either in person or over phone.

As far as leadership goes.. they arent looking for a single answer if they ask this (havent been asked personally) ... but my backup answer was to talk about a situation at a past job where I took initiative to get something done.

Edit: another good tip i received is to memorize the job description (ie the duties or expectations part) .. then try to turn each question they ask into a reference back to what you are bringing that will allow you to rock the job duties.

Wow~~ Thanks for ALL the tips!!!! I really appreciate it! You are absolutely right! Maybe I was just being unprepared.
 
Write your own questions .. start with the easy ones (ie whats a situation where you went above and beyond expectations)

Write the answers down.

Practice with self, with mirror, with family. . Not until you know it cold but until you can make your own answer on the fly.

Also do more tough q's like what wil be the best and worst things you bring with you to the job ... or .. what does pharmaceutical care mean to you?

Dont forget the stupid questions that can slip in..

Ive had some (job) interviewers ask me "why pharmacy, why pharmacy school,"
I didnt have easy answers cause the last time I genuinely had to answer that was 2009. So be aware of those things.


Another method is to think from the top down .. broadly .. take some notes. .

What do you have to offer to this work environment.. what are their needs , how will you help fill them... why do they want YOU versus other candidates.

...once youve typed up some pages of notes along these lines and practiced a bunch , your confidence boost will help get you the job.. your great answers will cement the offer.


Hth. Just finished my final round of new grad job hunting. Im not too great a candidate on paper --- the interviewing practice helped me a lot.


Ps. Google for interview questions too, and cv/resume/cover letter advice.

Ps. Always apply and maintain all contact with jobs either in person or over phone.

As far as leadership goes.. they arent looking for a single answer if they ask this (havent been asked personally) ... but my backup answer was to talk about a situation at a past job where I took initiative to get something done.

Edit: another good tip i received is to memorize the job description (ie the duties or expectations part) .. then try to turn each question they ask into a reference back to what you are bringing that will allow you to rock the job duties.




Wow~~ Thanks for ALL the tips!!!! I really appreciate it! You are absolutely right! Maybe I was just being unprepared.
 
Ice, i'm the same way. I hate interviews! In fact, I did not get into pharmacy school on my first try because I tend to freeze up and get so nervous. I'll I can say is practice, practice, practice! Do mock interviews if you have access to that at your school. I practiced with my aunty and girlfriend who were excellent at interviews and I owe getting accepted to pharmacy school to them. Find someone who is great at interviewing and practice with them a lot! Before you know it you'll be comfortable and will be ready to answer even the tough questions.

That's why I did before my pharmacy school interview and now I feel like job interview is different. I thought I could answer any questions since I have the experience of working in retail. Guess I need to be more motivated and practice more, like how I did it before. Thanks for the tips! : )
 
This is a shot in the dark, but I want to say that he was trying to put you on the spot and see how you'd react to a person who isn't in a very good mood. I don't know about your pharmacy experiences in the past, but I'm a P1 intern for a grocery store and I have to say that I get crap from customers even though the store I work at draws a bit more mature of a customer base. Hell, in the retail setting, you're gonna get angry customers who are more than willing to vent.

The interviewer probably didn't see that you were mentally ready to handle a verbal onslaught and wanted to check up on you a couple months from now to see if you've built up thicker skin. I don't know to be honest. Take this advice with a grain of salt.

Yeah, it's very frustrated. Interviewing is about "hot selling" myself, I guess I didn't show him that. Although I don't need the paycheck for a living so far, I do need the experience right away, as many people suggest.
 
It's not that obvious; he actually called and let me know that he currently couldn't offer me a position because there are areas I need improvement on and he would like to meet me a few months later and see whatever I need to improve improves. I don't know if he is being courteous by saying that, but it's just too discouraging...

Don't worry too much. A lot of people actually don't have any good interviewing skills. If anything, it was probably him and not you...

I look for these skills in my P1.

Curiosity... does the applicant want to learn? Does he have an open mind?

Ability to manage work loads... Can the student handle the responsibilities of a job in addition to school and family commitments. (I don't want to baby sit anybody).

Drive... I don't expect students to have any leadership experiences but what about hobbies? Student projects? other work related experiences. In my retail setting, I cant have any timid students.

Creativity... Once again, I believe this is a pre-cursor to leadership... because I want my interns to think outside of the box.

Courage... What I mean by this is somebody who is not afraid to speak out. They are not limited by society. If they see something, they should have the courage to confront the problem in its appropriate way.

The best way to interview is to do it by story telling. Give specific examples of where you talk about the problem, what you think were the consequences of the problem, what was your role, what you did, why you did it, and the end result. If the end result is not positive, tell the interviewer what you learned and would re-do.

For example... tell me about a time when you had to give constructive feedback to a team member. (CVS question).

I was in this high school project where we had to do a presentation. However, one of my team members were constantly late or not doing his share. This created a problem because he was in charge of researching and I was in charge of setting up the presentation. If he didnt do his share, then our presentation wouldn't be done on time. I pulled him aside and talk to him one on one about how I understand what he was going through but needed him to commit more time to the group because the group is dependent on him..., and helped him set up a time schedule with follow up. The end result was we did an awesome presentation and won an award.

In addition, I am more focused on the behaviors during the interview. Was the student positive? smiled? well prepped? Were the answers one sentence... or did he talk a lot. Because.... if I am only getting one sentences answer, no smiles.., it shows me the person can care less about the job.
 
Everyone above has made valid points, but you must also be wary of over-rehearsing your interview. The problem with practicing every type of question you may receive is that you will probably not get any of these exact questions/scenarios, and then you will freeze when trying to think of something on the spot. My suggestion for any type of interview is to make a list of 5-10 specific examples of scenarios that highlight your past accomplishments. Most questions can then be spun to use one of these examples as your answer. Be confident without being arrogant.
 
Yeah, it's very frustrated. Interviewing is about "hot selling" myself, I guess I didn't show him that. Although I don't need the paycheck for a living so far, I do need the experience right away, as many people suggest.

I wouldn't say hot selling. An interview's purpose is to make sure that the person is a right fit for the job, and vice versa. With that in mind, other questions to ask yourself is what is your 5 year plan? Why do you want experience and how can this job help you gain that experience? I find a lot of students applying to my pharmacy saying they want experience..., but then they can only work 8 hours a month... When a student tells me they want experience, I can see that they didn't think about this job properly... and how serious it is.

Any other goals? ie... making an impact on patient's life?
 
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