Interview questions for medical writer jobs

The world of medical writing is rewarding in terms of salary, opportunity and personal development.

The medical writing industry is experiencing rapid growth and if you have the right skills and desire to succeed you might want to consider medical writer jobs.

What does being a medical writer involve?

When you become a medical writer you could be working on a complex piece of new research transcription one minute, writing medical training materials for pharmaceutical businesses or manuscripts the next, then writing patient materials and conference reports the following week. The industry is diverse and interesting and offers great opportunities for those with a medical background and the ability to write good copy. There are also excellent opportunities for progression within the field, particularly if you can get noticed for your high-quality work and ability to deliver on time.

Recruitment process for medical writer jobs

Although it may vary from one company to another, the typical recruitment process for a medical writer vacancy will have two parts – a face-to-face interview and a written test. During the face to face interview, the recruitment manager/ senior medical writer will assess your attitude, experience, subject knowledge and expertise for the role.

Sample interview questions commonly asked for medical writer jobs

Here is a list of common interview questions for medical writer jobs which we have compiled based on our experience of recruiting for this sector as one of the top media recruitment agencies.

Medical writing related interview questions:

• What interested you to go for medical writer jobs?
• What is your long term career goal?
• Rate your writing skills on a scale of 1 to 5?
• Have any of your articles been published?
• Have you completed any medical writing training or medical writing courses?
• What do you know about the drug development process?
• What kind of documents have you written previously?
• What sort of documents do you think you are going to write in this position?
• Which software are you proficient in?
• Do you know anything about statistics?
• Which projects have you worked on previously?
• What is referencing and citation?
• What are the different types of referencing styles? Which one do you use commonly?
• What did you learn most from your projects?
• What was your contribution in making those projects a success?
• What would you keep in mind when starting to write a document from scratch?
• What would you keep in mind when editing a document?
• What is proof reading?
• What are some publication guidelines?
• What is your understanding of what a medical communications agency does?
• What kind of salary are you looking for as a Medical writer?
• What transferable skills have you acquired prior to becoming a medical writer?
• How do you apply ISO 9001 for your medical writing position?
• What are most common mistakes medical writers make and how do you solve them?

Personality and attitude related questions:

• What did you least enjoy about your current role?
• What part of your work so far do you think is most impactful?
• What would be your ideal working environment?
• How do you see your job relating to the overall goals?
• How did you react when faced with constant time pressure?
• Where do you see yourself in five years time?
• What problems have you encountered at work?
• How do you feel about taking no for an answer?
• When given an important assignment, how do you approach it?
• What was the most complex assignment you have had?
• What are your weaknesses?
• What are your strengths?
• What has been your most disappointing experience?
• What do you consider your greatest achievement in life?
• What was the most difficult time of your life? How did you overcome it?
• What motivates you?
• What are your interests?
• What do you think about team work? Are you a team player?
• How would you handle a tough boss whom you think is being unreasonable?
• Why did you apply for this job and specifically at our company?
• Can you give me an example of your multi-tasking ability?
• Can you handle pressure at work? How do you deal with it?
• Do you prefer working independently or do you require constant supervision?
• Can you write non-scientific documents as well?
• What do you expect to gain from this job?
• What’s your philosophy towards work?
• What irritates you about co-employees?

Media Contacts is a top media and communications recruitment agencies in the UK and have a dedicated team specialising in healthcare communications positions. Should you require assistance with your job search or if you are looking to hire your next medical writer, our experienced and friendly consultants can help! Contact us on 0207 359 8244 or email [email protected]