How will the Dental Surgery interviews work? - interviewers

• Make sure that you have signed our safeguarding policy form before participating in our interviews. Please note that this is compulsory prior to interviewing for us.
• Please watch the video, on this page, on reducing bias in selection as this is key for your role.
• Ensure you have reviewed the safeguarding notes below as many interviewees will be under 18 years of age.
• Please read through the briefing materials and watch the videos which will instruct you on how to mark candidates. We’ll send a link to these materials to you via email.

Interviewer safeguarding standards

- Comply with the University’s guidelines and applicable UK Laws regarding interacting with children.

- Be sensitive to children’s appearance, race, culture, religious belief, sexuality, gender or disability.

- Be fair and treat everyone with respect and dignity in accordance with our Equality and Diversity policy.

- Respect a child’s right to privacy.

- Communicate in an open and respectful way during the interview.

- Ensure any content shared with the interviewee is that which is provided by the University of Birmingham alone.

- Do not make inappropriate contact with children using social media, or by exchanging any contact details.

Raising and reporting concerns

- If you have concerns about a child, please request an incident form from us and note these down; the form will then be passed on to the College of Medicine and Health Child Protection Officer for consideration of next steps.

- If you believe someone is at immediate risk of harm, please contact us and we will immediately contact the relevant services.

- Key forms of abuse to look for in children are emotional abuse, physical abuse, neglect and sexual abuse. Further information about types of abuse will be included in your briefing email along with the University’s child protection and safeguarding policy and our MMI policy.

• The interviews will take place between Monday 16th February and Friday 20th February 2026 at the Birmingham Dental School.
• There will be 4 stations in total, which will all take around 10 minutes each to complete. You will be situated at one of these stations while the candidates move around the room.
• Each interview session will take just under one hour to complete, and interviewer sessions will run for half a day at a time.
• If you are able to sign up to a full day, there will be a lunch break, however we are no longer able to offer lunch due to budget restrictions.

• First, you need to log into our MS Teams system via the tablets we provide.
• Then, you need to enter the candidate ID and station details that we will provide to you.
• You will then make your way through the exam and mark whilst asking questions, clicking the best option to describe the candidate’s responses.
• Once you have filled out all the fields, click ‘Confirm’. You will then be led back to the main screen to enter the next candidate to mark.
• Please use the full range of marks. Clear guidance will be in each bay to guide you as to how to mark candidates. Please remember, we are relying on your expert judgment in your role as to if you think the candidates display the potential to be good dentists. Please do not feel you are being “mean” by marking an unsatisfactory candidate as such, and please do award excellent candidates with top marks!

• If you need to cancel your interview session, please be aware that it is your responsibility to find a replacement if you are unable to make your shift prior to the interview day. Please let us know if you have done this so we are aware.
• If you are running late, it is important to let us know at your earliest possible opportunity via the email address dentadmissions@contacts.bham.ac.uk so that we can try to find a last-minute replacement. Due to back-to-back interviews taking place, it is not possible to start an interview late.

• Should you require anything additional in the meantime, please email us at dentadmissions@contacts.bham.ac.uk. During the interviews themselves, our email answering times will be delayed.
• We will endeavour to send you an email with the specific details you will require for your station, including the details of how to enter marks on MS Teams, the day before your interview session.