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CSU CSU Dentistry: Interview Prep

Misa

Member
hi leez, I was a non-standard too. From memory, they didn't mention anything about my non-standard status and my previous degree. I'm not sure if they knew or not though. Though I agree with ponyswordz , it would be highly beneficial to have a well-thought out answer to why dentistry above all degrees (including ur current one), so that its clear dentistry is your first choice and not a backup! Best of luck!! :)
Hey, how did you approach "How would the rural and indigenous focus at CSU benefit you? "
 
Hi Misa, hmm, I think I spoke about how CSU's rural focus aligned with my desire to practice dentistry in rural areas + the skills that can be gained from tackling complex patient cases in rural areas, especially with relatively limited resources...It was quite a generic answer. Though, disclaimer, I did not receive an offer to study at CSU dentistry so please do not take my word 100% :) Good luck!
 

Omm

BDSc BSc(HONS) PGradDip Ortho (UK)
Hi,
I was told that in the past students were asked technical questions relating to dental procedures. Was this correct? Thank you to the members who shared their experiences last year.
Hutcherson should be able to answer this, but I’d find this highly unlikely given that you are sitting the interview to determine your eligibility to study dentistry, not to test your dental skills that you haven’t been taught.

Also, the most recent interview experiences will probably give you the best guidance towards questions that could be asked this year.
Hi magpie19, I attended the csu dent interview last year. There were no questions on any technical info for dent, for me. My experience was very similar to the one posted above by NecroTed. Hope that helps :)) Good luck!!!
Technical questions were reserved for those with dental backgrounds (and were questions that would be a reasonable difficulty for applicants to answer). OHTs and hygienists may have been asked about more technical details of procedures where dental assistants might be asked how a dentist does a filling (prep the tooth, matrix, etch, bond, composite, check bite and smooth).

puzzles are pressure tests and used to determine ability to think critically, problem solve, evaluation of your own performance and how you can improve and how you react to stress/technical challenges under pressure. This is after all, at the heart of the art/science of dentistry.
 

Maria1287

Member
The thing that threw me about this interview was that, in my interview at least - which hasn't been largely on par with what I heard throughout other interviews when meeting people - was the strange level of formality and almost closed-mindedness that I was personally approached with. The man who picked me up before I was interviewed wasn't reciprocal of my efforts to be personable and chatty on the way to the interview room, and when we sat down was very almost uninterested stating that he would ask me 6 questions and that he would cut me off right at the 4 minute mark which is what he did pretty brutally throughout tbh. I was pretty shocked by this as one of my best friends interviewed at CSU in 2018 and found the process wayyyy more relaxed than this, and I think that that really threw me for this entire interview, even though the questions were largely the same. I was given not even a vague inkling of how I was doing by the interviewers throughout, which I ofc understand the purpose of, but it was very disheartening. Additionally, I was the first person to be back in the pre-interview room after being the last to be taken to my interview which I personally found distressing - although I am very aware that time of interview does not reflect quality, it was a harsh reality that the other people being interviewed at the same time as me were not subjected to the same rigorous infliction of timing throughout. Dent at CSU was not my top preference, and I have thankfully been offered a place in Medicine, so I will never really know my CSU success but I really walked out of this interview shook af and scared out of my mind for the interview (both med and dent) that I had in the next few weeks. This was by far the worst interview I had, and I think that that was part me, and part the situation I was put in, supplemented by the extreme unfriendliness of my main interviewer. However, I will once again stress, that the people i have spoken to online and at other interviews have mostly not had this same experience - including the people interviewed at the same time as me and on the same tour of CSU as me. Just a word of warning to mentally prepare for something like this though as I definitely did not for CSU and was very overwhelmed as a consequence. It's definitely a manageable situation but if it's not something you've considered happening, you might crack as I feel that i did.
 

Milo

Member
The thing that threw me about this interview was that, in my interview at least - which hasn't been largely on par with what I heard throughout other interviews when meeting people - was the strange level of formality and almost closed-mindedness that I was personally approached with. The man who picked me up before I was interviewed wasn't reciprocal of my efforts to be personable and chatty on the way to the interview room, and when we sat down was very almost uninterested stating that he would ask me 6 questions and that he would cut me off right at the 4 minute mark which is what he did pretty brutally throughout tbh. I was pretty shocked by this as one of my best friends interviewed at CSU in 2018 and found the process wayyyy more relaxed than this, and I think that that really threw me for this entire interview, even though the questions were largely the same. I was given not even a vague inkling of how I was doing by the interviewers throughout, which I ofc understand the purpose of, but it was very disheartening. Additionally, I was the first person to be back in the pre-interview room after being the last to be taken to my interview which I personally found distressing - although I am very aware that time of interview does not reflect quality, it was a harsh reality that the other people being interviewed at the same time as me were not subjected to the same rigorous infliction of timing throughout. Dent at CSU was not my top preference, and I have thankfully been offered a place in Medicine, so I will never really know my CSU success but I really walked out of this interview shook af and scared out of my mind for the interview (both med and dent) that I had in the next few weeks. This was by far the worst interview I had, and I think that that was part me, and part the situation I was put in, supplemented by the extreme unfriendliness of my main interviewer. However, I will once again stress, that the people i have spoken to online and at other interviews have mostly not had this same experience - including the people interviewed at the same time as me and on the same tour of CSU as me. Just a word of warning to mentally prepare for something like this though as I definitely did not for CSU and was very overwhelmed as a consequence. It's definitely a manageable situation but if it's not something you've considered happening, you might crack as I feel that i did.
I found the CSU dent interview quite challenging as well and agree with a lot of what you have said. I felt very rushed and just started to feel comfortable as time was up. I am a rural candidate and had thought about a lot of the questions they asked me though. I found the puzzle quite difficult and couldn't do it. I have not received an offer and am desperately hoping to get a top up offer but I don't think it is likely. I work as a dental assistant and am sure dentistry is what I want to do and so it is my only preference in UAC. Best of luck with med.
 

Crow

Staff | Junior Doctor
Moderator
2020 entry interview experience/questions I received via PM. Thank you very much for sending them through doggy! If anyone else that interviewed at CSU has anything to add, please do so :)

There were 3 interviews running simultaneously and you were being interviewed by 3 interviewers. There was a HUGE focus on rural and indigenous questions and below I have written down the questions that were asked me (they aren't the exact wording but along the same lines). The interview went for about 30 minutes. Hopefully, this helps future students :)

How much do you know about the health inequality between rural and urban areas?

Have you experienced/lived in a rural area?

After graduating from dentistry at CSU, what can you do to help diminish the health gap for rural and regional areas?

How would you define what a regional area is?

What communities within the regional/rural areas are more vulnerable?

What is empathy? How important is it for a dentist to have empathy and what is the difference between empathy and sympathy.

Scenario type questions : 3 options, pick 1 option and explain (4 minutes to answer)
Option 1: Dude selling past exam papers, kid in your class cannot afford it and is struggling what do you do
Option 2: Someone not being able to afford a certain dental procedure. What do you do
Option 3: I forgot


Puzzle: wooden puzzles (6 of them), pick one, 2 minutes to solve


How did you find the puzzle? Thought process?


Teeth model drawing (4 minutes to draw)
 

marven

Lurker
2020 entry interview experience/questions I received via PM. Thank you very much for sending them through doggy! If anyone else that interviewed at CSU has anything to add, please do so :)

There were 3 interviews running simultaneously and you were being interviewed by 3 interviewers. There was a HUGE focus on rural and indigenous questions and below I have written down the questions that were asked me (they aren't the exact wording but along the same lines). The interview went for about 30 minutes. Hopefully, this helps future students :)

How much do you know about the health inequality between rural and urban areas?

Have you experienced/lived in a rural area?

After graduating from dentistry at CSU, what can you do to help diminish the health gap for rural and regional areas?

How would you define what a regional area is?

What communities within the regional/rural areas are more vulnerable?

What is empathy? How important is it for a dentist to have empathy and what is the difference between empathy and sympathy.

Scenario type questions : 3 options, pick 1 option and explain (4 minutes to answer)
Option 1: Dude selling past exam papers, kid in your class cannot afford it and is struggling what do you do
Option 2: Someone not being able to afford a certain dental procedure. What do you do
Option 3: I forgot


Puzzle: wooden puzzles (6 of them), pick one, 2 minutes to solve


How did you find the puzzle? Thought process?


Teeth model drawing (4 minutes to draw)

Thank you this is very helpful.
Did you receive an offer?
 

JL538

Monash University - BMedSc/MD I
Hey guys, anyone know what's gonna happen with the puzzle and drawing that seems to be prevalent in this interview considering its done online this year?

Edit: Also, how come you guys posted past questions for this interview, since I got told quite harshly not to do that :p
 
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Crow

Staff | Junior Doctor
Moderator
For those interviewing for 2021 entry: I would be very grateful if you could PM me your interview questions! Note that these won't be shared until all interviews have been completed to be fair to all applicants.
 

JL538

Monash University - BMedSc/MD I
For those interviewing for 2021 entry: I would be very grateful if you could PM me your interview questions! Note that these won't be shared until all interviews have been completed to be fair to all applicants.

Wait is there not an NDA for CSU? There wasn't a briefing session but they droned me in the UQ briefing about confidentiality.
 

Crow

Staff | Junior Doctor
Moderator
What were the type of questions that were asked?
The moderation team will be deleting any posts that will yield an unfair advantage to some applicants over others, so we request that nobody answer this question until all CSU dentistry interviews have been completed for 2021 entry. Thank you.
 

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JL538

Monash University - BMedSc/MD I
Is it alright to ask whether CSU replaced their usual practical activity component this year (since its online and easier to just ask questions) or nah
 

Crow

Staff | Junior Doctor
Moderator
Is it alright to ask whether CSU replaced their usual practical activity component this year (since its online and easier to just ask questions) or nah
To err on the side of caution I will say no to this one too. Sorry!
 

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