CRNA Interview Question Bank (Free PDF)

Use these to practice out loud. Interviewers look for safe reasoning, honesty about what you don't know, and self-awareness more than perfect answers.

Clinical scenarios

Your post-op CABG patient's blood pressure drops to 70/40. Walk us through what you do.
A patient on norepinephrine and vasopressin is still hypotensive. What's next and why?
Your ventilated patient's peak pressures suddenly rise. What could be happening?
A patient develops a new rapid atrial fibrillation with hypotension. What do you do?
Your septic patient's lactate keeps climbing despite fluids. What are you thinking?
You notice a medication error a colleague made. How do you handle it?
A patient with an ICP monitor has a pressure of 28. What are your interventions?
Describe the sickest patient you've cared for and what you learned.
Your patient's ABG shows pH 7.21, PaCO2 60, HCO3 24. Interpret it and tell us what you'd do.
A patient becomes bradycardic and hypotensive after a spinal anesthetic. Why, and how do you treat it?

Pharmacology

Compare phenylephrine, norepinephrine and epinephrine: receptors and effects.
How does propofol work, and what are its side effects?
What is the mechanism of succinylcholine, and when shouldn't it be used?
Explain how rocuronium is reversed with sugammadex vs neostigmine.
What drips do you titrate most, and what do you watch for with each?
How do opioids cause respiratory depression? How do you reverse it?
What is malignant hyperthermia, and what drug treats it?
Explain heparin vs enoxaparin vs a direct oral anticoagulant.
What is the difference between an agonist, a partial agonist and an antagonist?
Which drugs prolong the QT interval in your unit?

Physiology

Explain the oxyhemoglobin dissociation curve and what shifts it.
What determines cardiac output? How do preload, afterload and contractility affect it?
Explain the Frank-Starling law.
What is MAP, and how do you calculate it?
Walk through the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system.
What is dead space vs shunt?
How does PEEP improve oxygenation, and what are its risks?
Explain the stages of the action potential in cardiac muscle.
What is cerebral perfusion pressure?
How does the body compensate for metabolic acidosis?

Behavioral

Why do you want to be a CRNA? Why now?
Why this program?
Tell us about a time you disagreed with a physician.
Describe a mistake you made and what you changed afterward.
How do you handle stress? Give a recent example.
Tell us about a conflict with a coworker and how you resolved it.
What will be hardest for you in anesthesia school?
How have you prepared your family and finances for school?
What do CRNAs do that surprised you when you shadowed?
Where do you see yourself five years after graduating?
What is your greatest weakness?
Tell us about a time you advocated for a patient.
How do you take feedback?
What would your manager say about you?
Why should we choose you over other applicants?

Profession and policy

What does "opt-out" mean for CRNA practice?
What is the difference between a CRNA and an anesthesiologist assistant?
What do you know about the CRNA's role in rural healthcare?
What are QZ and QK modifiers? (Bonus: know the basics of medical direction.)
What is the AANA, and why join?
What is the NCE, and who gives it?
What changes in healthcare will affect CRNAs in the next five years?

Questions to ask the program

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