Are dental school interviews similar to onsite interviews for jobs at major companies?

[dent_wannabe]

In case anybody has never gone through an onsite interview for a job at a major company, if you make it to this step, you already made it past a very big cut. At that point, they pretty much end up offering a position to every candidate that they like. Do dental school interviews generally work this way too?

I know the major difference is that when interviewing for jobs, the company reimburses you for your reasonable travel expenses (e.g., flight, hotel, meals, ground transportation), whereas for dental school, the travel is at your own expense. It can cost the company over $1000 to bring in a candidate, and that cost can justify not wasting their resources on candidates they would not accept given the information they already have. Therefore, you pretty much get the offer if you don't screw up. Sure, they may still want to go over some things seen on your resume with you just to make sure you are who you appear to be on paper, but at that step, your GPA and qualifications are no longer being compared with that of other candidates. They will say that those who interview with you are your peers rather than your competition.

On the other hand, dental schools do not have to pay out all those travel costs for candidates invited to interview. However, I would like to hope that they don't want to waste your time, nor the interviewers' time. By extending an interview invitation, can you expect that the concept is still generally the same? That is, they want to verify that you are who you appear to be on your application, but your GPA, DAT, and other qualifications are no longer being compared with that of other candidates? Thus, if you do not get an acceptance after your interview, the issue is your interview?

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[Jlm50]

I believe it really depends on the school. Some schools are known to be more generous with interviews than others, I've seen a few conversations about it on here.. It also depends on WHEN you are interviewed. If you are pre-December, I'd say there is a better chance of the scenario being closer to what you are describing. When I interviewed at BU, they literally said to us "You guys are competitive and we will spend the day trying to convince you to choose us, so don't stress." If you're interviewing in March, you're hoping you blow them out of the water and get placed higher on the waitlist.

 

[pma96]

In case anybody has never gone through an onsite interview for a job at a major company, if you make it to this step, you already made it past a very big cut. At that point, they pretty much end up offering a position to every candidate that they like. Do dental school interviews generally work this way too?

I know the major difference is that when interviewing for jobs, the company reimburses you for your reasonable travel expenses (e.g., flight, hotel, meals, ground transportation), whereas for dental school, the travel is at your own expense. It can cost the company over $1000 to bring in a candidate, and that cost can justify not wasting their resources on candidates they would not accept given the information they already have. Therefore, you pretty much get the offer if you don't screw up. Sure, they may still want to go over some things seen on your resume with you just to make sure you are who you appear to be on paper, but at that step, your GPA and qualifications are no longer being compared with that of other candidates. They will say that those who interview with you are your peers rather than your competition.

On the other hand, dental schools do not have to pay out all those travel costs for candidates invited to interview. However, I would like to hope that they don't want to waste your time, nor the interviewers' time. By extending an interview invitation, can you expect that the concept is still generally the same? That is, they want to verify that you are who you appear to be on your application, but your GPA, DAT, and other qualifications are no longer being compared with that of other candidates? Thus, if you do not get an acceptance after your interview, the issue is your interview?

Yup, it depends on the school. In general, I believe if you were invited to interview it's because the adcom is interested in you as an applicant. But, keep in mind that schools normally interview way more people than what they actually accept, most of them with good stats. So, take advantage of the opportunity to interview to convince them that they should accept you. Show your interpersonal skills, a deep interest in the school, and your passion for dentistry.