If you're interviewing for an evening shift microbiology position (which
I worked solo from 1988 to 1996 at a former employer [they closed the
hospital in 12/96]), I would bone up on gram staining questions, as
you'll probably be reading a LOT of those [this is probably the most
important skill you will be using on second shift, so read up on it],
subculturing positive blood cultures and reading smears from those,
possibly performing rapid testing (strep screens, RSV's, Rotavirus
testing, Rapid flu testing) besides setting up specimens that come in on
your shift. Stress how you are organized, you are teachable and learn
quickly, and that you know how to set priorities. For example, if you
have a STAT strep screen, a CSF, and a positive blood  culture all occur
at the same time how would you handle this? What is more important? My
personal priorities ALWAYS are CSF, blood culture, then anything else.
You order and set up the CSF and get the gram stain draying. You pull
the positive blood culture during the drying time and make the blood
culture smear and get that drying. Then you start the rapid strep. By
the time the rapid strep is done and reported, the other smears will be
almost finished drying. You then stain both the slides at the same time,
read the CSF first (call if that's the policy), then read the positive
BC and call that. Then take care of any STATS that have backed up
(hopefully none) while all this was going on.

Rapid RSV testing is performed a lot in hospital labs that serve
pediatric populations, especially from fall until spring. This website
gives you information on it:

http://www.rsvinfo.com/diagnosing/diagnosing.html#sub2

Rapid testing for this is much more popular than it was ten years ago,
so it's worth a read.

I would stress that you are willing to learn, review microbiology basics
ahead of time (selective media, streaking and isolation techniques), and
stress you are also not computer shy. Most big labs now use paperless
micro - i.e. no worksheets. Everything is entered directly into the
computer and everything is ordered up directly, with labels printed out,
usually barcoded, to apply to the plates. The fact that there's even an
evening position open implies that this is a fairly large lab, as many
smaller labs just use generalists to staff second shift. All is teamwork
nowadays - that's the management buzzword. You will be a team player

My team leader recently had to choose between two MT students that were
graduating. Both had worked extra in micro during their internship doing
all of the above. He chose one over the other because she was prepared
with questions to ask, had her resume ready, and was very well organized
in her interview. She also jumped right up immediately to do any work
that came in, while the other one was a bit more laid back about that.
The other student was not quite as prepared, pretty much assumed he had
the job going into the interview, and was therefore shocked when he
didn't get the job. He did get hired at one of our sister hospitals for
an open full time third shift position. The point is that on second
shift, at least at our place, it is extremely busy. Most labs get 2/3 of
their specimens coming in after 3 p.m. Your ability to prioritize and
convey that to your interviewers will be what is important to them. I've
worked second shift microbiology since 1988 and it can be dead one
minute and an absolute zoo 15 minutes later. I've always found that when
there's free time you must resist the feeling of sitting down and doing
nothing unless everything (!) is cleaned up, because five minutes later
you won't have time. You must put plates away, clean up disorganized
benches, pull negative blood cultures off machines, do pending lists, do
overdue lists, read those three gram stains that are sitting there and
not leave them until later. That's the key to working an evening shift
in micro.

I currently work for a large micro lab that does the microbiology for
four hospitals. We have 6-7 techs just on second shift, with three
dedicated to just doing specimen setup every night, and everyone comes
up front to help at the end of the shift just so we can get everything
done and go home.

Hope you get the job.

Judy Dilworth, M.T. (ASCP)
Microbiology