Trainee dental nurse interview

Hi are there any dental nurses out there who can give me a bit more of an idea of what they will be looking for in my trainee dental nurse interview?

The post I am interviewing for said they would prefer experience but would con sister a trainee so I really need to convince them they should hire me rather than a qualified nurse.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Thanks

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Reply 1

Jade190390

Hi,

I am a qualified dental nurse and i worked in a hotel prior to this.. so i had no dental experience whatsoever when i applied for my job. I got a letter to say i was unsuccessful in my initial interview and was so downhearted..but 2 months later got a phonecall to ask if i was still interested! They had took on a qualified nurse as were short staffed-so i must have done something right for them to consider me at a later date.

Im quite shy and feel very anxious at interview so i really dont know what made me stand out.. but from what i remember.......

i was asked things like-
why do i want to be a dental nurse?
what skills do i have that would make me good at being a dental nurse?
how do i cope under pressure?
etc etc

Just try to be calm and relaxed..dont just answer what they ask you..give them a little extra! so when they ask what skills you have-maybe look on the net for a dental nurse job description and pick out the skills that you have from the skills that denta nurses must have.

important skills that i would say youd need are-
good communication and people skills (alot of patients are anxious and scared of visiting the dentist so need a relaxed nurse who they can chat to)
the ability to multi task and work to a tight schedule (sticking to appointment times and not running late, setting up the surgery quickly etc)
and probably most importantly TIME KEEPING! no boss likes staff who are always late for work lol.

also research into the job before the interview and ask the interviewrs some questions too! look at the background of dentistry so you can show you actually have an interest in the job.. so ask what training you will recieve eg college course, what sort of dental treatments do they provide.. so just standard dental treatments or do they provide private dental care, orthodontics (braces) etc.
maybe ask about staff turnaround - i wish i had known about asking this as in my first dental nurse job i didnt see many of the staff staying longer than a few months lol (not because of the job though so dont be put off lol), seems like a weird question to ask but you want to know whether staff are loyal and stick around or not, it shows whether people enjoy working there or not!

just a few pointers hope they help!!! let me know how it goes :smile:

and please ask me any questions!
xxx

Reply 2

sarahlousie

Thank you for the advice. I had my interview but didn't get the job however I got told they had taken on someone who had interviewed before for a job at the practice and that I would have been 2nd choice so I suppose that's something.

Going to keep applying and I will bare all your advice in mind if I get another interview, especially the time keeping thing, I didn't mention that last time. I'm just a bit worried that generally practises may take on younger people as trainees.

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Reply 3

Jade190390

If your definitely lookin into dental nursing you should try your local college for dental nursing apprenticeships! That way your pretty much guaranteed a trainee job and most practices will jump at the chance to take you on if they are recruiting trainees as you will have arranged your course yourself (saving them the time and effort) and usually when practices take on trainees they have to pay to put you on a course (so will save them some pennies), so maybe that would be an option.. I don't think there are age limits as a few people at my work are over 30 and have just completed the course! It's an nvq course where you go to college for 1 day a week then work the other 4. I waited 2 years to be put on a course through my boss but that's just as he was a bit lazy I think lol xxx

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Reply 4

sarahlousie

I've tried looking for apprenticeships but there doesn't seem to be anything about. One of the local colleges runs a course but that doesn't start til jan, hopefully I can get on that if nothing else comes up.

Do you think that sending out speculative applications would do any good? Or do you think cvs are likely to go in the bin rather than be kept?

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Reply 5

Samantha.91

Hi there im a dental nurse. Have been for 3 years now..If your looking to get into dental nursing, i suggest calling up ur local dentists in your area for any trainee vacancies that are coming up, sending ur cv is also good as many employers are looking for new prople to train from scratch.. U can also check out websites like gumtree. Job centre plus for trainee vacancies. Good luck x

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Reply 6

sarahlousie

Thanks for the advice, going to try and contact all the practises nearby.

Do you both enjoy working as dental nurses?

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Reply 7

Jade190390

You should sign up to jobrapido they sent you notifications of jobs of your interest in your area, I get emails everyday with dental vacancies in my area! And defo send out cvs!

I enjoy my job.. It can be stressful at times like any other job but the days fly over when your busy! I'm applying for dental hygiene at Uni this year so if your wanting to go further than just nursing it's something good to get into :smile:

xxx

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Reply 8

sarahlousie

Thank you I will definitely sign up for job rapido.

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Reply 9

sarahlousie

Well I've spent all my day off sending out speculative applications and I have an interview for tomorrow! Fingers crossed!

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Reply 10

tweety777

Jade says above thay they were tempted to take a qualified nurse and than turn up to her after a month or two -I guess it wasn't about how you have done at the interview -it was just because s qualified nurse wouldn't work for that money/salary..I know that from a neighbour of mine who is a dentist.So don't bother about the competition Girls keep trying there will be someone to give u a chance.

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Reply 11

Jade190390

Not necessarily.. I wasn't given the job 2 months down the line because the qualified nurse left.. They ended up taking on extra staff 2 months later hense why they rang me back to ask if I was still interested in a job

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Reply 12

MustyQ

hi
i have a dental nurse trainee interview on tuesday
its for a placement for my apprenticeship
any ideas of questions they could ask me
and possible answers please? :smile:

Reply 13

sarahlousie

They asked me why I wanted to be a dental nurse? What I thought the job entailed? What I was interested in doing in terms of career progression?

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Reply 14

meshellawella

Hi

I'm currently working as a trainee dental nurse and had some interviews recently as I was relocating. The questions are usually the same from practice to practice.
Why do you want to be a dental nurse?
What can you bring to the team?
What skills does a dental nurse need?
How will you manage working full time and completing a course?

I think its important to come across as friendly and bubbly and as keen as possible. Read as much as you can about the job and research the practice. I found that working in a private practice involved a bit of sales whereas Nhs was more about promoting preventative dental care.

I hope this helps xxx

Reply 15

sarahlousie

Well the owner of the practise I had an I interview at a few weeks ago has another job coming up and invited me for a trial day on reception and in the surgery. Any tips on how to make a really good impression?

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Reply 16

Jade190390

Oh great congrats!

Maybe take some paper and a pen an take notes about what your doing.. Get talkin to other staff and find out more about the job.. Ask lots of questions! Dive in head first basically!!! Offer to do things and ask to be shown different aspects of the job.. Ask to answer the phones.. Make them know your prepared for some hard work and they will love you!!! Xxx

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Reply 17

sarahlousie

Thank you everyone who offered advice. I have been offered a job and I start on Monday! :smile:

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Reply 18

c.hloee_xx

Original post by meshellawella

hello i read your comment and found it really helpful, ive got an interview tomorrow for a dentist and im really nervous about what questions to expect i was hoping you could help me out a bit x x x

Reply 19

tinyliv

Not sure if this is still active but today I passed my first interview to be a trainee dental nurse and tomorrow I'm doing sort of an on job evulation

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