What if you don't get into dental school?

It's important to be confident, but not arrogant, so what you say and how you say it matters!

Dentistry is incredibly competitive, and you should have a plan with how you want to use this time to strengthen your next application. This shows the interviewer that you can adapt to difficult situations, which you will likely face in your future career.

When answering this question, try and show that you want to use your time to broaden your skills and knowledge, don't say you will give up on dentistry altogether!

Some examples include:

• Volunteering in a healthcare setting
• Gaining more work experience at a dental practise, whether that be private or NHS

Coming up with a reasonable plan shows that you have truly thought about your journey to becoming a dentist.

Suggested structure to this answer:

• Understand that dentistry is competitive to get into

'I am aware that dentistry is difficult to get into, but I have thought about how I want to spend the year building my application to apply again. I plan to…'

• Start outlining a realistic plan
• Talk about gaining more work experience to enhance your knowledge of dentistry and application

'I plan to gain more work experience at my local dental practise and ask insightful questions to the dentists. I also see this as an opportunity to get more patient contact, which could improve my communication skills…'

• Reaffirm that you will apply again with an improved application