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  • Medical University of South Carolina College of Dental Medicine
  • Dental School
  • Charleston, SC
Individual Feedback 2 28 Responses
Overall Experience

How did the interview impress you?

Response # Responders
Positively 24
Negatively 1
No change 2

What was the stress level of the interview?

Response Avg # Responders
3.41 27

0 = low, 10 = high

How you think you did?

Response Avg # Responders
7.45 20

0 = low, 10 = high

How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?

Response Avg # Responders
8.86 21

0 = low, 10 = high

Was this interview in-person or virtual?

Response # Responders
In Person 0
Virtual 1

Questions

How long was the interview?

Response # Responders
5 minutes 0
10 minutes 2
15 minutes 2
20 minutes 3
25 minutes 5
30 minutes 11
35 minutes 1
40 minutes 0
45 minutes 1
50 minutes 0
55 minutes 0
60+ minutes 2

Where did the interview take place?

Response # Responders
At the school 26
At a regional location 0
At another location 1

What was the style of the interview?

Response # Responders
One-on-one 27
In a group 0

What type of interview was it?

Response # Responders
Open file 12
Closed file 13

How many people interviewed you?

Response Average # Responders
2.89 27

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 1)?

"Why dentistry ?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell me about yourself." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"How would you improve health care in the U.S.?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is the biggest issue in dentistry now?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why dentistry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What will you do if you don't get accepted this year?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Any leadership positions?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell me about your research. " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your weaknesses and strengths?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"why do you want to be a dentist and what have you done to make sure you are certain of that decision?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

" What hobbies do you have?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why do you want to be a dentist? What specific qualities to you possess that will make you a good dentist?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why do you want to be a dentist?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Have you done research" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why do you want to be a dentist" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why have you chosen dentistry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Of course, the question of the day: Why do you want to be a dentist?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why do you want to be a dentist? Did you ever consider other fields?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 2)?

"How have you worked on your manual dexterity skills?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What makes you unique?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Were you involved in any extracurricular activities?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is the biggest issue facing the dental field today?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What have you done to show interest in dentistry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Do you like to travel?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is an example of a leadership position you have been in?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What kind of shadowing experience(s) do you have and, to you, what would be the most important thing you learned from this experience?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why should we pick you above everyone else? " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Have you done any community service?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why dentistry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"strengths and weaknesses?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why do you want to be a dentist?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Manual dexterity?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your hobbies?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your plans for the immediate future" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your hobbies" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is your most significant achievement to date?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Have you considered other options besides dentistry? Are you applying anywhere else? If you weren't accepted, what would you do then?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why did you choose MUSC? Did you apply anywhere else? Where? Have you been on this campus before? Do you know anyone who attends or attended here? (It's very good if you do; however, I didn't)" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 3)?

"Tell me about your extracurriculars, service, leadership (all 3 at once)" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why MUSC? and Is this your top choice?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Do you participate in anything that would improve your manual dexterity?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What dental related service opportunities have you participated in?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why dentistry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What will you do if you do not get in this year?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Discuss a problem you have encountered in a group setting and how was it resolved?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why do you want to come to MUSC and why do you think you would be a good fit?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What will you do if you don't get accepted this year? " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"If you can change something about yourself, what would it be?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"How do you know you want to go into dentistry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"hobbies?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"what are your passions and what activities are you involved in?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What will you do if you aren't accepted this year?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Community service that you've done?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What do you see yourself doing in 10 years?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What will you do if you are not accepted?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What if you dont get in?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What do your parents do" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Who are your role models, other than your parents? " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your strengths? Your weakness? Do you have any skills that demonstrate manual dexterity?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

What was the most interesting question?

"Tell me about you family" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"The questions were pretty standard they really just wanted to get to know you and figure out what brought you there" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"They were all pretty standard." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Was really specific to my application: "What was your favorite part of studying abroad?"" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What motivates you to do the best you can every day?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"what are some issues that face the dental profession in the future?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is one of your biggest pet peeves?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"If you were planning a dinner party and could invite 5 guests, dead or living, who would you invite and why?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Have you seen any obnoxious patients while shadowing?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"If you were to host a dinner for four people, dead or alive, who would it be?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What qualities do you look for in other people?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Specifics of my research - alcohol research" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"why do you think we should choose you to be in our class?...twice..." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"I had three different interviews and each interviewer asked almost the same questions. " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell me about yourself" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Do you have any questions?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your weaknesses and strengths?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"With you having so many strengths, is there any room for weaknesses??" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why do you want to be a dentist" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What has been your most significant achievement to date?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What has been your most significant achievement so far?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"One of my interviewers jokingly went down his interview checklist asking me: Are you mentally stable? Are you intelligent? Any emotional problems?...." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

What was the most difficult question?

"Tell me about your extracurriculars, service, leadership (all 3 at once) just because it was all three at once" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"How are you going to handle the stress of not doing well with the manual dexterity part of dentistry when you begin waxing? (aka you're great in school can you handle not being good at something)" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What do you think would be the most challenging part of dental school?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What would you do if you were to not get in this cycle?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is the biggest issue in dentistry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is my motivation for dentistry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What characteristics do you think a dentist should have? How do you show these characteristics?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is the most difficult situation you have ever been in?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"None of my questions were really difficult. MUSC adcom members are really good at making you feel relaxed,comfortable, and welcome during interviews and the lunch with faculty and students." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Have you taken biochemistry? (I dropped it--he knew it. :)) "You should really take it", he said. " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"With a stable job that you have, why do you want to go for dentistry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"None, all were standard questions. " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"where will you practice?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"the second time i was asked, "why do you think we should choose you to be in our class?" " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Do you have any questions?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What would you do if you weren't accepted into this school?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are you weaknesses and strengths?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"With experience in a hospital, how come you are not drawn to medicine?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"weaknesses" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your hobbies" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What has been your most significant achievement to date?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What was it that made you decide you wanted to be a dentist?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Are you familiar with what a dental student does? (This was worded very vaguely and I didn't know how to answer.)" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

How did you prepare for the interview?

"Google and SDN. Mentally preparing myself for possible questions that they might ask." More from this Member | Report Response

"Mock interviews, connected with current students, and visited the school prior to the interview" More from this Member | Report Response

"SDN, people I know who go there." More from this Member | Report Response

"Review questions and body language techniques" More from this Member | Report Response

"researched school, sdn" More from this Member | Report Response

"Good night rest..." More from this Member | Report Response

"Went over my accomplishments from the year before since I was reapplying to dental schools and decided not to have answers already in mind for questions. I wanted to be completely natural." More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing really. Get a new tie? " More from this Member | Report Response

"student doctor, mock interview" More from this Member | Report Response

"Looked at their website. Looked at researchers I was interested in working with. " More from this Member | Report Response

"SDN" More from this Member | Report Response

"mock interview, this website, the bulletin, students who had recently interviewed etc." More from this Member | Report Response

"This website. Several other online pre-dental sites" More from this Member | Report Response

"This website, mock interview, practice w/ friends" More from this Member | Report Response

"studentdoctor.net feedback, brochure, ask faculty members over summer" More from this Member | Report Response

"this website, other websites, speaking to my dentist" More from this Member | Report Response

"I studied interview threads from SDN, current dental students, read the school's website." More from this Member | Report Response

"Read the forums on this website" More from this Member | Report Response

"This website, kaplan book, mock interview" More from this Member | Report Response

"Read about the school, Used this website and read past interview questions not only for this school, but also others. " More from this Member | Report Response

"looked at school's website, mock interview, used this website" More from this Member | Report Response

What impressed you positively?

"The friendliness of all the admissions committee, faculty, and students. Southern hospitality!" More from this Member | Report Response

"The facility were great, the building and technology were top notch and the students really love being there." More from this Member | Report Response

"The faculty, staff and students are the nicest people. Also, the clinic is relatively new and very spacious." More from this Member | Report Response

"Wet lab is open all night for you to practice/ work on your assignments and everything really" More from this Member | Report Response

"Clinic" More from this Member | Report Response

"Brand new clinic, students were friendly and happy to be there." More from this Member | Report Response

"The friendly environment from staff and students." More from this Member | Report Response

"friendly faculty and student body, the campus" More from this Member | Report Response

"The extra efforts made to ensure we were all comfortable." More from this Member | Report Response

"How everyone at MUSC from faculty, students, and staff are so helpful and accommodating to all applicants. The new clinical building being built is quite stellar as well." More from this Member | Report Response

"The comforting nature of the professors and students. " More from this Member | Report Response

"faculties put you at ease" More from this Member | Report Response

"People are really nice there. All their combined degree students are fully funded and have their own NIH grants. The facilities are ok. " More from this Member | Report Response

"The faculty was extremely friendly. They are building a new clinical facility. The campus is beautiful. " More from this Member | Report Response

"the faculty seems to be genuinely interested and concerned with the well being of the students, and they were extremely friendly, the city is great (i'm from there), and they've recently recieved a number of NIH grant funds for oral cancer research." More from this Member | Report Response

"The labs are being updated. Charleston is gorgeous. I've heard from local dentists that the MUSC faculty was unusually friendly, and I found that to be the case. " More from this Member | Report Response

"The people were friendly and relaxed, the atmosphere was good" More from this Member | Report Response

"easy going nature of the interviewers. They were all very kind and personable. The questions were very straight forward. " More from this Member | Report Response

"They are building a new dental clinic and seemed optimistic the next class would use it by 2008." More from this Member | Report Response

"How super friendly the ADCOMs were." More from this Member | Report Response

"Laid back attitude of the interviewers" More from this Member | Report Response

"Faculty are very helpful and concerned about students" More from this Member | Report Response

"The staff and faculty are very friendly. The chair of the admissions committee makes it clear that they are not there to make you nervous and that philosophy shows in the interviews. They're much more conversational than interrogational. " More from this Member | Report Response

"Most everyone seemed very nice, and the students we talked with were very helpful. The interview day is designed to be very informative. The equipment seems up to date even if the building is old." More from this Member | Report Response

What impressed you negatively?

"My interviewers asking me almost all the same questions" More from this Member | Report Response

"nothing! It is expensive but I think it is worth it." More from this Member | Report Response

"Honestly nothing." More from this Member | Report Response

"After a warm introduction by Dr. Javed, it felt as though my Interviewers weren't all that interested in getting to know me. I'm sure they're busy people, but my interviews didn't seem like a priority to them. Students that I know at MUSC all told me the interviews there are more like conversations, but I did not have that experience. Others in my group had a lot of great things to say about their interviews, so luck of the draw, I guess." More from this Member | Report Response

"Parking" More from this Member | Report Response

"Parking.... nothing to do with the school though. " More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing really. " More from this Member | Report Response

"current clinical facility is very out of date. " More from this Member | Report Response

"there are no externship abroad opportunities, the new clinical facilities will not be built for another 3 years, they lost funding for some of their community outreach programs, and they don't permit non-work/study part time jobs for their students." More from this Member | Report Response

"Some people refer to the older facilities as being a problem, but I'm not convinced that it's any real concern." More from this Member | Report Response

"nothing" More from this Member | Report Response

"The clinics are extremely old but they are building a new one next door!" More from this Member | Report Response

"The building is kind of old" More from this Member | Report Response

"Facilities are quite old" More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing really other than learning that there is no way that the class I would be entering with will be able to utilize the new dental building since they are still waiting on funding and ground hasn't been broken yet." More from this Member | Report Response

"The location. The surrounding area is not very nice. The campus is great, but the building of the college of dental medicine is old. However, they are building a new state-of-the-art facility for it that should open in 2007, I think." More from this Member | Report Response

What did you wish you had known ahead of time?

"That the interviewers would ask the same questions and how to approach that" More from this Member | Report Response

"How laid back it all would be!" More from this Member | Report Response

"I wish I knew how laid back it was going to be. I wouldn't have been as anxious during the days leading up to the interview." More from this Member | Report Response

"I prepared as well as I could have, so there is not much that I wish I would have known ahead of time." More from this Member | Report Response

"N/A" More from this Member | Report Response

"The exact location" More from this Member | Report Response

"that it was so laid back" More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing really. " More from this Member | Report Response

"nothing in particular." More from this Member | Report Response

"Parking seems a little difficult." More from this Member | Report Response

"they don't serve breakfast, you will have downtime where you will just chat with other students there to interview" More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing, I had toured before." More from this Member | Report Response

"um..... i dont know" More from this Member | Report Response

"They don't provide breakfast" More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing. This is the second time I applied. " More from this Member | Report Response

"Charleston can be hard to navigate through with all the one-way streets, and that the interviews aren't as stressful as I thought they were." More from this Member | Report Response

What are your general comments?

"I fell in love with MUSC during the interview! Great city, school, technology, and people" More from this Member | Report Response

"This is great program!" More from this Member | Report Response

"This is the most laid back dental school interview you will ever experience." More from this Member | Report Response

"This school is very expensive, however is well worth the cost. Faculty and students are extremely down-to-earth." More from this Member | Report Response

"Comparing the costs to other schools I've applied to, there are schools that are cheaper to attend out of state than to stay in SC." More from this Member | Report Response

"Top notch school" More from this Member | Report Response

"Great experience. They were very good at not giving you a reason to be nervous." More from this Member | Report Response

"It was a cool interview. Very laid back and the students were really cool. " More from this Member | Report Response

"Very relaxed. Interviews were conversations and flowed well. The interviewers did not try to make me nervous. " More from this Member | Report Response

"dr. javed is only a 5 minute interview. the other two lasted about 25 min, the first of which was very conversational and friendly, the latter was more her writing and me answering (very little eye contact)." More from this Member | Report Response

"I showed up 15 minutes early as was one of the last interviewees to arrive. They took my picture, then showed me to a conference room to join the rest of the applicants. The room was dead silent... Dr. Javed explained how the day would go, and we had a short presentation from the financial aid specialist. Then I had 3 different interviews. Plan on some down-time in between interviews. After my interviews, we had lunch and met with the rest of the admissions committee along with a few students. Afterwards, we had some time to talk with students without faculty present. Next we toured the Dental History museum and toured the relevant portion of the campus." More from this Member | Report Response

"It was a very relaxed day. I arrived 30 minutes early and nobody was there yet. I obtained a packet of information, got my picture taken, and then someone came in to discuss financial aid. After that, Dr. Javed came in and told us what to expect for the day. We were given a schedule and went in and out depending on the time of the interview. I was accepted on December 1st. " More from this Member | Report Response

"The faculty and staff do a great job of easing everyone's anxiety level. Day begins with a talk from financial services, then Dr. Javed comes and gives a introduction. Then the interviews go until lunch. A campus tour after lunch with a student was great and insightful. Then if you had an afternoon interview, you would finish with that and head home. Jill Stevens was there all day and answered everyone's questions honestly. Great help!" More from this Member | Report Response

"The interview started with a brief meeting that really helped your relax and to realize that they interviewers want to impress you as much as you want to impress them. It's a very friendly process. The faculty just wants to know how much you really want to be a dentist. " More from this Member | Report Response

"The interviews were really laid back. You meet with the head adcom for 10 mins and interview. He asks about your GPA and DAT. THen the 2 other interviews last 20-30 mins and they ask more personal questions." More from this Member | Report Response

"They try to make it as laid back as possible, the interview is more like a conversation." More from this Member | Report Response

"The faculty are great, the facilities are old, Charleston is a beautiful place." More from this Member | Report Response

"The day begins at 8:30AM. You'll want to arrive earlier to get your interview schedule, name tag, and to have your picture taken for their reference. Dr. Javed, the chair of the admissions committee, will give a brief intro and then Jerone McDaniel will then go over Financial Aid Services. Then from 9AM to noon are interviews. At noon, prospective applicants, professors and current dental students have lunch. After awhile, the professors will leave and the current dental students will field questions from applicants until 1PM. At 1PM is the campus tour and then interviews continue from 2 to 3PM. Depending on the schedule you receive, you could be done with interviews before lunch. " More from this Member | Report Response

"A positive one. Overall, I was impressed with the school and its faculty. I look forward to attending there." More from this Member | Report Response

Tour and Travel

Who was the tour given by?

Response # Responders
Student 23
Faculty member 0
Admissions staff 3
Other 0

How did the tourguide seem?

Response # Responders
Enthusiastic 17
Neutral 2
Discouraging 0

How do you rank the facilities?

Response Avg # Responders
8.47 19

0 = low, 10 = high

What is your in-state status?

Response # Responders
In state 14
Out of state 4

What was your total time spent traveling?

Response # Responders
0-1 hour 7
2-3 hours 4
4-6 hours 4
7+ hours 1

What was your primary mode of travel?

Response # Responders
Airplane 1
Automobile 13
Train or subway 2
Other 2

About how much did you spend on room, food, and travel?

Response # Responders
< $100 7
$101-$200 5
$201-$300 0
$301-$400 0
$401-$500 1
$501+ 0

What airport did you use?

CHS

n.a

Where did you stay?

Response # Responders
At school facility 0
With students at the school 0
Friends or family 1
Hotel 8
Home 2
Other 1

What is the name of the hotel you stayed in?

Air Force Base

Bed and Breakfest across the street

Comfort Inn on Bee St

Comfort Inn- Bee St.

Days Inn on W. Montague Ave

La Quinta

Yes

Would you recommend the hotel?

Air Force Base

Bed and Breakfest across the street

Comfort Inn on Bee St

Comfort Inn- Bee St.

Days Inn on W. Montague Ave

La Quinta

Yes

Comments on where you stayed

No responses

General Info

How do you rank this school among other schools to which you've applied?

Response Avg # Responders
9.00 21

0 = low, 10 = high

What is your ranking of this school's location?

Response Avg # Responders
9.38 21

0 = low, 10 = high

What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?

Response Avg # Responders
9.29 21

0 = low, 10 = high

How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?

Response Avg # Responders
9.64 14

0 = low, 10 = high

How is the friendliness of the admissions office?

Response Avg # Responders
9.79 14

0 = low, 10 = high

How eco-friendly are the school's application materials and interview process?

Response Avg # Responders
7.50 14

0 = low, 10 = high

What are your suggestions for the admissions office?

"Communication within interviewers to not ask the same questions. This made it easier on my end, but I think they would learn more about canidates if they asked different questions." More from this Member | Report Response

"None!" More from this Member | Report Response

"None." More from this Member | Report Response

"More timely response regarding standing. However, I understand why they hold out until more interviews have taken place." More from this Member | Report Response

"Keep up the good work! Your hospitality is impressive." More from this Member | Report Response

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