Last week I got accepted in USC - University of Southern California in their ASPID Class 2014 I was so happy and excited about it and thought of sharing my experience.
All people taking NBDE exams part one and two know that whats required for them to get invited for an interview at any university is a HIGH score.
To be honest my score was not that high I only got invited by USC but I focused all my energy and time to do perfect in the interview.
Today I will share with you my interview experience.
USC's exam is divided into two days. Day one - group interview and Day two - practical exam day
USC's system of study at Herman Ostrow School of Dentsitry is Problem Based Learning. In the interview day they wanted us to experience the way they teach. We were about 150 students invited to the interview. We all got divided into groups of 10's.
We were interviewed in a class where there was a professor and someone from the admission office, they observed us and graded us.
First, there was a basket full of general questions, such as " How do you deal with stress?" , " Mention people in your life which influence you", " What do you do in your spare time" each one was to pick up a random question and read it out loud and answer it within 2-5mins. Mine was - Mention 3 things you would write about your self in a recommendation letter.
Second of all we were given a case to read. It had nothing to do with dentistry, just a general case about a guy getting sea sick. We were required to discuss the case together and to come up with Facts, Ideas and Outcome.
I volunteered to write on the board. In the beginning I was kind of nervous because I have to listen to all of them and to come up with a sentence to write. But it went smooth. After we were done with the case we were given the conclusion of the case and I was asked to read it out loud.
The last part of the interview was a written part, just a general question - What was the last movie you watched and how did it influence you. Each one gets a different question.
That was the first day :)
USC's practical exam is always "UNKNOWN" by this I mean they do not specify what you will get in the exam. Other school's such as UCLA they indicate for the students that they will be required to do a CLASS II and PFM etc. But USC is not known so we are all required to know everything.
From wax carving to PFMs and Class II to RPD !!
USC send you a list of instruments and tools to get on the exam day - Wax knife and wax blocks are mentions which means there is a possibility for wax carving, also they mention RED and BLUE pencil this indicates a RPD - removal partial denture design
P.S. USC use Colombia Typodont.
In my exam it was kinda shocking - I had two cases, you are free to choose what ever preparation or restoration you find appropriate. I did a CVC - Complete Veneer Crown on tooth #14 and the other case I did PFM - Porcelain fused metal on tooth #8
We did not have any restoration prep. (Class II) which was kind of weird for me.
The other part of the exam was WAX carving :) I already prepared for it but was not 100% prepared. They provide for you the measurements which was great. We had to carve #8.
That was in the practical exam .
All people taking NBDE exams part one and two know that whats required for them to get invited for an interview at any university is a HIGH score.
To be honest my score was not that high I only got invited by USC but I focused all my energy and time to do perfect in the interview.
Today I will share with you my interview experience.
USC's exam is divided into two days. Day one - group interview and Day two - practical exam day
USC's system of study at Herman Ostrow School of Dentsitry is Problem Based Learning. In the interview day they wanted us to experience the way they teach. We were about 150 students invited to the interview. We all got divided into groups of 10's.
We were interviewed in a class where there was a professor and someone from the admission office, they observed us and graded us.
First, there was a basket full of general questions, such as " How do you deal with stress?" , " Mention people in your life which influence you", " What do you do in your spare time" each one was to pick up a random question and read it out loud and answer it within 2-5mins. Mine was - Mention 3 things you would write about your self in a recommendation letter.
Second of all we were given a case to read. It had nothing to do with dentistry, just a general case about a guy getting sea sick. We were required to discuss the case together and to come up with Facts, Ideas and Outcome.
I volunteered to write on the board. In the beginning I was kind of nervous because I have to listen to all of them and to come up with a sentence to write. But it went smooth. After we were done with the case we were given the conclusion of the case and I was asked to read it out loud.
The last part of the interview was a written part, just a general question - What was the last movie you watched and how did it influence you. Each one gets a different question.
That was the first day :)
USC's practical exam is always "UNKNOWN" by this I mean they do not specify what you will get in the exam. Other school's such as UCLA they indicate for the students that they will be required to do a CLASS II and PFM etc. But USC is not known so we are all required to know everything.
From wax carving to PFMs and Class II to RPD !!
USC send you a list of instruments and tools to get on the exam day - Wax knife and wax blocks are mentions which means there is a possibility for wax carving, also they mention RED and BLUE pencil this indicates a RPD - removal partial denture design
P.S. USC use Colombia Typodont.
In my exam it was kinda shocking - I had two cases, you are free to choose what ever preparation or restoration you find appropriate. I did a CVC - Complete Veneer Crown on tooth #14 and the other case I did PFM - Porcelain fused metal on tooth #8
We did not have any restoration prep. (Class II) which was kind of weird for me.
The other part of the exam was WAX carving :) I already prepared for it but was not 100% prepared. They provide for you the measurements which was great. We had to carve #8.
That was in the practical exam .
