Online Application
You will be asked to submit your CV and answer very, cover letter and answer various questions based on your education and previous experiences.
Expect a 2-week wait before progressing to the next stage.
Final Interview
For the 2nd, and final stage of the interview process, you are initially taken for a tour of the hospital and specific ward(s) where you will be undertaking your placement / internship. Akilah said the atmosphere was very friendly and her nerves were quickly eased.
You will then have a chat with the interviewer following the tour, where you will be asked a number of generic interview questions, followed by a number of situational judgement questions.
Example task
For the chat with the interviewer, questions will be along the lines of: "Why are you applying for the placement?", "What are you going to bring to the team?", "Have you experienced working in teams before?".
You will be asked a number of situational judgement questions, along the lines of: Example 1: A patient calls the office, and is having a tough time. What would you do? Example 2: You are running a group child therapy session. The parents of the children are present initially. Then, after some group work, the children remain in one room and the parents break off into another room for a separate session. One of the children then becomes very emotional as a result of the parent leaving, how would you deal with this?
How to respond for success
Example 1: Offer emotional support and try to relax the caller and then contact the relevant team suited to their specific issue if need be. Attempt to Identify potential red flags, such as intent to self-harm / suicidal statements. Be sure to check their location and make a judgement as to whether emergency services will need to be sent to the address.
Example 2: Bring the child outside from the group, making sure another qualified therapist stays in the room with the rest of the children to ensure their safety. Attempt to calm the distressed child down with various breathing techniques. It is imperative to follow all safeguarding practices. Alert a senior member of staff, and alert the child's parent of what has happened.