Aberdeen graduate entry Dentistry Interview: Questions & MMI Format

All 50 Aberdeen graduate entry dentistry practice interview questions

Original MedicHut practice questions. Real interviews may differ.

Motivation

1. What prompted you to leave your previous degree or career path to pursue dentistry, and how have you prepared for this transition?

   Follow-up: Which academic or professional skills from your previous background will help you during a dental degree?

   Follow-up: Which practical or clinical skills do you expect to need to develop from scratch?

2. You are an applicant completing work experience in an NHS dental practice. You are shadowing a supervising dentist and a dental nurse during a routine check-up and gum treatment for a patient with severe toothache. A relative recently told you that dentistry is purely cosmetic, like tooth whitening and veneers. How would you explain dentistry's role in health to your relative, drawing on what you have observed or studied?

   Follow-up: How would you acknowledge a patient's cosmetic wishes while keeping their oral health as the primary goal?

   Follow-up: How has learning about dentistry's role in health influenced your motivation to become a dentist?

3. You are an applicant on work experience at a community dental clinic, shadowing a supervising dentist. The dental receptionist is managing an emergency walk-in session for severe dental pain. The clinic is full, and patients without a regular dentist are waiting in distress. How would you explain the broader challenges facing dental access in the UK, drawing on your observations and research while staying within the limits of your knowledge?

   Follow-up: How does limited access to routine dental care impact emergency services and hospital admissions?

   Follow-up: What communication steps can the dental team take to support patients who are turned away when a clinic is full?

4. Tell us about a moment during work experience or shadowing that showed you the emotional pressures dental professionals face. How did it influence your decision to pursue dentistry?

   Follow-up: How did what you observed compare with your expectations of the emotional demands of dentistry?

   Follow-up: How could you manage these pressures as a dental student while staying within your level of training and responsibility?

5. You shadow a professional whose day includes lengthy conversations and little technical work. How would that affect your expectations of dentistry? Draw on your previous degree, work or life experience where relevant, without inventing dental experience.

   Follow-up: What value did the lengthy conversations add that a technically focused account of dentistry might miss?

   Follow-up: How would you check whether your impression from one observed day was representative?

6. You discover that some patients struggle to access routine dental care. Explain how that knowledge influences your reasons for applying. Draw on your previous degree, work or life experience where relevant, without inventing dental experience.

   Follow-up: Which barriers to routine dental care would you want to understand before proposing a solution?

   Follow-up: How might this knowledge change the kind of dentist you hope to become?

Experience

1. You are a first-year dental student on a hospital placement, observing a supervising dentist and a dental nurse prepare a patient for a surgical extraction. The dentist asks you to reflect on personal responsibility. Think of a time in your studies or employment when someone relied entirely on your judgement under pressure. What did it teach you about personal accountability, and how would you apply this to patient care?

   Follow-up: What steps do you take when you realise a decision you made under pressure was flawed?

   Follow-up: How would you balance following a supervisor's instructions with taking personal responsibility for your own actions in clinic?

2. Tell us about a practical skill from your studies, work or hobbies that you had to unlearn and rebuild after critical feedback. What changes did you make to your approach?

   Follow-up: How did you check that your new approach produced consistently better results?

   Follow-up: How will this experience help you adapt your habits when learning precise dental techniques?

3. Tell us about a time you caused a misunderstanding. How did you correct it and repair trust? Draw on your previous degree, work or life experience where relevant, without inventing dental experience.

   Follow-up: What signal first made you realise that the other person had misunderstood you?

   Follow-up: What did you do to confirm the misunderstanding had actually been resolved?

4. Describe an occasion when a practical task required you to work slowly despite pressure to finish. What did you learn about accuracy? Draw on your previous degree, work or life experience where relevant, without inventing dental experience.

   Follow-up: Which accuracy checks were most useful when others wanted the task finished quickly?

   Follow-up: What would you do if meeting the deadline meant skipping an important check?

5. Tell us about a situation outside healthcare or dentistry where you supported someone whose preferences or values differed from your own. How did you ensure their wishes were respected?

   Follow-up: What did this experience teach you about your own assumptions?

   Follow-up: How would you apply what you learned to future working relationships?

6. Tell us about a time in your studies or work experience when you worked closely with someone whose communication style was very different from yours. How did you adapt your communication to complete the task effectively?

   Follow-up: What first made you notice the differences in your communication styles?

   Follow-up: How would you adapt the communication techniques you used in that experience for dental training?

Communication

1. You are a work-experience student shadowing the reception desk of an NHS dental practice. A nervous ten-year-old child waiting with their mum approaches you because a friend said every dental appointment involves an injection. Speak directly to the child to acknowledge their fear and encourage them to share their worries with the dentist. You cannot give clinical advice or make promises about whether an injection will be needed.

   Follow-up: What words would you avoid when trying to reassure an anxious child about a procedure?

   Follow-up: How would you involve the child's mum in the conversation?

2. You are a dentistry applicant volunteering at a healthcare taster stall during a secondary school careers fair. A parent asks why dental professionals emphasise prevention when their seven-year-old child has never had toothache. Speak directly to the parent to explore their view and explain in plain English the general value of prevention before problems arise. You cannot give clinical advice, assess their child's dental health or recommend care.

   Follow-up: How would you respond if the parent asked you to recommend care for their child?

   Follow-up: What phrasing would you use to check that the parent has understood your explanation without making them feel tested or judged?

3. You are a dentistry applicant volunteering at a residential care home. In the staff room, a care assistant tells you they feel exhausted by nightly struggles to brush their five-year-old child's teeth and want someone to listen. You cannot give clinical advice. Speak directly to your colleague. Acknowledge their exhaustion and explore their home routine without placing blame.

   Follow-up: How would you ask whether they would welcome a discussion of general, non-clinical ways to make bedtime feel less stressful?

   Follow-up: How can you support someone who feels guilty about their parenting without offering unsolicited clinical advice?

4. You are a dental student working part-time to help manage the queue at a busy community pharmacy. An upset customer approaches you because they missed their appointment this morning after text reminders were sent to an old phone number. You cannot give clinical advice. Speak directly to the customer to acknowledge the inconvenience and understand what has happened.

   Follow-up: How would you explain to the customer that you will ask the pharmacy team to check their booking and help update their contact details?

   Follow-up: What steps would you take to protect the customer's confidential contact details in a busy public setting?

5. You are a dentistry applicant volunteering as a coach at a local youth football club. After a planning meeting for a health and fitness workshop, your fellow volunteer coach, Sam, approaches you privately. Sam says you repeatedly interrupted them and made them feel their ideas were ignored. You cannot give clinical advice. Speak directly to Sam, acknowledge their feelings and apologise sincerely.

   Follow-up: How would you check that you had understood Sam's point of view?

   Follow-up: What practical ground rules would you suggest to Sam for working together in future meetings?

6. You are a dental student helping at a dental society stall during an Aberdeen university open day. A prospective graduate-entry applicant approaches you after seeing a display photo of dental clinicians wearing masks, gloves and visors. They ask you whether dental clinics are dangerous places to work because the equipment makes them anxious. You cannot give clinical advice. Speak directly to the visitor, listen to their concern and explain the purpose of protective equipment in plain English. Give a balanced, reassuring explanation without making unrealistic claims or using medical jargon.

   Follow-up: How would you explain the use of personal protective equipment to someone whose anxiety is triggered by clinical gear?

   Follow-up: Why is it important to avoid making absolute guarantees when discussing infection control measures?

7. You are an applicant to graduate-entry dentistry at Aberdeen, at home when your older cousin, Morgan, phones you. An old filling has fallen out, but a frightening childhood experience has stopped Morgan from visiting a dentist for twenty years. You cannot give clinical advice or make guarantees about what a dentist will do. Acknowledge Morgan's feelings warmly and explore what might help them feel safe seeking care.

   Follow-up: How would you respond if Morgan became too upset to continue the conversation?

   Follow-up: How would you check that Morgan has understood what you have discussed?

8. You are a dental student working part time behind the counter at a busy café. Sam, a teenage customer, approaches you looking upset because classmates have been teasing them about their crooked front teeth. Sam knows you study dentistry and asks whether you think they need braces. Listen with empathy and explore how the comments are affecting them. You cannot give clinical advice. Avoid commenting on their physical appearance or suggesting any specific treatment.

   Follow-up: How would you explain to Sam how they can seek advice from a dental professional?

   Follow-up: How would you protect Sam's privacy during this conversation in a busy café?

Ethics

1. You are an applicant on work experience in a busy dental surgery, shadowing a supervising dentist and a dental nurse during a consultation for an infected molar. The appointment is running late, and the next patient is waiting. The patient agrees to root canal treatment but quietly tells you they do not understand the alternatives while the dentist writes notes. What should you do in this situation?

   Follow-up: How might time pressure affect the patient's willingness to ask questions?

   Follow-up: Why is consent not considered valid if a patient does not understand the alternatives to a proposed procedure?

2. You are a first-year dental student shadowing a supervising dentist and a dental nurse in an outpatient dental clinic. An adult patient is preparing for a complex tooth extraction. The patient speaks very little English, the professional interpreter is late, and the clinic is running behind schedule. To save time, the nurse suggests asking the patient's adult nephew to translate the consent discussion. What concerns would you raise about using a family member to gain valid consent?

   Follow-up: How would you respond if the patient asked for their nephew to interpret?

   Follow-up: How could the team manage the delay respectfully while ensuring the patient's autonomy is protected?

3. You are an applicant on work experience in an NHS dental practice, observing a supervising dentist and a dental nurse during an adult patient's appointment. The patient's partner presents a handwritten note stating that they have full authority to make all treatment choices for the patient. What issues would you discuss with your supervising dentist about obtaining valid consent in this situation?

   Follow-up: What would you want to understand about how the patient's capacity to make this treatment decision is assessed?

   Follow-up: How would you protect the patient's confidentiality when raising concerns in your work-experience role?

4. You are a first-year dental student in a university dental hospital. During a ten-minute break between clinical sessions, you enter a shared teaching room and see an unattended computer left logged in. The screen displays a patient's name, medical history and treatment plan, while students and visitors walk past the open door. Your clinic with your supervising tutor starts in five minutes. What would you do immediately to protect patient confidentiality, and who would you inform?

   Follow-up: How would you discuss this incident with the person who left the computer logged in?

   Follow-up: Why is data protection vital in maintaining public trust in dental healthcare?

5. You are a first-year dental student clearing away dental impressions with a fellow student in the university dental laboratory after a restorative clinic. Your peer takes a photograph of a plaster model to share on social media, but you notice that the patient's name and hospital number are visible on the base. Your peer insists that the image is harmless and that no one will zoom in on the label. What professional responsibilities arise here, and how should you address this with your peer?

   Follow-up: How would you respond if your peer dismissed your concern and posted the picture anyway?

   Follow-up: What are the potential consequences for the patient and the student if identifiable healthcare information is shared online?

6. You are an applicant completing work experience at a private dental practice. You are observing a dentist and a dental nurse prepare an adult patient for ceramic veneers. The dentist invites you to take photos on your personal mobile phone for your application portfolio, without having discussed this with the patient. What professional and ethical issues arise, and how would you respond to the dentist's invitation?

   Follow-up: Why is explicit consent required for clinical photography even if the photograph does not show the patient's full face?

   Follow-up: How could you show what you learned during this placement in your portfolio while protecting patient confidentiality?

7. You are a first-year dental student on clinical placement in a general dental surgery. You observe a supervising dentist and a dental nurse discussing an extraction with a hesitant patient who initially agreed to it. The receptionist tells you that the patient asked whether the dentist would be annoyed if they changed their mind. What does this suggest about how freely the patient has given consent, and what should you do within your student role?

   Follow-up: How could the dental team help patients feel comfortable changing their mind about treatment?

   Follow-up: How can you share the receptionist's comment with the supervising dentist constructively and respectfully?

8. You are an applicant on work experience shadowing in an NHS dental hospital clinic. A dental nurse is handing over information about a patient booked for a surgical tooth extraction to the supervising dentist. You think you heard the nurse mention an allergy to penicillin, but the dentist writes down that there are no known allergies. The clinic is running late, and the dentist is preparing to inject local anaesthetic right away. How would you raise your concern politely and promptly while staying within your role as an observer?

   Follow-up: How would you respond if the patient became worried after hearing your concern?

   Follow-up: What would you do if the dentist dismissed your comment quickly and prepared to proceed?

Dental team

1. You are a first-year dental student shadowing at the front desk of a busy high street dental practice. A receptionist is dealing with an angry caller whose root canal treatment appointment was cancelled due to staff sickness. The caller reports severe toothache, demands immediate clinical advice and shouts down the line. Other patients are queuing at the desk. As a student, you cannot give clinical advice. How would you raise concerns with your supervisor while staying within your role?

   Follow-up: How would you protect the caller's confidentiality when sharing information about the situation?

   Follow-up: How could you support a calm and respectful environment without taking over the receptionist's responsibilities?

2. You are a first-year dental student shadowing in a community dental clinic. Before the next appointment, the dental nurse notices that the materials on the tray do not match the day plan. The dentist is reviewing notes and seems keen to stay on schedule. How should the team raise and resolve this discrepancy professionally before any work begins?

   Follow-up: How could the dentist create an environment where team members feel comfortable raising concerns?

   Follow-up: What checks could the team introduce to keep tray materials consistent with the day plan in future?

3. You are an applicant on work experience at the reception desk of an NHS dental practice on a Friday afternoon. An anxious parent tells you that their eight-year-old child has developed sudden facial swelling after a filling two days ago. They ask whether to give leftover antibiotics or wait until Monday. The clinic closes in twenty minutes, and both dentists are treating patients in surgery. You cannot give clinical advice or make a diagnosis. How would you respond within your work-experience role?

   Follow-up: What would you say if the parent continued to press you for advice about antibiotics?

   Follow-up: How could you prepare for situations like this before starting work experience?

4. You are a first-year dental student shadowing a dental hygienist in a high street dental practice. After a clean, the hygienist gives the patient an English leaflet on flossing techniques. The patient seems confused and says they find written medical instructions very difficult to follow. The hygienist has five minutes before the next patient arrives. As a student observer, how would you raise the patient's communication needs with the hygienist while staying within your role?

   Follow-up: What practical alternatives to written leaflets could you ask the hygienist about to help this patient understand the information?

   Follow-up: How could you raise the recording of the patient's communication preferences with the team while respecting the patient's privacy?

5. You are a first-year dental student on a study visit to an orthodontic production laboratory. A dental technician shows you an appliance work order with handwritten specifications that could be interpreted in two different ways. The courier is due to collect the finished item this afternoon, and a colleague suggests making a best guess to avoid delays. What communication needs to take place between the laboratory and the prescribing clinician before any further work is carried out?

   Follow-up: How should the technician handle pressure from colleagues to complete the job before clarification is received?

   Follow-up: What steps can dental practices and laboratories take to reduce ambiguity in written technical requests?

Public health

1. You are an applicant on work experience observing a local healthcare planning meeting with a community dental director and a council public health officer. The council has received a fixed one-year grant to improve dental access, but they must choose between funding a mobile dental van for remote farming villages or opening evening clinics in the town centre. Both proposals aim to help people who struggle to attend daytime appointments, but funding is only available for one option. A decision must be agreed today to avoid losing the grant money. The panel asks for your perspective as a work-experience student. What factors and evidence would you consider when discussing how to make a fair and balanced choice?

   Follow-up: Which specific patient groups might miss out if the mobile rural service is chosen over the town evening clinic?

   Follow-up: How could the council measure the success of the chosen project after six months?

2. You are a dental student volunteering with a university outreach committee that has launched an online oral health awareness campaign. The website has received thousands of visits, but the local health centre reports few appointment bookings or requests for further resources. How would you evaluate the campaign's reach and effectiveness beyond website visits?

   Follow-up: What feedback could the team gather to find out whether people understood the campaign's message?

   Follow-up: How could the committee investigate why website visitors did not take the recommended next steps?

3. You are a first-year dental student reviewing an invented health initiative at a primary school in Aberdeen with a community dental officer. The school replaced sugary drinks in its canteen with water one year ago. Dental screening recorded decay in 40 of 100 pupils just before the change and 40 of 100 pupils twelve months later, using different groups of pupils aged five to ten. The first screening counted only obvious cavities, while the follow-up also counted early signs of decay. The headteacher is disappointed by these made-up practice results and is considering dropping the policy next term. Look at the graph below. What possible reasons might explain why the recorded levels of decay did not change, and what extra information would you need?

   Follow-up: How might the biological timeline of tooth decay affect the results of a one-year study?

   Follow-up: What other sources of sugar or oral hygiene habits outside the school canteen could influence these findings?

4. You are an applicant on work experience observing a planning meeting between a supervising community dentist and a representative from a local children's charity. The charity proposes giving a free toothbrush and tube of fluoride toothpaste to every primary school child in an area with high levels of tooth decay. The plan does not provide replacements or ongoing support for families who cannot afford new supplies. The school term starts in two weeks, and the committee needs a practical plan. Your supervising dentist asks for your thoughts as an observer. What would you consider when suggesting ways to make this scheme sustainable for low-income families?

   Follow-up: How could the school or local dental practices help families replenish oral hygiene supplies without causing stigma?

   Follow-up: What educational or practical support alongside the brush giveaway could improve long-term brushing habits?

5. You are a first-year dental student attending an NHS dental public health focus group with a supervising consultant and a local patient advocate. The health board has drafted posters and leaflets about oral hygiene and dental attendance. The patient advocate criticises the materials, arguing that they blame individuals for poor oral health while ignoring local poverty, dental charges and limited access to NHS dentists. The final design is due to be signed off by the end of the day for printing. Your supervising consultant asks for your views as a student. What would you consider when suggesting how the campaign could address these concerns respectfully and constructively?

   Follow-up: How can dental health campaigns encourage good oral hygiene habits without sounding judgemental towards people living in poverty?

   Follow-up: What steps could the health board take to involve local patients directly in creating future health messages?

Dexterity

1. On a sheet of paper, draw a top-down plan of six building blocks arranged as two rows of three, with the middle block in the back row turned sideways. Put the plan beside an empty workspace and physically recreate it with the blocks, checking each position against the plan.

   Follow-up: How did you handle any errors or uncertainties during the task?

   Follow-up: How would you improve the drawing so another person could follow it?

2. Describe a practical technique from your previous degree or job that took several attempts to learn, including the movement involved.

   Follow-up: How did feedback help you correct an error in your technique?

   Follow-up: How did you measure your improvement?

3. Using reusable putty, shape a dome with a flat base. Stand it on a table and inspect it from above and from two sides. Make one small correction to improve symmetry without changing the base.

   Follow-up: What did you observe before and after the correction?

   Follow-up: How did you keep the parts you wanted to preserve from changing?

4. A friend is learning to tie a shoelace bow. Using a clean shoe or a loose lace on a table, demonstrate the movement slowly, then ask them to try while you give spoken guidance without taking over. If practising alone, record a step-by-step explanation.

   Follow-up: How would you check whether your explanation makes clear which end moves at each stage?

   Follow-up: How would you respond if your explanation worked for you but not for your friend?

Teamwork

1. You are a sixth-form volunteer helping to run an activities fair at a local community centre. Two senior organisers are giving conflicting instructions about setting up the tables and scheduling events. Volunteers are confused, tasks are being undone, and the doors are due to open in under an hour. How would you help the organisers agree on a plan without causing friction?

   Follow-up: What would you do if the organisers could not reach an agreement?

   Follow-up: Once an agreed plan is reached, how would you ensure that all volunteers receive and understand the updated instructions?

2. You are a first-year university student taking part in a practical lab team challenge to build a pressurised hydraulic apparatus. Most of your group members are rushing to complete the build before the deadline and are talking over each other. You notice that one of your peers has spotted a loose seal on a valve, but they appear timid and are hesitating to interrupt the rest of the team. If the seal fails under pressure, the experiment will be disqualified and equipment may be damaged. How would you intervene to encourage this teammate to speak up and ensure the concern is addressed?

   Follow-up: What words would you use in that moment to create a safe space for your hesitant peer to explain their concern?

   Follow-up: How would you handle the situation if other team members dismissed the observation and tried to press on regardless?

3. You are a Year 13 student working in a team of four to present a live physics demonstration to visiting secondary school pupils. Without consulting the team, one teammate changes the order of the apparatus setup mid-presentation to speed up the demonstration. This disrupts the timing, causes confusion on stage and could have caused an electrical hazard. How would you respond during the rest of the presentation?

   Follow-up: How would you discuss the change with your teammate afterwards?

   Follow-up: What could your team agree before future demonstrations to prevent similar problems?

4. You are a university student volunteering on the organising committee for a community fundraising sports day. Three times as many local teams have signed up as the venue can safely accommodate, and registration must close today. Your fellow student organisers are arguing, with some wanting to prioritise friends and early applicants, while others want a random draw. How would you help the committee reach a fair and transparent decision?

   Follow-up: How would you respond if a fellow organiser refused to accept the committee's decision?

   Follow-up: How would you communicate the outcome to teams who missed out while maintaining good relationships?

5. You are a first-year dental student working on an assessed group presentation with three peers. One teammate has missed two agreed deadlines for an important research section without giving an explanation. The final submission is in forty-eight hours, and the rest of the group is worried about their overall grade. How would you approach a private conversation with this teammate about the missed deadlines?

   Follow-up: How would you keep the project on track and divide the work fairly if the conversation does not resolve the problem?

   Follow-up: How could your group reduce the risk of similar problems in future projects?

Reasoning

1. You are a sixth-form student volunteering on an educational committee for a local community health project. A fellow volunteer wants to post an article on your public website claiming that a new home remedy can completely replace standard dental hygiene routines. The article provides no author credentials, scientific references or peer-reviewed evidence. How would you decide whether this article is reliable enough to publish?

   Follow-up: How would you explain to your fellow volunteer why the evidence needs to be checked before the article is shared?

   Follow-up: What would you do if the committee had already published the article?

2. You are an applicant on work experience attending a clinical governance meeting with the clinical director and patient liaison officer at a dental hospital. In this fictional practice example, the hospital measured the time from referral to first specialist restorative appointment for 120 patients seen between January and June 2025. The 100 straightforward patients each waited two weeks, while the 20 complex patients with severe dental pain or multiple conditions each waited 26 weeks. The hospital published only the overall average of six weeks, without the range or a breakdown by patient group. The meeting has thirty minutes before morning clinics start to review complaints from frustrated patients. Look at the graph below. Why is publishing only an average waiting time misleading for patients with urgent or complex needs?

   Follow-up: What additional information or data breakdowns should the hospital provide to give patients a more accurate picture?

   Follow-up: How might misleading waiting time data affect the trust between patients and the dental team when delays occur?

3. You are a first-year dental student shadowing the triage nurse and a supervising senior dentist in an emergency community dental clinic. There is one remaining appointment slot at 4:30 pm, and the clinic must close on time in one hour. Two patients have requested the slot: an elderly patient who cannot eat solid food because their denture broke this morning, and a young adult with worsening toothache who has missed two previous check-ups. The supervising dentist asks for your view. Without making a clinical diagnosis, how would you approach this decision fairly with the information available?

   Follow-up: How would you respond if the supervising dentist disagreed with your view?

   Follow-up: How can the team communicate with the patient who does not get the appointment while maintaining their trust and dignity?