Once you have finished your doctorate, passed your certification exam, and have your license to work in your state, you’re ready to start interviewing to become a physical therapist. Here are the things you need to know to ace the interview.
Before you go into the interview, it is important to start with the proper attitude. A positive mental attitude will show itself in your voice, your attitude, and even your body language. You want to make sure to demonstrate that you have an intelligent, cheerful, and energetic personality.
While you’re getting ready, make sure that you schedule enough time to arrive 15 minutes early so you can compose yourself and make sure everything is in order. You should also ensure you have a proper sales pitch so you can really sell yourself to the interviewer. This includes a 3-5 minute monologue about yourself to help break the ice.
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Make certain you listen carefully to every question that the interviewer asks. After each question, make sure you answer thoroughly. There are few things that turn off interviewers as quickly as a person who does not listen to their questions. Also, be sure you don’t interrupt the interviewer while they are talking. This is an important part of listening.
Watch out for what are typically referred to as “stumbling words”. These include words like “um” that would normally be used in conversation. They do not belong in an interview.
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Jill had been researching how to get a job when she finished up her doctorate. She knew that it was going to be a challenge to land that first job and show that she was capable.
Jill had always had a great attitude about life and friends, and she wasn’t too worried about being able to talk with people and show them what she knew.
Even though she still had a little time left to finish up her degree, Jill had already started working on her sales pitch. She had a good five minutes of information and had rehearsed it so she could talk about herself in a professional manner without stammering.
To help her prepare to be interviewed, she spent some time researching interview questions at http://www.glassdoor.com/Interview/physical-therapist-interview-questions-SRCH_KO0,18.htm and found them to be very helpful.
After all of her preparation, Jill knew she was ready to go on her first interview in a few months.
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There will be many questions of a technical nature in the physical therapy interview. However, the ones that are trickier for some people are the psychological questions. Questions like “tell me about your strengths and weaknesses” can be difficult.
When you are asked this question, it is not the time to talk about all of your bad habits or anything else you’ve done wrong. While it may be easy to come up with a few good things about yourself, the bad ones are more difficult. It is a good idea to have an answer that is a quasi-strength. A good example would be talking about how dedicated you are at work, but you wish sometimes you could spend more time with your family.
“Where do you want to be in five years?” This is typically a question where interviewers want to find out how long you are going to hang around. The best answer is always honesty. If you only intend to be in the city for the next three or four years, tell them.
There are many technical questions that may come up during a physical therapist interview. You can find some helpful links here to get answers to your questions:
http://www.glassdoor.com/Interview/physical-therapist-interview-questions-SRCH_KO0,18.htm
http://www.indeed.com/forum/job/physical-therapist/Interview-questions-Physical-Therapist/t427484