Stony Brook, NY
Dental Schools | Public Non-Profit
Application Cycle: 2009-10
⭐ Overall Impressions
How do you rank the facilities?
10 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?
10 out of 10
0 = Below, 10 = Above
How do you rank this school among other schools to which you've applied?
10 out of 10
0 = Below, 10 = Above
What is your ranking of this school's location?
10 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
How is the friendliness of the admissions office?
10 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?
5 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?
10 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
💬 Interview Questions
What is one of the specific questions they asked you?
Why Stony Brook?/Why Stony Brook over your state school?
What was the most interesting question?
Explain how a root canal is done. (I have a lot of dental experience, I suppose this question was to ensure that I wasn't lying about that experience.)
What was the most difficult question?
What is the single most interesting thing you've learned while shadowing/assisting? (It was difficult to pick just one good example!)
✅ Interview Preparation and Impressions
How long was the interview?
20 minutes
How did the interview impress you?
Positively 🙂
How many people interviewed you?
1
What was the stress level of the interview?
7 out of 10
0 = Low Stress, 10 = High Stress
How you think you did?
5 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
What was the style of the interview?
One-on-one
What type of interview was it?
Open file
Where did the interview take place?
At the school
How did you prepare for the interview?
reviewed my application, reviewed my research, SDN
What impressed you positively?
EVERYTHING, seriously! Small class size, assigned chair for 4th years, small student:faculty ratio, 100% accepted into residencies (most first choice), no class ranking/encourage students to collaborate, lots of opportunity to see each aspect of dentistry, 120 hours of selective options in 4th year, they don't overload your class with foreign trained dentists your 2nd or 3rd year, nice suburban lifestyle
What impressed you negatively?
I guess the only thing I could say impresses me 'negatively' is that there is only a few out of state seats, as I'm an out of stater
What did you wish you had known ahead of time?
Just how bad the traffic on Long Island's expressways can be
What are your general comments?
Excellent school, I certainly was impressed with everything shown. It is in a suburban location, has a small class size, nice facilities, and the students seemed happy. If you like the city life, Stony Brook's suburban location probably isn't for you. Also, they don't rank you or report GPAs, so if you are the competitive type, it might not be for you, either. There were 9 total interviewees the day I interviewed. First presentations/tour, then interviews, then lunch with students. Interviewers apparently varied from very laid back to absolute grillers, so I guess your success will depend on who you have. My interviewer told me that a lot goes into their decision to accept you or not -- they look at the quality of the undergrad school you attended and how you did there in addition to how you handle the interview, DAT, etc. I was concerned that there might be an issue attracting patients given that the school is in a more affluent area than most but was assured that there is still an ample patient pool. Students get quite a bit of experience in the clinic, starting quite early.
📍 On-Site Experience
Who was the tour given by?
Admissions staff
How did the tour guide seem?
Enthusiastic
What is your in-state status?
Out of state
What were your total hours spent traveling?
4-6 hours
What was your primary mode of travel?
Automobile
About how much did you spend on room, food, and travel?
$201-$300
Where did you stay?
Hotel
What is the name of the hotel you stayed in?
Holiday Inn Express - Stony Brook
How would you rate the hotel?
10 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
Would you recommend the hotel?
yes
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