King's Dentistry Interview Questions (2027 Entry)

How does King's interview for dentistry?

Source: King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements (September 2027 entry); King's College London, Undergraduate admissions policies and guidance (2027 entry); King's College London, Dentistry BDS course page, archived copy (web.archive.org, 14 January 2025) (September 2025 entry)

When are King's dentistry interviews for 2027 entry?

Source: King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements (September 2027 entry)

How does King's decide who to interview for dentistry?

Source: King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements (September 2027 entry); King's College London, Enhanced Support Dentistry Programme BDS entry requirements (September 2027 entry)

What does King's assess at a dentistry interview?

Source: King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements (September 2027 entry); King's College London, Dentistry BDS course page (September 2027 entry)

Suitability for the programme: why dentistry, and why King's

What King's says: King's says its interviewers assess your general suitability for the programme, and its personal statement guidance asks for a realistic appreciation of the academic, physical and emotional demands of a dentistry degree and career. King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements

King's asks for a realistic picture of the degree, so expect the panel to test whether you know what the work involves day to day, including the physical side of it. For the King's part of your answer, use what King's publishes about its own course: science taught so that it relates to clinical practice, whole patient care, phantom head and haptic simulation, and teaching alongside Dental Therapy and Hygiene students.

1. 1

   Why dentistry and not medicine?

   What to cover: Say what draws you to dentistry itself, such as long-term relationships with patients, prevention, and doing precise practical work with your hands. Saying medicine would be too long or too hard tells the panel why you are not doing medicine, not why you want dentistry.

2. 2

   Why King's?

   What to cover: Choose two things King's says about its own course and explain why they suit the way you learn. A ranking tells the panel nothing about you, so spend your time on the course.

3. 3

   King's says its course emphasises whole patient care, considering a patient's total dental and medical needs. What do you think that means in practice?

   What to cover: Give an example of how a patient's general health changes dental care, such as diabetes and gum disease, or a medicine that affects bleeding after an extraction. Then say why treating one tooth at a time can miss the bigger picture.

4. 4

   What did your work experience show you about the day-to-day reality of being a dentist?

   What to cover: Describe something that surprised you, such as how much time goes on records, prevention advice or anxious patients. Our dentistry work experience guide shows how to turn what you saw into reflection.

5. 5

   King's mentions the physical and emotional demands of a dentistry career. What are they, and which worries you most?

   What to cover: Think about long hours of close, precise work, posture and back strain, and patients who are frightened or in pain. Naming one worry and what you already do about it makes the rest of the answer believable.

6. 6

   King's students practise clinical skills on phantom heads and haptic simulators. What have you done that suggests you can learn fine hand skills, and how would you cope if they came slowly?

   What to cover: Use something real, such as sewing, model building, an instrument or cake decorating, and talk about how you got better with practice. Then say you expect to find the early simulation work hard and would ask for feedback early.

7. 7

   What do you know about what happens after you qualify as a dentist?

   What to cover: King's says most new graduates enter Dental Foundation Training, working in a training practice under supervision with a day release course. Mention that some go on to hospital, specialist or academic careers, and say which appeals to you now.

8. 8

   If you do not get a place in dentistry this year, what will you do?

   What to cover: Give a realistic plan you would carry out, whether that is reapplying with more experience or another route into dentistry. Our reapplying guide covers what helps a second application.

Go deeper: How to answer "Why dentistry?"

Communication skills

What King's says: Communication skills are the first thing King's lists among what its interviewers assess, and its personal statement guidance calls them of great importance. King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements

With a remote panel of two, the way you communicate is on show for the whole interview, not in one station. Look at the camera when you speak, give answers with a clear start and finish, and include both interviewers. Dentistry adds its own challenges: patients who are frightened of you, children, and people who cannot answer because their mouth is open.

9. 9

   A patient tells you they have not been to a dentist for ten years because they are frightened. How would you talk to them?

   What to cover: Thank them for coming, ask what frightens them and listen to the answer before you explain anything. Agree a signal to stop, go at their pace and tell them what will happen before it happens.

10. 10

    How would you explain to a nervous eight-year-old what happens at a dental check-up?

    What to cover: Use short words and something they can picture, such as the mirror and counting their teeth, and let them hold or see things first. Talk to the child as well as the parent, because that is the skill being scored.

11. 11

    A parent gives their toddler juice in a bottle through the day. How would you explain why that harms their teeth without making them feel judged?

    What to cover: Start by finding out what they already know and why the bottle helps them, then explain frequent sugar and acid in plain words. Offer a small, realistic change instead of a lecture.

12. 12

    Dentists often talk to patients who cannot reply because their mouth is open. How would you keep a patient informed and comfortable during treatment?

    What to cover: Agree a hand signal to stop before you start, tell them what is coming next, and check in with questions they can answer with a nod. Watch their hands and face, because that is how they will tell you something is wrong.

13. 13

    A patient speaks very little English. How do you make sure they understand their treatment options?

    What to cover: Ask for a professional interpreter instead of relying on family, especially children. Use plain words and pictures, and check understanding by asking them to explain it back, because consent depends on it.

14. 14

    A patient is angry that their NHS appointment was cancelled at short notice. What do you say?

    What to cover: Let them finish, apologise once and mean it, and tell them what you know and what can happen next. Offering practical help shows empathy more clearly than kind words; our empathy and sympathy guide explains the difference.

15. 15

    Tell us about a time you had to explain something complicated to someone who did not understand it at first.

    What to cover: Describe what you tried first, how you noticed it was not working, and what you changed. The change is the part the panel wants to hear about.

16. 16

    Your King's interview is held remotely with two interviewers. How will you make sure you come across well to both of them?

    What to cover: Talk about looking at the camera, answering the person who asked while including the other, and pausing so either can follow up. Practising on video with two people beforehand is the most useful preparation you can do.

Go deeper: Dental school practice interview questions

Health-related ethical issues

What King's says: King's says its interviewers explore general social and ethical issues, normally health related. King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements

A panel can keep asking "what if" until your reasoning runs out, so these questions score how you think more than whether you know the law. Say what matters, what you would want to find out, what you would do and why, and what would change your mind. Valid consent, capacity and confidentiality sit underneath most dental scenarios, and the GDC's standards are the reference point a dentist would use.

17. 17

    A 14-year-old attends with a parent who wants her to have braces. She says she does not want them. Whose decision is it?

    What to cover: Talk about whether she understands what braces involve and what happens without them, and whether she is competent to decide. Our Gillick competence guide sets out the test, and braces work poorly on a patient who will not wear them.

18. 18

    An adult patient with capacity refuses to have a painful, infected tooth removed. What do you do?

    What to cover: Check they understand the risks of leaving it, explore why they are refusing, offer the alternatives and record the conversation, then respect the decision. Our capacity guide explains how capacity is judged.

19. 19

    A patient asks for veneers on healthy teeth, which would mean removing some sound tooth tissue. Should a dentist agree?

    What to cover: Weigh their right to choose against irreversible harm to healthy teeth, and make sure they understand the long-term risks and the alternatives. A dentist can decline treatment they do not think is in the patient's interests, as long as they explain why.

20. 20

    During a check-up you notice bruising on a child that does not fit the explanation you are given. What do you do?

    What to cover: Record what you see and what you were told, and follow the practice's safeguarding procedure by speaking to the safeguarding lead the same day. The child's safety comes before keeping the family happy.

21. 21

    A fellow dental student posts a photo from clinic online, and a patient's face is visible in the background. What do you do?

    What to cover: Treat it as a breach of confidentiality, whatever they intended. Speak to them, ask them to take it down and raise it if they will not; our confidentiality guide explains where the line sits.

22. 22

    A dentist realises they gave a patient the wrong aftercare advice yesterday. What should happen next?

    What to cover: Contact the patient, correct the advice, apologise and explain what happened, then record it and learn from it. The GDC expects dental professionals to be open with patients when something goes wrong, so keeping quiet is not an option.

23. 23

    Should a dental practice be allowed to stop seeing NHS patients who repeatedly miss appointments?

    What to cover: Consider the cost of wasted appointments to other patients, and why some people miss them, such as anxiety, work, caring or money. A fair answer looks at the reasons before it looks at removing the patient.

24. 24

    Is it right for a dentist to recommend a private treatment when an NHS option is available?

    What to cover: Valid consent means the patient hears every reasonable option, including the NHS one, with the costs and differences explained fairly. Our consent guide covers what informed means.

Go deeper: Dentistry ethical scenarios

Social issues: NHS dentistry and oral health

What King's says: King's says its interviewers explore general social and ethical issues, normally health related. King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements

The social side of dentistry is where an applicant who reads the news stands out. Know how NHS dentistry is paid for in England and why access is hard in many areas, and know why oral health is worse in poorer communities. Give balanced answers and avoid figures you cannot stand behind, because a panel can ask where a number came from.

25. 25

    Why do many people in England struggle to find an NHS dentist?

    What to cover: Talk about how NHS dentistry is commissioned and paid for, practices choosing to do more private work, and how hard it is to recruit in some areas. Keep it balanced, and finish with what you think would help.

26. 26

    What is a Unit of Dental Activity, and why has the system been criticised?

    What to cover: Since 2006, NHS practices in England have been paid in units of dental activity for courses of treatment grouped into bands. Critics say it pays the same for very different amounts of work and does little to reward prevention; our UDA guide explains the bands.

27. 27

    The government announced changes to the NHS dental contract in England in December 2025. What would you want reform to achieve?

    What to cover: Think about urgent care, patients with complex needs, prevention and keeping dentists in the NHS, then pick the one you would put first and say why. Our contract reform guide summarises what was announced.

28. 28

    Should fluoride be added to drinking water across England?

    What to cover: Set out the case for, which is that it reduces decay across a whole population including people who rarely see a dentist, and the objections, which are mostly about consent and choice. Since the Health and Care Act 2022, new schemes in England are a decision for the Secretary of State; check the latest position before your interview.

29. 29

    Tooth decay is preventable, yet having decayed teeth removed under general anaesthetic is one of the most common reasons young children are admitted to hospital in England. Why do you think that is?

    What to cover: Talk about sugar in children's diets, families who struggle to get an NHS appointment, and how decay clusters in poorer areas. Then say what could prevent it, such as fluoride varnish and supervised toothbrushing in nurseries.

30. 30

    Oral health is worse in more deprived areas. What can a dental team do about that?

    What to cover: Think about prevention advice that fits people's lives, outreach into schools and care homes, and making appointments easier to keep. Our health inequalities guide gives the wider context.

31. 31

    King's first year includes a Public Health and Epidemiology module. Why should a dental student study public health?

    What to cover: Because most dental disease is preventable and prevention mostly happens outside the surgery. Link it to something you saw, such as children with decay from sugary drinks, and to how you would know whether a prevention scheme works.

32. 32

    Is a tax on sugary drinks a good way to protect children's teeth?

    What to cover: Weigh the evidence that the Soft Drinks Industry Levy changed what manufacturers put in drinks against the argument that it falls hardest on poorer households. Our sugar tax guide has both sides.

Go deeper: Current NHS dentistry hot topics

Suitability as a health professional

What King's says: King's says its interviewers assess your general suitability as a health professional, and that it wants its students to display the professional qualities, skills and attitudes that make competent and caring dental professionals. King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements

King's builds its course on the GDC's outcomes, so it helps to know the regulator's Standards for the Dental Team and to be able to apply them to a situation. You do not need to recite all nine principles. You do need to show that you understand why patients trust a dental professional and what would break that trust.

33. 33

    The GDC's Standards for the Dental Team set out nine principles. Which one matters most to you, and why?

    What to cover: Pick one, such as putting patients' interests first or raising concerns, and explain it with an example of what it looks like on a normal day. The panel will learn more from one principle applied well than from all nine listed.

34. 34

    What does professionalism mean for a first-year dental student who has not treated anyone yet?

    What to cover: Think about attendance, doing your own coursework, how you speak about patients and how you behave online. Explain that a dental school expects this from the first week, before you have treated anyone.

35. 35

    A friend on the course asks you to sign them in to a compulsory session they are going to miss. What do you do?

    What to cover: Say no, kindly and clearly, and encourage them to tell the course team why they cannot attend. Signing them in would mean falsifying a record, and dental schools treat that as a fitness to practise matter because patients will later rely on the records you keep.

36. 36

    Why does infection control matter so much in dentistry?

    What to cover: Talk about blood, saliva, aerosols and sharp instruments in a small space, and infections such as hepatitis B that a patient may not know they carry. Mention that dental practices in England follow national decontamination guidance known as HTM 01-05.

37. 37

    King's requires every offer holder to complete Occupational Health clearance, which may include vaccinations. Why does a dental school need that?

    What to cover: Link it to protecting patients from infection and protecting students too. Then say what it tells you about the responsibility a health professional takes on before they treat anyone.

38. 38

    On placement you notice a member of staff does not change their gloves between patients. What do you do?

    What to cover: Patient safety comes first, so you raise it, starting with your clinical supervisor and using the formal route if nothing changes. Our whistleblowing guide explains why raising concerns is a duty.

39. 39

    What is the General Dental Council for, and why does it matter to patients?

    What to cover: It registers dental professionals, sets the standards they must meet and investigates when those standards are not met. Explain that patients rarely see it, but they rely on it every time they sit in the chair.

40. 40

    King's runs a fit-to-sit policy for interviews. What does that tell you about judging your own fitness to work as a dental professional?

    What to cover: Under the policy, King's cannot take mitigating circumstances into account for your interview performance, so by sitting it you are judging yourself fit to do so. Link that to a clinician's duty to recognise when illness or stress affects their work and to step back or seek help before treating patients.

Go deeper: The nine GDC principles

Teamwork and the dental team

What King's says: King's personal statement guidance says communication skills and the ability to work successfully in a team are of great importance. King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements

King's says its programme prepares students to work as part of an oral healthcare team in primary and secondary care, and it teaches its dentistry students alongside Dental Therapy and Hygiene students, so expect questions that check you know who else is in a dental team and what they do. A good answer shows that you see the dentist as one member of a team, and that you would listen to a dental nurse or hygienist who knows more than you about something.

41. 41

    Who makes up a dental team, and what does each member do?

    What to cover: Cover dental nurses, hygienists, therapists, technicians, clinical dental technicians and orthodontic therapists, all registered with the GDC, plus the reception and practice staff who keep a practice running. Pick one you saw at work and describe what they did.

42. 42

    King's teaches dentistry students alongside Dental Therapy and Hygiene students. What do you think you could learn from them?

    What to cover: Think about prevention, gum health and how to help patients change their habits, which is much of their training. Then say what knowing their scope of practice would mean for you as a dentist.

43. 43

    Since 2013 the GDC has allowed patients to see a dental hygienist or therapist without first seeing a dentist. Is that a good thing?

    What to cover: Weigh easier access and better use of everyone's skills against the need to refer anything outside their training. Showing you understand that each role has limits is the point of the question.

44. 44

    Tell us about a team you were part of that did not work well. What was your part in it?

    What to cover: Own a share of the problem, explain what went wrong, such as unclear roles or someone not being heard, and say what you would do differently. If everyone else is to blame in your answer, the panel learns nothing about how you work in a team.

45. 45

    A dental nurse tells you, a student, that you have just contaminated a sterile instrument tray. How do you respond?

    What to cover: Thank them, stop, and get it replaced before you go on, then think about how it happened. Accepting correction from anyone in the team, whatever their role, is what keeps patients safe.

46. 46

    How does a dentist work with a dental technician to make a crown or denture?

    What to cover: Talk about taking accurate impressions or scans, giving a clear prescription with the shade and design, and checking the fit together. Explain that a poor impression or a vague prescription leads to a poor fit, however skilled the technician is.

47. 47

    You disagree with your clinical supervisor's treatment plan for a patient. What do you do?

    What to cover: Ask about it privately and give your reason, then listen, because they may know something you do not. If you think the patient could come to harm, keep raising it until someone senior has listened.

48. 48

    Why might a dentist be the first person to spot a serious illness?

    What to cover: Many people see a dentist more regularly than a doctor, and some signs, such as a mouth ulcer that has not healed in three weeks, can point to mouth cancer. Link it to King's emphasis on whole patient care and to knowing when to refer.

Go deeper: The multidisciplinary team explained

Contributing to King's, and coping with the demands

What King's says: King's says its interviewers consider how you will contribute to the university as a whole, and it looks for applicants who have taken part as fully as possible in school or college life and have some experience of society beyond their immediate environment. King's College London, Dentistry BDS entry requirements

King's says outright that it considers how you will contribute to the university as a whole, so prepare for questions about your life outside dentistry. It also says it aims to make sure its students can cope with the heavy academic workload, so expect the panel to check how you cope with pressure and how you would look after yourself across five years.

49. 49

    King's says it considers how you will contribute to the university as a whole. What would you bring to King's outside your course?

    What to cover: Pick two things you already do and would carry on, such as a sport, music or volunteering, and say how you would do them at university. Say what you would join or start, because a named plan is easier for the panel to believe than a list of hobbies.

50. 50

    Tell us about an experience that took you outside your usual environment. What did you learn?

    What to cover: Choose something where you met people whose lives were different from yours, such as volunteering, a job or a community project. Say what you noticed and what you now do differently.

51. 51

    What are you proud of at school or college, other than your exam results?

    What to cover: Choose something you started, kept going or improved, and explain your part in it. King's looks for applicants who make the most of the opportunities they have.

52. 52

    King's says it wants students who can cope with the heavy academic workload of the programme. How do you manage pressure?

    What to cover: Describe what you actually do and the warning signs you watch for in yourself. A time you missed those signs and what you changed afterwards makes the answer believable.

53. 53

    Tell us about a time something went wrong and you had to keep going.

    What to cover: Choose a setback that cost you something, explain what you did next and what you would do differently. Avoid finishing with a story about how it all turned out perfectly.

54. 54

    In year 5, King's students are based either at King's College Hospital at Denmark Hill and West Norwood Health and Leisure Centre, or at the Portsmouth Dental Academy. How would you feel about being placed outside London?

    What to cover: Treat it as part of the training you are choosing, which King's says is designed to prepare you for foundation training. Be practical about living away from friends and say what you would gain from a different patient population.

55. 55

    How would you look after your own wellbeing during a long clinical course?

    What to cover: Talk about the things that keep you well now, such as sleep, exercise and people you talk to, and say you would use the university's support early. A dental professional who is unwell can put patients at risk, so this is part of the job.

56. 56

    King's describes its clinical environment as diverse. What would treating patients from very different backgrounds mean for how you work?

    What to cover: Think about language, cultural expectations, cost and past experiences of healthcare, and how each might change a conversation about treatment. Give one example of how you would adapt the way you explain an option.

Go deeper: Dentistry work experience guide