ATSU Missouri School of Dentistry and Oral Health (DMD) Dentistry Interview — Format, Questions & Prep Tips

MOSDOH's mission is to train dentists to serve rural and underserved communities. What in your background specifically prepares you for that commitment?

Concrete experiences — volunteer clinics, rural upbringing, community health work. Avoid generic "I want to help people" answers; be specific about what you have already done.

A patient in a rural community needs a crown but cannot afford private dental care. What options exist, and how do you navigate the conversation?

Safety-net dental resources, community health centers, sliding-scale fees, referral to FQHC. Address patient dignity and financial barriers without judgment.

How does untreated dental disease connect to systemic health outcomes? Give a specific example.

Periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease / diabetes / preterm birth; oral bacteremia and endocarditis. ATSU's whole-person health philosophy expects this connection to be natural, not rehearsed.

Missouri has significant dental shortage areas in rural regions. If you could change one policy to improve dental access in rural Missouri, what would it be and why?

Dental therapy, loan forgiveness tied to service obligation, Medicaid reimbursement reform, mobile dental units — pick one and defend it with evidence.

Describe a time you worked with people from a different background and what you learned about providing care or services to diverse populations.

Cultural competence, communication across difference, adapting your approach. Use a STAR structure.

What does manual dexterity mean to you in the context of clinical dentistry, and how have you developed or demonstrated it?

Artistic hobbies, craft, laboratory work, dental assisting, simulation lab experience. Be specific — dental schools want evidence, not assertion.

MOSDOH uses a competency-based curriculum rather than traditional grading. What appeals to you about that model, and what challenges do you anticipate?

Competency-based education focuses on demonstrated skills rather than grades — fits dentistry well. Challenges: self-directed learning, time management. Show you have researched the model.

A classmate asks you to sign off on a patient record for a procedure you were not present for. What do you do?

ADA code of ethics: integrity in documentation. Decline, explain to classmate, escalate appropriately. No ambiguity on falsifying records.

Why dentistry rather than medicine, given that systemic health is a core part of MOSDOH's curriculum?

Oral-systemic health is the bridge — dentistry is not a lesser choice. Address the direct, hands-on relationship with patients in dental care, preventive focus, and the specific appeal of oral-systemic integration.

How would you handle a situation where a patient refuses recommended treatment for a dental condition that could worsen significantly without intervention?

Patient autonomy vs. beneficence. Inform, educate, document. Do not coerce. Revisit in future appointments. Address emergency care thresholds.

A Missouri county health profile shows high rates of untreated decay and emergency-department visits for dental pain. As a MOSDOH student planning a community rotation, how would you read that and what would you propose?

ED visits for dental pain signal an access and prevention failure, not a clinical curiosity. Link it to FQHC capacity, sealant and fluoride programs, and triage. Move from the statistic to a concrete, measurable community intervention.

How would you explain to a rural Missouri patient with limited health literacy why their dental infection could affect the rest of their body, without frightening or lecturing them?

Plain language, a simple cause-and-effect picture, respect for the patient's intelligence, and a clear next step. ATSU's whole-person philosophy should make oral-systemic communication feel natural and reassuring, not alarming.

Your simulated patient is a farmer who has driven over an hour to your rural clinic, is in pain, and says he 'doesn't have time' for a full treatment plan — he just wants the tooth out today. How do you respond?

Meet him where he is — address the urgent pain, respect his time and constraints, and offer a realistic staged plan rather than an idealised one he cannot follow. Rural practice means tailoring care to real lives, not textbook scheduling.

MOSDOH's whole-person model is rooted in A.T. Still's osteopathic philosophy. How would that philosophy actually change the way you take a history and plan treatment for a complex patient?

Whole-person, patient-in-context care: ask about systemic disease, medications, social and economic circumstances, and coordinate with the patient's physician. Show the philosophy translating into specific clinical behavior, not just a slogan.

During a community rotation, a supervising dentist suggests not recording a patient's missed follow-ups so the clinic's numbers look better for a grant report. What do you do?

Documentation integrity is non-negotiable under the ADA code. Decline, explain why accurate records matter for patient safety and honest reporting, and escalate appropriately. No falsification, even for a sympathetic-sounding reason.