Fresh hiring market news and perspectives.
ETS is your greatest resource.

Have an interview coming up soon, but not sure how to prepare? We’re here to help! We’ve put together 10 tips for new dental graduates and experienced dentists alike on how to find the best job opportunities, prepare for the interview, and land the position even when competition is high. Check out Part 3 of our video series below!

If you missed Part 1 of the series, you can watch it here.
Or if you missed Part 2, you can get caught up here.

by Morgan PaceVice President and Senior Account Executive/Dental Recruiter
(540) 491-9102
mpace@etsdental.comSo you had a successful phone interview and you’re ready to meet with the practice. That’s great, but there are a few things you should do to prepare.

Tip #5: Prepare your references

Find a former employer, current coworker, specialist you’ve worked closely with, or, if you’re a dental student or resident, a faculty member or adviser that wouldn’t mind speaking about your clinical abilities, your professionalism, and what you could contribute to a practice.

Tip #6: Research the practice

Look up the owner’s website. Read about him or her, the staff, how they interact with patients, the type of procedures they offer, and how they position themselves in the marketplace. You can learn a lot about a practice based on how they describe and present themselves to potential patients.

Tip #7: Prepare your production numbers

If you’re an experienced dentist, it should be no problem to provide production numbers for your average day, week, or month. You should also be able to talk about the average fees of the practice you currently work for. That should allow the owner to make a fair comparison between that practice and his or her own. If you’re less experienced, such as just coming out of dental school or a residency, you probably won’t have access to production numbers, at least not in most cases. What you might consider doing instead is providing a list of the total number of procedures done for different specialties. For instance, how many root canals have you done? How many crowns? How many extractions? You may also consider timing yourself doing certain procedures. For example, how long does it take you to do a crown prep? How long to do a root canal? These things will be helpful and may help to demonstrate how you are a better fit and can ramp up into a position more quickly than someone with slightly more experience.

Tip #8: Prepare a list of questions for the practice

Since you are looking to advance your career, it is just as important for you to interview the potential employer as it is for them to interview you. With this in mind, it is important to go into the interview with some questions prepared. This will help to show your interest in the position and will also provide you the information you need to make a good and informed long-term decision when it comes time to accept or reject an offer. As a bonus, it’ll also take some pressure off of the interviewer if you have good questions of your own.

Here are a few questions your might consider asking:

1. What are your treatment philosophies? (conservative, aggressive)
2. What would be expected of me as an employee, and what role would I be expected to fill? Would I be limited certain types of cases such as endo or pediatric?
3. Tell me about your patient base: families, geriatric, pediatric, etc.
4. What demographic changes have occurred in your practice in the last ten years, and what changes are on the horizon?
5. Do you actively market or depend on referrals?
6. What kind of equipment do you use?
7. What about your practice are you the most proud of?
8. Where do you see the practice in five to ten years?
9. What are your personal and professional goals?
10. What are your goals for the practice?
11. Are you referring out a lot of a certain type of procedure?
12. What specific things are you looking for the new Associate to bring to the practice?

We hope the above tips will give you the insight you need to interview confidently!

In the next few weeks we’ll be covering the remaining tips on our list, so be sure to keep checking back for more helpful interview tips and career advice in the near future! In the meantime, if you’re looking for an associateship, partnership, or ownership opportunity, don’t hesitate contact us today! We’d love to help connect you with the right opportunity.