You are a doctor, dentist, nurse, pharmacist, midwife, physio or other healthcare professional. To get an offer of a training or non-training job from the English, Scottish, Welsh NHS, Northern Ireland’s Health and Social Care, Ireland’s public health service, a private sector hospital or a GP practice, you will have to be successful in a job selection interview.

UKmed has coached many individual professionals for their selection interviews, either individually or in interview skills workshops for small groups of applicants to Foundation Standalone Year 2, Core Training and Specialist Training recruitment rounds.

Five reasons to choose Interview Skills by UKmed

We will:

  • train you in skills to survive any NHS interview
  • go through every detail, including dress code, webcam framing, opening and closing statements
  • explain and practise effective techniques for staying in control under stress
  • simulate the actual interview through role play
  • record you in action so you can revise and improve.

Not what you had in mind? Contact us to customise Interview Skills coaching to your individual needs.

Format of a selection interview for healthcare in the UK

Almost every structured selection process includes a job interview in front of a panel typically made up of at least two senior professionals and a Human Resources specialist.

These interviews largely take place online, so you can attend without having to leave your home or office.

An interview rarely lasts more than 30 minutes, with most completed in about 20 minutes.

Your interviewers will likely be well-trained and experienced. They will be expected by their employer to follow a set framework that covers the values, job skills, past experience and personal qualities expected in order to cover the requirements of the job in full. In a structured interview, the interviewers should normally ask all applicants a minimum set of common questions, to allow a direct comparison of the candidates.

The quality of your English will certainly be important, however, your interviewers don’t necessarily expect perfect English. What’s more important is to show that you are a safe and effective communicator with the potential for continuous improvement in the language on the job.

Employers will require you to book an online interview at very short notice. That’s why we highly recommend planning your interview skills coaching session well in advance.

How UKmed can coach you for selection interviews

Our aim is to add new skills and strengthen any weak areas, and answer all your questions.

Our Lead coach will start with a step-by-step walkthrough of the expected selection interview process, to relieve the anxiety and stress you may be experiencing in anticipation of the real interview.

We will cover do’s and don’ts during the brief yet crucial opening and closing stages of the interview.

We will train you in how to answer questions without losing track or control of the process. The techniques you will learn include:

  • how to layer your responses to score more points in fewer words and less time
  • tricks to improve memory retention using acronyms such as STAR-R (Situation Task Action Result – Reflection)
  • using teasers to attract welcome follow-ups

and lots more.

After your interview coaching session, we will provide you with the actual recordings of our simulated role plays so you can work on your rate of speech, intonation and any dips in performance. Depending on your chosen training package, we may also include model answers that you can practise at home.

Interview Skills Course for Foundation and Specialist Training in the UK

Interviews for Foundation Year 2 Standalone posts take place once a year, usually in March or early April. Your competitors will be some of the best international medical graduates who, like you, will have already passed the Situational Judgement Test.

At this final selection hurdle, you will be competing with a great chance for a Foundation Year 2 post, which is the best route into Specialist Training a year later.

You will be interviewed by two Consultants who are experienced trainers. They have interviewed junior doctors like you before, and are trained in shortlisting those with the best chance of succeeding in Foundation Year 2 in the NHS.

The interview itself comprises well-defined stations where you will present your portfolio and answer clinical scenarios.

UKmed’s Interview Skills course tutors include our Lead coach, our Dr Coach and carefully selected junior or senior doctors with NHS experience. You can expect a rigorous and high-yield simulation process that will cover how to:

  • survive an interview
  • pack your answers with substance and avoid vacuous statements
  • summarise your career portfolio
  • structure your clinical scenario answers well
  • and more.

Coaching options

UKmed offers several interview skills coaching packages to suit your needs:

  1. Introduction to Interview Skills for NHS Selection – Three-hour course in small groups
  2. Interview skills – Half-day session with our Lead coach
    (3 hours)
  3. Interview skills – Full-day session
    (3+3 hours on two different days)
  4. Interview skills – Full-day session with extra time or model answers
    (3+3+2 hours on two different days)
  5. Interview Skills Course for Foundation and Specialist Training in the UK
    as part of our Foundation Year 2 Standalone service

Contact us for a quote.

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