Congrats! You managed to score an interview at your dream job, OR, you just managed to score an interview! Well done on taking this next step in your career. You might be reading this as you are preparing for your FIRST EVER job in allied health – thats such an amazing achievement. Or maybe you are looking for a new job and are hoping to hone in on your interview skills.
Either way, you are in the right place! Im going to talk you through what type of things you need to do to prepare for the interview and all the important things to say and ask when you are face to face.
If there is one important thing I want you to remember when preparing for this interview, is that they need you probably just as much as you need them. They have reached a “pain point” in their business; one where they are likely turning patients away because they cant fit them in. Or, a practitioner is leaving and they are trying to work out how to manage the load of patients that come in week to week. They are not advertising out of the kindness of their heart, so that they can “help you out”. No, they need someone like you. And you are going to show them how exactly you are going to help fill that void. Therefore, this interview is as much about YOU interviewing them as it is about THEM interviewing you. And if you have happened to get a face to face interview, obviously they can already see the value that you will bring into their clinic. Going into the interview recognising this is the first step to gaining confidence in that interview.
Now first up I want you to research this clinic as much as you can. How long have they been in business for? How long has the principal been out for? How many practitioners do they have and do they have any other services such as Pilates or a gym? Do they seem to have a high turnover of staff (you can find this out by looking at their social pages – find out how many new practitioners they have introduced and then if they are still there). Check their availability with online bookings. If they don’t have online bookings do a sneaky phone call and ask when the next available appointment is for a new patient. And finally, do a google search of the clinic and see if anyone is talking about them online (good or bad).
I want you to see how you could add value to this clinic. If they have a pilates studio and you have an interest in Pilates, then make sure to mention this. This could be a great ice breaker as you walk in, talk about how nice the clinic looks and that you are so excited that they do Pilates. This is a great way to get them really excited about the potential that you can bring to their clinic. Maybe you love writing, and noticed on their website that they have a blog – this would be a great little thing to add to your strengths when they ask you about yourself. Im sure if you did enough digging you could see how you would add value to their clinic.
Interviews in allied health clinics really range from super casual (chat over coffee) to semi professional (with a team of people asking 3 questions each). Its really hard to prepare you for exactly what they are going to ask, but as a business owner myself who sat in between the super casual to semi professional interview style, I can definitely tell you the things that I used to ask. “Tell me about yourself” is a great start to really break the ice and get you talking about yourself. Which is super daunting at times yes! If you don’t feel comfortable talking about yourself then 1), its probably time to start practicing, and 2) you can always talk about what others say about you. For example, “Ive been told Im a great communicator” or “My friends and other colleagues have always said that I have a great ability to talk to people”. I get it, you might not be that person that can talk themselves up. But there are ways you can still do it without sounding too much of a bragger. However I do think in interviews these are the ones that stand out! Whatever your style, practice it over and over again in the mirror, trust me this will really help.
Once you have got past the “tell us about yourself” question, this is usually followed by asking about your time as an Osteo, or if you are a new grad, they might get you to tell them about your student clinic or internship placements. They will like to find out about your treatment approach (ie structural or more indirect) – and as a side note from this topic – there are a few indirect practitioners out there, which is great! However the approach at university is very much a structured treatment style (MET, articulation, soft tissue, HVLA, exercise rehab – are all structural approaches to treatment). In my experience *and my opinion* I don’t believe you can call yourself an indirect practitioner, or even a cranial osteopath, until you have treated this way for over 10 years. Yes you read correctly – 10 YEARS. So if indirect is something that interests you, you can mention that your approach at university has been very structured however you are interested in doing further learning into some indirect courses over your next few years of practice. End side note. So here is your chance to talk about what approaches to treatment have worked for you in student clinic, community placements and also internships. You might love treating low back pain, mention this! You might feel less confident with other areas of the body, that is totally ok to talk about as well. Usually there is a question within the interview which asks you about what you have found most challenging within your time as a student practitioner.
As you are discussing your strengths (and potentially weaknesses) I want you to try to tie in parts of why this job appealed to you. This is where you can really show the research that you have done in preparation for this interview. Maybe they run in house CPD, and you feel that you would be supported well in this clinic with those sessions that they run. Or maybe they have some ties to local sporting clubs, and you have grown up in the area playing with these clubs. This is a hard one to give examples for, but if you have done your research you should be able to create a few tie ins as to why this position would be the perfect fit for you.
5 year plan – some clinic owners will want to know a little about your plan going forward. I think it’s important to be honest about this point in the interview, to a certain extent. In my experience practitioners that feel well supported and well paid in a role will not leave to start their own business. But if this is something you want to do in the future, it’s good to let them know. You might phase it along the lines of “One day I would love to run a clinic as great as this one you have created here, I think I am a long way off from this, but later on down the track that would be one of my goals”. Clinic owners dont see this as a negative. They see this as drive. Maybe the clinic owner that is interviewing you is considering a business re-structure and maybe even a sale in 5 years? With your drive and determination you could be the perfect fit. So don’t shy away from showing your business ambitions, there is nothing wrong with that. Practitioners that have been in the game for long enough really do know that there is enough business for everyone.
Now it’s good to be prepared for this, some clinic owners will get you to provide a mini treatment or similar. This can be very daunting! As a business owner we used to call it the second interview, and we would bring back potential candidates to do a treatment on one of our staff members. Thinking about it now I don’t know what’s worse! Being put on the spot or stressing about coming back to do a treatment. If they ask you to do this on the spot then its all good, it means they are progressing you already in their interview. Do well in this part and likely you are in! One thing I want you to remember – is that they will know what type of a practitioner you are the minute you put your hands on them. Because of this, exam them with INTENT. I know uni teaches you to do ROM assessment first, but in an interview I would go straight to palpation. They have likely given you an area to look at (usually cervicals or lumbar spine), so go in there and palpate with intent to examine them. Then you can perform ROM etc. Always ask them if there is anything you should know, and what treatment techniques they prefer (they may hate HVLA). Be professional, palpate with intent and show off some of your best work.
As the interview is concluding, there will be an opportunity for you to ask questions. Remember the pain point we discussed earlier on, and that you are interviewing them as much as they are interviewing you. Here are some great things that you can ask:
– What days would you expect me to work and on average how many patients will I see
– What will be my starting pay and how will it change the longer I stay with you
– What support do you offer (new grads in particular) and do you do in house CPD/meetings
– Will I be expected to find my own patients/market myself or do you put time/dollars into external marketing
– REMEMBER to ask any other burning questions that you might have! Some of these points may have been touched on in the interview but its a good list to have in the back of your mind as the interview is concluding.
Going forward, I wish you the best of luck in finding a great job in a great team environment. If you ever need my advice, please email me! In addition, I offer courses to assist in the transition from new grad to private practice. Whilst these courses are targeted at new grads, I offer coaching and mentoring to clients that are needing a little extra help with either their business or marketing strategy. If you are thinking of working with me I would love for you to book a free 30 min discovery call.