This guide helps veterinary practice managers design a simple, repeatable process to evaluate job applicants using ChatGPT. It focuses on identifying candidates with curiosity, drive, love of animals, interest in science, and customer service aptitude.
Define Your Prerequisites
Before you can evaluate a candidate, you need to be clear on what matters most to your hospital. Take 15 minutes to answer these questions:
- Core qualities: What do you want more of on your team? (Examples: curiosity, patience, customer service, technical skill.)
- Must-haves vs. nice-to-haves: Are certifications or previous experience required, or can you train the right person?
- Growth orientation: How important is learning quickly and taking initiative?
- Culture fit: What behaviors make someone thrive in your hospital? What behaviors are deal-breakers?
Write down 3–5 short points. Example: “Must like animals, must be patient with owners, curious about medicine, good communicator.”
Once you have your list complete, test them inside your management or hospital team. For example, let’s say that you determine that ‘being supportive’ is important to you and your team. Identify such a quality in an existing team member and ask yourself if the word ‘supportive’ is really describing what you like most about her. Alternatively, try to come up with a question that identifies supportiveness and if the answers to such questions would be meaningful to you in the selection process. Use this exercise to help you hone your list of what matters most.
Create Three to Four Screening Questions
Once you have the criteria that you are looking for identified, use these guidelines for building your questions. There are sample questions for you at the end of this section.
Keep It Situational and Specific
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Why: Specific scenarios show how someone thinks and acts.
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How: Instead of “Do you like working with people?” ask:
“A client brings in a sick pet and is very anxious. How would you talk to them?” -
Tip: Use everyday clinic moments—waiting rooms, a nervous dog, a billing question.
Focus on Curiosity and Learning
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Why: You want people who want to grow, not just those who like animals.
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How: Ask open-ended prompts:
“What’s something new you’ve learned about animals or science that excited you?”
“What would you like to know more about in this job?”
Show Your Values
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Why: Candidates’ answers reflect whether they share your priorities.
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How: Ask about teamwork, client service, follow-through:
“When a coworker is struggling with a busy shift, how would you help?”
Avoid “Yes/No” Questions
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Why: Closed questions shut down conversation.
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How: Use “What,” “How,” and “Tell me about” starts:
“Tell me about a time you solved a problem for someone.”
Ask for Examples and Details
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Why: Real stories reveal mindset better than vague promises.
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How: Follow up with:
“Can you give me an example?”
“What did you learn from that?”
Keep Language Friendly and Simple
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Why: Many entry-level applicants may not have medical backgrounds.
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How: Avoid jargon; say “pet owner” instead of “client,” “care” instead of “patient management.”
Limit to 3–4 Strong Questions
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Why: Overlong questionnaires tire people out and yield rushed answers.
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How: One client-service question, one curiosity/growth question, one animal-care question usually covers the bases.
- A client comes in frustrated because of a long wait. What would you say or do?
- Tell me about something new you learned recently that made you proud. How did you learn it?
- What interests you most about working with animals and the people who care for them?
- If you could learn one new skill in this hospital, what would it be and why?
Keep each question simple. Ask for 2–5 sentence answers.
Sample Questions
1. Client Service Scenario
A pet owner arrives upset because their wait time was longer than expected. What would you say or do to help them feel cared for?
2. Curiosity and Growth
Tell me about something new you learned recently (at school, work, or home). How did you learn it, and what made it interesting to you?
3. Affinity for Animals and People
What do you enjoy most about being around animals, and how do you think that helps the people who own them?
4. Problem-Solving Example
Think of a time you solved a problem for someone else (family, friend, coworker). What did you do and what did you learn?
5. Future Goals
If you could learn one new skill in this job over the next year, what would it be and why?
Include a Disclaimer
These questions are designed to help us understand your interest in veterinary medicine and customer service. Your responses will be considered along with other factors (skills, experience, references) and will not be used to discriminate based on age, race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law.
Best Practices for Staying Compliant
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Keep questions job-related: Avoid anything about family, health, religion, or unrelated hobbies.
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Use consistent questions: Ask all applicants the same set of screening questions.
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Make it voluntary but clear: It’s fine to say responses are part of the hiring process but not the only factor.
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Save answers securely: Don’t share beyond the hiring team.
Administering the Test
- Email the questions to applicants or include them in an online form. For convenience these can be stored on your practice’s website. This is usually straightforward business. Get the password to log into your website from your website creator. Google how to log into your website. Use the password to gain access to the editing tools. Create the form.
- Ask them to type their answers (no phone calls; written answers are easier to score).
- Make clear they can use everyday language; you want honest thoughts, not perfect grammar. ChatGPT will not grade on grammar unless you ask it to.
Collect and Load Answers into ChatGPT
When you receive responses:
- Open a ChatGPT chat.
- Paste each question and answer in this format:
Question 1: [Applicant’s answer]Question 2: [Applicant’s answer]Question 3: [Applicant’s answer]
- Include your scoring focus: “Please score these answers for interest in veterinary medicine, growth mindset, customer service orientation, and overall fit (0–3 for each). Provide a summary.”
Running the Evaluation in ChatGPT
Example prompt to ChatGPT:
Evaluate this applicant for curiosity, growth, interest in animals, and client care. Score each answer from 0–3 and give a short summary.
ChatGPT will:
- Rate each answer.
- Highlight strengths and weaknesses.
- Give a quick overall fit (e.g., Strong, Possible, Weak).
Making Your Decision
- Use the scores as one piece of the puzzle. Combine them with interviews, references, and trial shifts.
- Look for patterns: Does the candidate light up about learning? Do they handle clients with empathy? Are they motivated by helping animals?
- Repeat the process across all candidates for consistency.
Hone the Process
ChatGPT isn’t a thinker, it’s a doer…doing things based on millions of bits of data and the efforts of others. It doesn’t ‘know’ if what it’s providing you actually works for you; it’s guessing that it will work for you based on other bits of online evidence. This process is something you will have to refine with time. Collect answers, weigh them against the other criteria for hiring, make the hire, and then follow through to see whether your hiring strategy worked. Tweak the system moving forward as needed. Unless you provide ChatGPT feedback, it’s not going to be able to give you ideal results.