Just decided on Dentistry for 2026 Uni entry - No work experience, What can I do?
I'm currently a Year 12 student in England studying Biology, Chemistry and Maths as my A levels with my predicted grades being A*AA so far. Throughout the year, I was pretty sure that I wanted to do medicine but with some research I have decided that I would much rather apply for dentistry. However, I have no dental work experience, very little medical work experience and some volunteering. I haven't done much in terms of wider reading either and I feel that I am really lagging behind. I am also aware of the UCAT and have started preparing for that.
TL;DR - I've only recently decided that I want to do dentistry and I haven't done much at all. Am I too late? What can I do between now and October (when I have to send my UCAS application to dental schools) to gain work experience/volunteering and where can I apply?
Thank you in advance for the support 🙏🙏.
TL;DR - I've only recently decided that I want to do dentistry and I haven't done much at all. Am I too late? What can I do between now and October (when I have to send my UCAS application to dental schools) to gain work experience/volunteering and where can I apply?
Thank you in advance for the support 🙏🙏.
Reply 1
11
have you looked for virtual dental work experience? any form of work experience at all?
i didnt apply to dentistry, but medicine, i will be answering this with the presumption that dentistry's process is mostly similar to medicine (except the talking points are dentistry). you dont need to research wider reading right away, you have until the interviews for that. see if you can find any sites where well known topics/incidents in UK dentistry are summarised (similar to medic portals thing for medicine). now would be the time for ucat so i'd suggest you allocate time for that everyday leading up to the test. remember the interview is about proving why you are a suitable candidate for dentistry, and that you know as much as possible about what youre getting yourself into
i suggest checking out dental mentor for further info.
i didnt apply to dentistry, but medicine, i will be answering this with the presumption that dentistry's process is mostly similar to medicine (except the talking points are dentistry). you dont need to research wider reading right away, you have until the interviews for that. see if you can find any sites where well known topics/incidents in UK dentistry are summarised (similar to medic portals thing for medicine). now would be the time for ucat so i'd suggest you allocate time for that everyday leading up to the test. remember the interview is about proving why you are a suitable candidate for dentistry, and that you know as much as possible about what youre getting yourself into
i suggest checking out dental mentor for further info.
Reply 2
6
Original post
by mateo_colomboI'm currently a Year 12 student in England studying Biology, Chemistry and Maths as my A levels with my predicted grades being A*AA so far. Throughout the year, I was pretty sure that I wanted to do medicine but with some research I have decided that I would much rather apply for dentistry. However, I have no dental work experience, very little medical work experience and some volunteering. I haven't done much in terms of wider reading either and I feel that I am really lagging behind. I am also aware of the UCAT and have started preparing for that.
TL;DR - I've only recently decided that I want to do dentistry and I haven't done much at all. Am I too late? What can I do between now and October (when I have to send my UCAS application to dental schools) to gain work experience/volunteering and where can I apply?
Thank you in advance for the support 🙏🙏.
TL;DR - I've only recently decided that I want to do dentistry and I haven't done much at all. Am I too late? What can I do between now and October (when I have to send my UCAS application to dental schools) to gain work experience/volunteering and where can I apply?
Thank you in advance for the support 🙏🙏.
Hey Mateo,
I received offers from Queen Mary and King's College London both for Dentistry this year and here's some advice I think you would benefit from:
1) Do not worry if you do not have all the work experience in the world under your belt at this point in time. In total, I accrued about a week's experience in a clinic, split over the course of two years. My point is, the quantity of work experience is not the focal point, but rather the lessons you learned about your suitability for a career in dentistry. I wish I knew to do this earlier on, but the most ideal scenario would be to contact all your local dental practices, if any, and request that you come in once a week over the course of a few months to shadow the dentists. This way, you are constantly refreshing your understanding of the practices in dental clinics, which will offer you that vital insight into the skills needed to become a dentist which is something you'll be heavily questioned on when it comes to interviews. The cherry on top is you would also be showing a commitment to investigating into a career in dentistry by shadowing over a long period of time. If the practices you've contacted say no to your request, just ask what kind of exposure they'd be willing to offer you and you can take it from there, as anything is better than nothing.
2) Dedicate some time into researching summer schools for dentistry. In 2022, I partook in Plymouth's Widening Access to Dental School (WADS) programme where a small group of prospective applicants ranging from Year 11-13 were hosted by current dental students at the dental school, for a week of activities. During this, we were taught some basic oral health knowledge, given an example PBL and presented it in groups, practiced some hands-on fillings and even given some application and interview advice, including a mock MMI. Overall, this experience was fundamental in equipping me with the necessary skills and knowledge to show a genuine interest in all aspects of dentistry. Whether it was the manual dexterity tasks or group work, there was always a moment where you could demonstrate a specific skill that a dentist would need which is exactly what the admissions teams want to be seeing on a PS and the interviewers hearing in an interview. I am not fully aware of which dental schools offer which kind of programmes, so I highly recommend that you schedule some time to have a look for yourself. Doesn't have to be in-person nor does it need to be a week-long, but merely an opportunity to broaden your understanding of the career you're looking to get into.
As for the rest of your application, your predicteds are more than good enough and I'm glad you've started looking into UCAT prep this early on. Keep it up and I wish you all the best, please ask me anymore questions you may have as I'd be happy to answer them. Take care and God bless
Reply 3
Original post
by relativqhave you looked for virtual dental work experience? any form of work experience at all?
i didnt apply to dentistry, but medicine, i will be answering this with the presumption that dentistry's process is mostly similar to medicine (except the talking points are dentistry). you dont need to research wider reading right away, you have until the interviews for that. see if you can find any sites where well known topics/incidents in UK dentistry are summarised (similar to medic portals thing for medicine). now would be the time for ucat so i'd suggest you allocate time for that everyday leading up to the test. remember the interview is about proving why you are a suitable candidate for dentistry, and that you know as much as possible about what youre getting yourself into
i suggest checking out dental mentor for further info.
i didnt apply to dentistry, but medicine, i will be answering this with the presumption that dentistry's process is mostly similar to medicine (except the talking points are dentistry). you dont need to research wider reading right away, you have until the interviews for that. see if you can find any sites where well known topics/incidents in UK dentistry are summarised (similar to medic portals thing for medicine). now would be the time for ucat so i'd suggest you allocate time for that everyday leading up to the test. remember the interview is about proving why you are a suitable candidate for dentistry, and that you know as much as possible about what youre getting yourself into
i suggest checking out dental mentor for further info.
Thank you for the reply! Yes, I have looked into some virtual work experience on dentalmentor and, as for in-person experience, I've emailed most practices in my area and none of them replied
.Reply 4
Original post
by ojenHey Mateo,
I received offers from Queen Mary and King's College London both for Dentistry this year and here's some advice I think you would benefit from:
1) Do not worry if you do not have all the work experience in the world under your belt at this point in time. In total, I accrued about a week's experience in a clinic, split over the course of two years. My point is, the quantity of work experience is not the focal point, but rather the lessons you learned about your suitability for a career in dentistry. I wish I knew to do this earlier on, but the most ideal scenario would be to contact all your local dental practices, if any, and request that you come in once a week over the course of a few months to shadow the dentists. This way, you are constantly refreshing your understanding of the practices in dental clinics, which will offer you that vital insight into the skills needed to become a dentist which is something you'll be heavily questioned on when it comes to interviews. The cherry on top is you would also be showing a commitment to investigating into a career in dentistry by shadowing over a long period of time. If the practices you've contacted say no to your request, just ask what kind of exposure they'd be willing to offer you and you can take it from there, as anything is better than nothing.
2) Dedicate some time into researching summer schools for dentistry. In 2022, I partook in Plymouth's Widening Access to Dental School (WADS) programme where a small group of prospective applicants ranging from Year 11-13 were hosted by current dental students at the dental school, for a week of activities. During this, we were taught some basic oral health knowledge, given an example PBL and presented it in groups, practiced some hands-on fillings and even given some application and interview advice, including a mock MMI. Overall, this experience was fundamental in equipping me with the necessary skills and knowledge to show a genuine interest in all aspects of dentistry. Whether it was the manual dexterity tasks or group work, there was always a moment where you could demonstrate a specific skill that a dentist would need which is exactly what the admissions teams want to be seeing on a PS and the interviewers hearing in an interview. I am not fully aware of which dental schools offer which kind of programmes, so I highly recommend that you schedule some time to have a look for yourself. Doesn't have to be in-person nor does it need to be a week-long, but merely an opportunity to broaden your understanding of the career you're looking to get into.
As for the rest of your application, your predicteds are more than good enough and I'm glad you've started looking into UCAT prep this early on. Keep it up and I wish you all the best, please ask me anymore questions you may have as I'd be happy to answer them. Take care and God bless
I received offers from Queen Mary and King's College London both for Dentistry this year and here's some advice I think you would benefit from:
1) Do not worry if you do not have all the work experience in the world under your belt at this point in time. In total, I accrued about a week's experience in a clinic, split over the course of two years. My point is, the quantity of work experience is not the focal point, but rather the lessons you learned about your suitability for a career in dentistry. I wish I knew to do this earlier on, but the most ideal scenario would be to contact all your local dental practices, if any, and request that you come in once a week over the course of a few months to shadow the dentists. This way, you are constantly refreshing your understanding of the practices in dental clinics, which will offer you that vital insight into the skills needed to become a dentist which is something you'll be heavily questioned on when it comes to interviews. The cherry on top is you would also be showing a commitment to investigating into a career in dentistry by shadowing over a long period of time. If the practices you've contacted say no to your request, just ask what kind of exposure they'd be willing to offer you and you can take it from there, as anything is better than nothing.
2) Dedicate some time into researching summer schools for dentistry. In 2022, I partook in Plymouth's Widening Access to Dental School (WADS) programme where a small group of prospective applicants ranging from Year 11-13 were hosted by current dental students at the dental school, for a week of activities. During this, we were taught some basic oral health knowledge, given an example PBL and presented it in groups, practiced some hands-on fillings and even given some application and interview advice, including a mock MMI. Overall, this experience was fundamental in equipping me with the necessary skills and knowledge to show a genuine interest in all aspects of dentistry. Whether it was the manual dexterity tasks or group work, there was always a moment where you could demonstrate a specific skill that a dentist would need which is exactly what the admissions teams want to be seeing on a PS and the interviewers hearing in an interview. I am not fully aware of which dental schools offer which kind of programmes, so I highly recommend that you schedule some time to have a look for yourself. Doesn't have to be in-person nor does it need to be a week-long, but merely an opportunity to broaden your understanding of the career you're looking to get into.
As for the rest of your application, your predicteds are more than good enough and I'm glad you've started looking into UCAT prep this early on. Keep it up and I wish you all the best, please ask me anymore questions you may have as I'd be happy to answer them. Take care and God bless
Thank you for the reply! I do have a few questions:
1) This past week I've been doing work experience at a hospital ward (it was organised months ago, when I wanted to do medicine) with consultants, nurses, physios etc. Is this helpful to me at all because I've heard stories where people mention medical work experience in their personal statement for dentistry and got rejected because it showed they were more inclined towards medicine?
2) I've tried sending emails to dental practices with info of who i am, my ambitions along with a CV showing any voluneering I have done. But no one has responded to me unfortunately
. I also tried going in person and the receptionist just tells me to send an email and they will respond there OR just flat out says no they don't. In terms of the practices I have emailed but with no response, what should I do? I don't wanna seem like a beg and double emailing even though I am pretty desperate for it.3) Please could you provide a link to the WADS programme you attended. What you said seems really interesting and would be very useful to me.
Finally, well done on being accepted by King's 🙏🙏🙏. I would love to do dentistry there or at Manchester.
Reply 5
6
Original post
by mateo_colomboThank you for the reply! I do have a few questions:
1) This past week I've been doing work experience at a hospital ward (it was organised months ago, when I wanted to do medicine) with consultants, nurses, physios etc. Is this helpful to me at all because I've heard stories where people mention medical work experience in their personal statement for dentistry and got rejected because it showed they were more inclined towards medicine?
2) I've tried sending emails to dental practices with info of who i am, my ambitions along with a CV showing any voluneering I have done. But no one has responded to me unfortunately. I also tried going in person and the receptionist just tells me to send an email and they will respond there OR just flat out says no they don't. In terms of the practices I have emailed but with no response, what should I do? I don't wanna seem like a beg and double emailing even though I am pretty desperate for it.
3) Please could you provide a link to the WADS programme you attended. What you said seems really interesting and would be very useful to me.
Finally, well done on being accepted by King's 🙏🙏🙏. I would love to do dentistry there or at Manchester.
1) This past week I've been doing work experience at a hospital ward (it was organised months ago, when I wanted to do medicine) with consultants, nurses, physios etc. Is this helpful to me at all because I've heard stories where people mention medical work experience in their personal statement for dentistry and got rejected because it showed they were more inclined towards medicine?
2) I've tried sending emails to dental practices with info of who i am, my ambitions along with a CV showing any voluneering I have done. But no one has responded to me unfortunately
. I also tried going in person and the receptionist just tells me to send an email and they will respond there OR just flat out says no they don't. In terms of the practices I have emailed but with no response, what should I do? I don't wanna seem like a beg and double emailing even though I am pretty desperate for it.3) Please could you provide a link to the WADS programme you attended. What you said seems really interesting and would be very useful to me.
Finally, well done on being accepted by King's 🙏🙏🙏. I would love to do dentistry there or at Manchester.
Hey Mateo,
Thank you for taking an interest.
1) Absolutely hospital work experience is useful in a personal statement because you can mention it to demonstrate that you've taken an investigative approach into choosing between medicine and dentistry, with which you can talk about your reasons for choosing dentistry over medicine. This shows that you've not jumped into pursuing dentistry blindly but rather you are taking your career choice with a serious and genuine intent. However, it is still necessary to attain dental work experience to show you completed this investigation and came to the conclusion that you'd be better suited for a career in dentistry with reasons associated to the specific experiences that occurred in your dental clinical shadowing.
2) I completely understand what this feels like. I remember approaching at least 3 clinics in-person, 2 more whom I emailed and a pharmacy only to have received a response from one of the practices, accepting to take me on. I know it feels like you're being a beg but this is the uncomfortable by-product of wanting to study dentistry, not to mention you'll be put in more awkward situations as a dentist so it's best you prepare yourself for that stage, keeping in mind that attaining work experience is fundamental to your application and you'll likely be unsuccessful if you do not due to the extremely competitive nature of dental school applications. So, go back to the dental offices and ask again, email again until they notice you. Call them up if need be. Even if the practice is a distance away, just contact them. I had to take a bus to one of my work experiences. I promise you, it will all be worth it in a year's time. Additionally, my school had this careers officer who knew absolutely everything about applications of all types and courses. When I got in contact with her, we set up a meeting and she gave me the name of her dentist who I ended up doing a day's experience with in his mixed practice. If you have someone like this at your school, ask them if they know any dentists taking on students for shadowing.
3) https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/study/outreach/medicine-dentistry-biomedical-healthcare/peninsula-pathways-for-secondary-school-students
Here's the link. Take a look and consider it, assuming you meet the contextual factors. If not, have a look at other dental schools' summer schools as they'll be very very useful when it comes to personal statements and interviews.
I hope this was helpful and I am glad to be of aid to you.
Thank you and take care
Reply 6
Original post
by mateo_colomboThank you for the reply! I do have a few questions:
1) This past week I've been doing work experience at a hospital ward (it was organised months ago, when I wanted to do medicine) with consultants, nurses, physios etc. Is this helpful to me at all because I've heard stories where people mention medical work experience in their personal statement for dentistry and got rejected because it showed they were more inclined towards medicine?
2) I've tried sending emails to dental practices with info of who i am, my ambitions along with a CV showing any voluneering I have done. But no one has responded to me unfortunately. I also tried going in person and the receptionist just tells me to send an email and they will respond there OR just flat out says no they don't. In terms of the practices I have emailed but with no response, what should I do? I don't wanna seem like a beg and double emailing even though I am pretty desperate for it.
3) Please could you provide a link to the WADS programme you attended. What you said seems really interesting and would be very useful to me.
Finally, well done on being accepted by King's 🙏🙏🙏. I would love to do dentistry there or at Manchester.
1) This past week I've been doing work experience at a hospital ward (it was organised months ago, when I wanted to do medicine) with consultants, nurses, physios etc. Is this helpful to me at all because I've heard stories where people mention medical work experience in their personal statement for dentistry and got rejected because it showed they were more inclined towards medicine?
2) I've tried sending emails to dental practices with info of who i am, my ambitions along with a CV showing any voluneering I have done. But no one has responded to me unfortunately
. I also tried going in person and the receptionist just tells me to send an email and they will respond there OR just flat out says no they don't. In terms of the practices I have emailed but with no response, what should I do? I don't wanna seem like a beg and double emailing even though I am pretty desperate for it.3) Please could you provide a link to the WADS programme you attended. What you said seems really interesting and would be very useful to me.
Finally, well done on being accepted by King's 🙏🙏🙏. I would love to do dentistry there or at Manchester.
Have you approached your own dental practice, in person? Or a local dental lab?
It seems obvious, but pick a non-busy time eg not first or last thing, or before lunch.
Prepare a coloured flashcard with your contact details and a really short summary that concisely explains why they would help you, so when you leave this behind it doesn't join all the others (tip- not yellow, orange or purple because a lot of our NHS paperwork is in those colours)
eg Heading
Your name, contact details Year 12, age. School if you think it matters.
Dress neatly, arrive with a smile and (lots of us look out the window and spot who's approaching). Pick the friendliest most smiling receptionist if there's more than one.
Your key starter is : I hope you can help me please, then your 30s pitch
I really wouldn't ask for a week, suggest you'd be thrilled with a day or ' few days' . Frankly my heart sinks when I'm asked for a week and I'm far more inclined to have to say no, because it's a huge extra workload for me alongside my clinical work.
If you're told no, say oh that's a shame, thank them, and hand them your coloured card and ask them if they could remember you and show that to the dentists, dental therapists etc
Good luck
(edited 9 months ago)
Reply 7
Sorry I rlly need some advice So my school has decided predicted grades andI’m at A* A* B . In bio chem and mathsrespectively. I rlly wanna apply for medicine thisyear, I haven’t been doing so well in maths tho. Myschool says they have a no leniency policy aboutpredicted grades, and they won’t change predictedgrades after the summer. But say if I do rlly well inmy ucat, do u think I could convince my teacher tochange my predicted grade from B to an A?? Bc ifI get a high ucat , and I’m already predicted A* A*in bio and chem - maths is the only thing stoppingme. If I don’t get A in maths then I have to take agap year just bc of my maths grade 💔
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