Loma Linda University School of Dentistry (DDS) Dentistry Interview — Format, Questions & Prep Tips

Loma Linda has a whole-person health philosophy and a strong global mission. How does that resonate with your approach to dentistry?

This is a values-alignment question. If you have global health, mission service, or community health experiences, connect them here. Demonstrate genuine understanding of what whole-person health means — treating patients physically, mentally, and spiritually — not just a superficial description.

Why Loma Linda specifically, and how does its mission align with your vision of the kind of dentist you want to become?

Know Loma Linda's global mission program, its Seventh-day Adventist heritage, its whole-person health emphasis, and its Inland Empire/Southern California location. Avoid generic California dental school answers.

Loma Linda has an active international dental mission program. Have you participated in global health service, and how do you view the role of dentists in global health?

If you have international health experience, lead with it. If not, articulate why global health service would be meaningful to you and demonstrate awareness of global oral health disparities.

How does the whole-person health philosophy apply to the way you would approach a patient's oral health?

Connect oral health to systemic health, mental health, nutritional status, and social determinants. The whole-person model means treating the patient, not just the tooth.

A patient declines necessary dental treatment for religious reasons. How do you approach this?

Demonstrates respect for patient autonomy, compassionate communication, and ADA ethics. At a faith-based institution, this question tests your ability to respect diverse religious values including those different from the school's Adventist tradition.

How have you developed fine motor precision, and how do you expect simulation lab training at Loma Linda to build on those skills?

Be specific about experiences and connect them to dental tasks. Show awareness of how simulation builds procedural confidence before patient care.

Describe a time you volunteered or served in a context that required you to work outside your comfort zone.

Mission-driven service — not just clinical volunteering — resonates at Loma Linda. International experiences, underserved community work, or challenging service contexts all apply.

What are the oral health challenges facing the Inland Empire patient population, and how can Loma Linda graduates contribute?

Know: the Inland Empire has a large Latino population with high rates of untreated decay, limited specialist access, and Medi-Cal dental coverage gaps. Loma Linda serves a significant proportion of underserved patients in the region.

How do your personal values align with the ADA Principles of Ethics, and are there situations where you think those principles might conflict?

A values-driven question suited to a faith-based institution. Be thoughtful about situations where patient autonomy might conflict with nonmaleficence or beneficence — and how you navigate that tension.

What do you hope your dental career will have achieved in twenty years?

A long-range vision question. At Loma Linda, answers that include mission service, global health, community impact, or whole-person care will resonate. Be genuine.

On an international dental mission trip you have limited supplies and a long line of patients in pain. A complex case would take most of your remaining materials. How do you decide, and how do you talk to the patients waiting?

Triage and resource stewardship balanced against individual need, honest and compassionate communication, and humility about limits. Mission service is central to Loma Linda — show ethical, whole-person reasoning.

You are shown Inland Empire data with high rates of untreated decay among children in a largely Latino community. Before designing an outreach program, what would you want to understand?

Access to Medi-Cal dentists, language, school-based options, caregiver work schedules, and water fluoridation. Show structural, data-aware thinking tied to Loma Linda's safety-net role.

How would you provide compassionate, whole-person care to a patient who is frightened, in pain, and also dealing with significant life stress, in a single appointment?

Acknowledge the person, not just the tooth; address fear, connect to support resources, and pace the visit. This operationalises Loma Linda's whole-person philosophy.

Loma Linda's mission is faith-rooted and service-driven. Tell us about a value or commitment that genuinely guides how you treat people, and where it came from.

Authentic values reflection — applicants of any faith are welcome, but Loma Linda detects performed alignment quickly. Ground it in real experience.

A patient's religious beliefs lead them to decline a treatment you consider clearly necessary. At a faith-based school, how do you reconcile respecting their beliefs with your clinical duty?

Respect autonomy and diverse beliefs (including ones different from the school's), ensure informed consent, and continue compassionate, non-abandoning care. Show you honor values you may not share.