You have recently graduated from a dental school and are looking to take the first step in your career in dentistry. As you start the new journey and experience the roller-coaster path of growth, challenge, and excitement, you’ll find that dentistry provides a rewarding occupation in every stage of life.
Before you start down that path, you’ll need to ace your interviews and land a job. Here are a few effective tips to nail your job interviews as a recent dental school graduate.
Tip 1: Don’t simply list your experiences, take time to explain too
It is being said that past performance is the best predictor of future performance, and as a recent dental school graduate, you’ll have to work extra hard to showcase your past performance.
Since you yet have no professional work experience added to your profile, you’ll need to demonstrate that you acquired valuable experience in your school or internship positions..
When you talk about a previous experience, be it a job, an internship, or even a practical class, talk about the concrete results you achieved or the functions you performed.
Tip 2: Stay calm
In any medical setting, there’s no telling what patients will throw at you and some interviewers will want to know how you act under pressure or in unfamiliar odd situations.
Make sure you mentally prepare yourself for odd situations and decide in advance how you’ll respond to more challenging interview questions.
Remembering these things will allow you to perform calmly during your interview, showing that you have a clear mind and strong decision-making capabilities regardless of the situation.
Tip 3: Understand the requirement of the position you’re applying for
It is vital to understand the requirements of the position you are applying for. It may sound basic, but a core part of any interview is talking about what you’d be doing for the company, so, it will allow you to learn about the job requirements, and more.
Tip 4: Make sure to have a list of your questions
Always remember that you are interviewing the office as much as they are interviewing you. Consider thinking of two question categories when interviewing—clinical and administrative.
Clinical questions encompass anything that is in relation to patient care. The primary question to consider is clarifying the working hours. What are the working hours for each specific day? Is there a lunch break? Make sure to consider the working hours and how they fit into your lifestyle.
Always inquire about appointment lengths for different types of patients including child patients, periodontal maintenance, etc. Based on the response, you might need to inquire as to whether there is any flexibility in appointment lengths as you are becoming familiar with patient care.
Administrative questions include the benefits of being an employee at the practice. Always consider clarifying what benefits the office offers like retirement, health insurance, dental coverage, paid time off, holiday pay, sick leave, maternity/paternity leave, etc.
So the bottomline is that the interview is a time to show your personality. It is an opportunity for the practice/hospital to see if you are a good fit for them and for you to decide if they are a good fit for you. While interviews can be intimidating, however, understanding what to expect, doing thorough research and following the above-mentioned tips will help you in increasing your chances of acceptance to the job you have applied for.
