Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I heard there is a dental school that asks (or used to ask?) people being interviewed to bring a person they admired/inspired them/look up to etc... I think it was one in TN but I could be wrong. If anyone knows, please post!
Which school asked you to bring a person to the interview?
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Baylor encourages you to bring people. They are super happy to see someone come with you.
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What for?
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They want the family feel and want your family to be a part of your journey. They gave presentation about financial aid and living and all that jazz so they think it would be beneficial if your family is informed about it too.
I
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Then again they interview MOSTLY in-state so most if not all will drive and will likely bring someone along. So expenses are minimal, if any.
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When I interviewed at the University of Tennessee I was given the option to bring a family member with me but it wasn't required. I took my mom and she participated in the presentation, the school tour, the luncheon, and the question and answer session with current students but not the actual interview.
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I hope none. Because you're an adult.
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Theres nothing wrong with being close to family whether you are 18 years old or 80 years old
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I definitely will be bringing my mom to the bank when I ask for a practice loan. Hopefully her cookies get me a better interest rate.
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That would be my grandfather, but it would be a lot of work to dig him out of the ground just to take him to my interview.
All kidding aside, you're right. In fact, having a support network beyond your dental colleagues is really important.
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I was at an interview where one of the interviewee brought her mom with her. Everybody just look at her weird and it hard for us to interact with her with her mom by her side the whole time. It just make you look immature having someone chaperone you when you at an interview. My advice is to go by yourself, and if you are lucky enough to get an acceptance then bring them to see the school afterward.
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That's true. But ask your non-professional school friends if they brought their mom to their first job interview.
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Bro, I was an orientation leader at my undergrad and an incoming student in his FIFTIES brought his parents....
Edit: This same guy also tried to rush with a fraternity.
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I have not brought a parent/guardian on an interview, but I think that it is absolutely reasonable to bring one, and I think those that do so are smart individuals.
If I had the opportunity to do so, I would bring my dad, who is so well-experienced in evaluating sales pitches & who thinks critically about everything, around with me.
I mean, are you kidding me? THIS IS A $300,000-$500,000 PURCHASE I AM MAKING. OF COURSE I'M GOING TO TAKE THE ADVICE OF THE BEST, UNBIASED COUNSEL THAT I HAVE WHO HAS ONLY MY BEST INTENTIONS AT HEART.
If I had the opportunity to do so, I would bring my dad, who is so well-experienced in evaluating sales pitches & who thinks critically about everything, around with me.
I mean, are you kidding me? THIS IS A $300,000-$500,000 PURCHASE I AM MAKING. OF COURSE I'M GOING TO TAKE THE ADVICE OF THE BEST, UNBIASED COUNSEL THAT I HAVE WHO HAS ONLY MY BEST INTENTIONS AT HEART.
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I dont think there is any immature and say "you're not an adult" by bringing family or significant with you.
Dental school is hard and having a solid emotional support in the back is very important. And there is nothing wrong with letting them be a part of your journey.
I brought my significant other to an interview and he loved it. He was even more excited than me, and I wished I brought him to all the interview I went.
Dental school is hard and having a solid emotional support in the back is very important. And there is nothing wrong with letting them be a part of your journey.
I brought my significant other to an interview and he loved it. He was even more excited than me, and I wished I brought him to all the interview I went.
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fogorvostan
My father worked in sales most of his life. I can just see him trying to haggle the admissions committee for lower tuition and me having to explain that it doesn't work like that...
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LOL. Yep. Our fathers are cut from the same cloth.
I would LOVE it if I got to see my dad print out the in-state 4-year cost of attendance from a Texas dental school and ask MWU-AZ to "price-match" it 😀. I love my dad. He's the best.
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The whole point of the interview is to get to know YOU, not your dad/mom/siblings/friends or whoever you take to the interview with you. They want to see how you interact with people when you are outside your comfort zone in a professional setting. That is why at the interview they give you information about coa so you can make a decision later if you are accepted. They are not forcing you to make a decision right then and there so I don't see how having your dad advice there is necessary. At one of my interview, they told us we can't bring family members because they want to get to know the real us. I don't know about you, but I know I act different when I'm around my family vs when I'm around my friends or peers.
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And in this case, you should go alone and that makes sense. But when a school policy encourages you to bring family members, then I don't see anything wrong with it.
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fogorvostan
He'd probably ask my mother to try and find some coupons. "Buy one DMD degree and get one 50% off!"
Nah but in all seriousness, I could see how this would be nice for an in state school. There was no way that I could afford to have a parent or SO to follow me around the country for my other interviews.
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Some candidate brought her little sister to the interview. She came in wearing a hoodie. Admissions seemed pretty annoyed. It was another person they had to cater to and it pulled attention away from the candidate. We are interviewing for a prospective career as an oral health care provider. Would you bring a guest to a job interview?
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Yes, I think Texas A&M was one of the schools that encouraged it. As the husband of a dental student you better believe I was involved in every step of the process, including the interview day. It's not just her moving to a new city and taking on a huge amount of debt, stress, etc, we both are. So to have family, especially family that close, involved seems perfectly reasonable to me.
That said, notice I said "interview day", I do think it would be a tad awkward to have a family member sit with you in the waiting areas for the actual interview part. At Texas A&M, since they encouraged family involvement, I actually walked to the school with her that morning and almost all the way to the interview area, told her good luck, and then proceeded to get lost in that cavernous maze trying to find my way out... I spent the rest of the day exploring the surrounding area.
Same at the other Texas schools, but I just dropped her off since they didn't have the "bring your fam!" stuff. I did scope out the areas though. It can be a pretty big decision for people close to the applicant.
She now attends that maze school...
That said, notice I said "interview day", I do think it would be a tad awkward to have a family member sit with you in the waiting areas for the actual interview part. At Texas A&M, since they encouraged family involvement, I actually walked to the school with her that morning and almost all the way to the interview area, told her good luck, and then proceeded to get lost in that cavernous maze trying to find my way out... I spent the rest of the day exploring the surrounding area.
Same at the other Texas schools, but I just dropped her off since they didn't have the "bring your fam!" stuff. I did scope out the areas though. It can be a pretty big decision for people close to the applicant.
She now attends that maze school...
So did you go on the tour with her? And did anyone else bring their parent? Thanks!
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I did not go on the tour with her. Mostly because we didn't want to go through the trouble of me parking in the garage again, finding her, all that. Plus, I wasn't too concerned with the actual "inside" of the school, that was for her to judge. I mostly scoped out the surrounding areas. I think one or two interviewees did bring a guest though. I don't think it was a big deal.
Dumb question: why are undergraduate colleges cater heavily to students' parents (e.g. they have their own orientation, a whole department is dedicated for parent relations), whereas professional schools don't? I get it, we are supposed to be mature adults by now, but weren't we also adults at 18 years old?
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Have you met some of the 18 year old freshman? They are a mess. I can assure you I am far more mature now than I was as a freshman out of highschool.
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Some kids even apply to college when they are 16 (and start at 17).
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Because, these days, it is common for parents to finance their children's undergrad education.
University of Tennessee in Memphis requests you to bring someone. It's not required and Dr. Covington doesn't hold it against you, but he wants to explain to loved ones, spouses, families, etc. that little Johnny may not be home for Grandma's funeral or for Thanksgiving dinner because Johnny may well have exams to prep for, etc, etc, etc. It was all good to hear, but it really wasn't necessary. I had 11 interviews and UT was the only school that allowed guests.
