What can you expect on your dental interview day?
You'll probably be both nervous and excited. Maybe you're usually anxious meeting new people or public speaking. That's alright. So are about 90% of people in your interview cohort. To ease your nerves, I've put together a series of events that I experienced on my Dental School Interview Day.
Take a deep breath and read on. I promise, the process can be fun if you know what to expect.
Take a deep breath and read on. I promise, the process can be fun if you know what to expect.
Before the interview...
Cutting out the other applicants
Before Dental School Interview Day, there have been multiple cuts from the entire application pool. At my school, roughly 4,000 people applied to be a member of the Class of 2021 and only 640 were invited for the interview. Out of that, only 83 were invited for acceptance.
These cuts are made according to:
-Academic qualifications
If you aren't smart enough in college, you won't be able to handle the dental school coursework.
-DAT scores
Obviously.
-Extracurricular Activities
Dentistry is all about helping people, so schools want to see your dedication to service. If you're interested in reading more about this, check out the post in the Academic Planning section.
-Other factors that are important to the Academic Committee that the rest of us don't know.
Sometimes, you're really lucky to get to the Dental Interview Day and you don't know how you beat out the others who did not get an interview. Just thank your stars and move on.
That means that if you are invited for an Interview, they are very interested in you. Everyone who shows up to Dental School Interview Day is on a level playing field, regardless of your DAT scores or service activities. This is your time to impress the people who will be advocating for you before strangers. You're doing well so far, so let's keep it up!
These cuts are made according to:
-Academic qualifications
If you aren't smart enough in college, you won't be able to handle the dental school coursework.
-DAT scores
Obviously.
-Extracurricular Activities
Dentistry is all about helping people, so schools want to see your dedication to service. If you're interested in reading more about this, check out the post in the Academic Planning section.
-Other factors that are important to the Academic Committee that the rest of us don't know.
Sometimes, you're really lucky to get to the Dental Interview Day and you don't know how you beat out the others who did not get an interview. Just thank your stars and move on.
That means that if you are invited for an Interview, they are very interested in you. Everyone who shows up to Dental School Interview Day is on a level playing field, regardless of your DAT scores or service activities. This is your time to impress the people who will be advocating for you before strangers. You're doing well so far, so let's keep it up!
About the interviewers
At UNC School of Dentistry, we had 3 interviewers: one student interviewer and two faculty interviewers. Each session lasted about thirty minutes and were spaced out with various activities between.
The Student Interviewer
This individual was a current student at the School of Dentistry. It was a close-file interview (AKA a "Blind Interview") in which the interviewer knew nothing about you. In this interview session, you need to convey to the interviewer who you are, what you stand for, and why that school. This will be the most casual of the three interview sessions since the interviewer is younger than the other individuals, but they should still be treated with the upmost respect as they will be advocating for you within the Admissions Committee meeting.
Advice: Be professional. These students have a say in the Admissions Committee meeting. Tell them everything they need to know about you: who you are, why you want to become a dentist, and why you love this school so much.
The Faculty Interviewers
These individuals have some tie to the school, whether that's through part of full time teaching, someone in academic affairs, or the dean. These interviews are open-file, so the interviewer knows everything about you. They have throughly reviewed your primary and secondary applications, your transcript(s), and your personal essay. Be prepared to answer specific questions they might have noted on your files.
I had two completely different types of interviewers: one who was much more serious and wanted to ask me very direct questions about my resume, and another who only wanted to talk about skiing. So, my advice to you is this: try to make them laugh (with you, not at you because you were being a clown), be genuine, and take about three seconds before answering their questions.
Advice: Shake their hand before and after the interview. Speak slowly and deliberately. Be confident in your answers. Remember these are people and not robots. They like compliments, too.
The Student Interviewer
This individual was a current student at the School of Dentistry. It was a close-file interview (AKA a "Blind Interview") in which the interviewer knew nothing about you. In this interview session, you need to convey to the interviewer who you are, what you stand for, and why that school. This will be the most casual of the three interview sessions since the interviewer is younger than the other individuals, but they should still be treated with the upmost respect as they will be advocating for you within the Admissions Committee meeting.
Advice: Be professional. These students have a say in the Admissions Committee meeting. Tell them everything they need to know about you: who you are, why you want to become a dentist, and why you love this school so much.
The Faculty Interviewers
These individuals have some tie to the school, whether that's through part of full time teaching, someone in academic affairs, or the dean. These interviews are open-file, so the interviewer knows everything about you. They have throughly reviewed your primary and secondary applications, your transcript(s), and your personal essay. Be prepared to answer specific questions they might have noted on your files.
I had two completely different types of interviewers: one who was much more serious and wanted to ask me very direct questions about my resume, and another who only wanted to talk about skiing. So, my advice to you is this: try to make them laugh (with you, not at you because you were being a clown), be genuine, and take about three seconds before answering their questions.
Advice: Shake their hand before and after the interview. Speak slowly and deliberately. Be confident in your answers. Remember these are people and not robots. They like compliments, too.
finances, class profiles, and other information sessions
As you can tell from the title, these other sessions were not at the top of my worry-list on the Dental School Interview Day. As long as you are not on your phone for the sessions and make good eye-contact with the speaker, you'll be good.
Trust me, everything you need to know about dental school will be presented to you again upon acceptance, so don't fret over information on interview day. Focus all of your attention on the interview sessions.
Trust me, everything you need to know about dental school will be presented to you again upon acceptance, so don't fret over information on interview day. Focus all of your attention on the interview sessions.
After the interview
You're going to be exhausted and will probably have a headache. That's ok. So does everyone else. Make sure to bring some water and pain relief in your car. You were just on your A game for about 5 hours. When it's over, go home and relax. You'll probably worry about a response you gave or if anyone saw you trip, but it's over now. Just start sending good thoughts out into the universe and wait for either a phone call congratulating you on your acceptance, or an email notifying you of a waitlist spot. Either way, you made it.
Now that the big day is done, don't forget to send the thank you note to your interviews! Check out
How To Write A Thank You Note To Dental School Interviewers!
How To Write A Thank You Note To Dental School Interviewers!