UCAT Programme Out!
BASED ON HISTORICAL DATA, WE GUARANTEE THAT ALL PARTICIPANTS IN THE SUPREME/ULTIMATE PACKAGES WILL CONVERT AT LEAST ONE DENTAL SCHOOL INTERVIEW TO AN OFFER - IF NOT, A FULL 100% REFUND!
Expert-led guidance: instruction by experienced dentists and dental students in a combination of large and small group sessions, ensuring tailored and up-to-date interview preparation for 2025 entry!
Assigned to a group of 5-6 students applying to similar universities who will work together to ace their medical interviews
Each group is assigned their own personal 'Interview Buddy' = a student or graduate from your top choice university who will offer assistance around-the-clock across the duration of the programme
Regular meetings with your 'Interview Buddies,' arranged at times of mutual convenience each week - these will be very interactive, covering bespoke practice with opportunities to develop your communication skills. This will be particularly tailored to questions requiring personalisation like role-play/personal attributes/motivations to pursue dentistry
Tutors successfully holding offers from all the following dental schools: Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Dundee, Glasgow, KCL, KCL (Graduate), Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Plymouth, Queen Mary, Queen's Belfast, Sheffield
Students are all expected to actively participate to simulate interviews as closely as possible!
TOTAL: 17+ hours of support and assistance
Disclaimer: to be eligible for the guarantee, students must attend all preparation sessions offered or view recordings of all sessions, attend a dental school interview + remain engaged with their Interview Buddies™ throughout the programme.
Important notice!
There are limited spots, and we have put a lot of effort into designing the most extensive and comprehensive programme out there at an affordable price (because we know how many students are paying for this themselves with part time work - respect!) We will ensure that this is a worthwhile investment of your money, and perhaps more valuable limited time.
Interviews can be challenging, and our enthusiastic mentors will be there to support you at every step of the way. No one is expecting you to start with any background knowledge - we will be helping you to go from zero to expert. However, we are looking for equally enthusiastic students who are willing to fully commit.
This is not just about making money for us - please do not take up another student's spot on this programme if you are not genuinely passionate about getting into dental school! In the past, there have been parents forcing demotivated students into our programmes, including some who did not themselves want to pursue a healthcare career - an intensive programme like this is not the one for you in that case!
CURRENT AVAILABILITY STATUS (12/11/2024)
Many spaces still available!
INTERVIEW PREPARATION CURRICULUM - DENTISTRY
Large group lessons will be run as follows:
In these sessions, you will be given the opportunity to answer questions & debate about all of the below!
Important Notice:
While large group sessions have fixed timings, timings for small groups are approximate only. These will be arranged at a time of mutual convenience between members of the group and the group mentor.
Week 1
Session 1, Small Group: Motivations for Dentistry [Approx. 17/11/2024; 1 hr+]
Discussing how to respond to the question 'why dentistry?'
Including follow-ups e.g. why not medicine/allied healthcare
Exploring the concept of reflection in dental school interviews
Covering how to reflect on your work experience or volunteering, including how to structure answers, important buzzwords and exactly what to pick up on!
Exploring some of the challenges of a dental career that you may have witnessed and how to discuss them
Week 2
Session 2, Large Group: Dental Ethics & Hot Topics I [Fixed timings - 4pm, 23/11/2024; 1.5-2 hrs]
NHS vs private practice
Payments and bandings/UDAs
General Dental Services (GDS) contract & need for reform
'Minimally-invasive dentistry' and respecting patient preferences
Mental health in dentistry
Session 3, Small Group: Personal Qualities and Attributes [Approx. 24/11/2024; 1 hr+]
Outlining the most important qualities of a dentist (including, though not limited to, the 9 Outcomes from the General Dental Council) and how you can demonstrate them in your interviews
Preparing answers for all the most common personal-attribute questions (including pre-session work)
E.g. communication/teamwork/leadership/empathy/greatest strength/greatest weakness/'give an example of a time that you made a mistake'
Manual dexterity - how to demonstrate this; what may questions look like?
Week 3
Session 4, Large Group: Dental Ethics & Hot Topics II [Fixed timings - 4pm, 30/11/2024; 1.5-2 hrs]
Antibiotic resistance
Phase-down of dental amalgam
Benefits and drawbacks of a sugar tax
Water fluoridation & public health
Session 5, Small Group: Situational Judgement [Approx. 1/12/2024; 1 hr+]
GDC 'Standards for the Dental Team'
9 GDC Principles (recap)
Conduct as a dentist & role of the GDC
Academic dishonesty
Patients giving gifts
Discrimination
Framework to answer SJT-type questions
Week 4
Session 6, Large Group: Dental Ethics & Hot Topics III [Fixed timings - TBC ~2pm, 7/12/2024; 1.5-2 hrs]
Structure of a dental appointment
Analysing a video of a patient/dentist consultation gone wrong - discussing what makes an ideal interaction
Members of the dental health team
Role of preventative care
Role of dental teams in smoking cessation
Dental treatments and illnesses
Common conditions e.g. scale/polish, restoration filling, root canal, extraction, veneer/brace
Common illnesses e.g. oral cancers, acid erosion, periodontal disease
Tooth whitening & safe practices
Session 7, Small Group: Roleplays [Approx. 8/12/2024; 1 hr+]
Breaking bad news clinically e.g. oral cancer - SPIKES framework, ICE (ideas, concerns and expectations)
Conflict resolution
Other common scenarios e.g. confidentiality/lost pet/smoking cessation/weight loss/worried relative
Week 5
Session 8, Large Group: Dental Ethics & Hot Topics IV [Fixed timings - 4pm, 14/12/2024; 1.5-2 hrs]
Training and career pathways in dentistry
Continuous Professional Development (CPD)
Future of dentistry (including digital dentistry and teledentistry)
Dentistry and COVID-19
Dentistry and the cost of living crisis
Session 9, Small Group: Communication Skills & The Unexpected [Approx. 15/12/2024; 1hr+]
How to systematically tackle unexpected questions on the day
Task based questions & communication skills (e.g. describe a photo/20 questions to guess an object/give step-by-step instructions to tie a shoelace)
Week 6
Session 10, Large Group: Mock Interview with Ojas [Fixed timings - 4pm, 21/12/2024; 1.5-2 hrs]
Covering everything above to test your knowledge and skills in an interview style!
Prizes to be won (!)
Session 11, Small Group: University-Specific [Approx. 22/12/2024]
Rotate between break-out rooms for all 4 of your dental school choices, receiving university-specific advice from a dental student at your top choice university!
AND
Book at discounted price 4 x 1-1, 1 hour university-specific interview practice sessions (OR) mock 1-1 MMI (OR) mock 1-1 panel interview
Recommended: attend these in January after the course is complete for realistic simulation
Alternative: use these sessions to get ahead on course content for any interviews before the completion of the course in mid-December
Note: this will be an interactive format. Students will be encouraged to have microphones + cameras on for durations of the class (no pressure though!)
Can't make these dates? Not to worry - the classes will all be recorded & hosted on our secure Google Classroom platform. For privacy reasons, these will not be shared widely (e.g. YouTube/offered for sale) and will only be available to those that sign up now.
An opportunity for Q&A will be presented both during & at the end of each webinar. You may also share questions with your MyUCAT Interview Buddy™.
FAQ: What do I do after purchase?
Please fill in this form
Please do not fill in the form before/without making a purchase!
This may cause delays for everyone & unnecessary and avoidable stress for our admin team
The Zoom link will be shared with everyone at once, around a week before programme launch
If you have not yet been allocated your mentors, please wait until the deadline 16/11/2024 before reaching out
FAQ: Are there still any places available?
Yes, if you are seeing the purchase links above, there are places available!
If you have purchased the programme, please note that your payment has been registered and a spot has been allocated, even if someone does not reach out to you immediately
It may be tricky to immediately reach out to everyone on launch day - information about your mentor allocation will arrive in the next week upcoming
We will wait for all spots to be given out so that you are matched to the most appropriate groups
FAQ: When does this programme start?
Mentors will be assigned on the 16th of November. You will meet mentors on Zoom and attend your first session shortly after this.
FAQ: When does this programme end?
We will have covered all the important areas and content by mid-December 2024
If anyone wants more communication skills practice in February/March, we can explore launching more sessions
This will be something offered later in the year