Hussein Hassanali a Liverpool dental school graduate, recalls his time as a final year dental student.
Believe in yourself
The main thing is not to worry. Your tutors are there to help you; they want to see you graduate.
Never be afraid to ask them for help and advice. A lot of effort, faith and money has been invested in you as a student, and the pressure is on your tutors just as much as you.
But never forget that it's up to you to deliver on the potential that those same tutors saw in you five years ago. Deal with things one at a time. Being systematic was the only way I found I could manage. Always work to the best of your ability instead of trying to simply scrape through.
The reckoning
As the exams approached, pandemonium broke loose. How can you be expected to learn five years worth of work in just a short time? I wish I'd followed through on the promise that I kept making myself of starting revision as early as possible. Instead, it seemed as if I had not really done any serious revision. It was only when I realised the exams are there to test your clinical knowledge and not your memory, that I started to feel a tiny bit better. After all, I had been building up that clinical knowledge throughout dental school.
Time management
Of course, you can't pass finals without doing any revision. I made a list of strong and weak subjects then planned my revision based on this. Timetables are important too. By making one it made me organised, allowed me to make sure I worked through everything, and put the right amount of time into the right areas. Just when you think you can catch a break, something else always comes up. There are applications for foundation training and so more paperwork was added to an already staggering pile.
Foundation training
All the information for foundation training is on the COPDEND website. First you need to know where you want to work and which postgraduate dental deanery is responsible for training. After that, keep checking the websites to find out about the application details and process and those all important dates. Do a little research into foundation training schemes, trainers and their practices to get some idea of what will suit you and what you'll get the most out of. Put in the effort, and the rewards will be worth it.
Practice visits
The next step is interviews and practice visits. Prepare answers to commonly asked questions and rehearse these with friends. Always try to visit practices during surgery hours so that you can see how they operate. Meet as many of the team as possible. Be keen and enthusiastic... trainers scrutinise your personality just as much as your credentials, if not more. Don't be disheartened if you don't end up getting the job you want. Trainers are experienced in selecting staff and know what they're looking for and who will fit best into their practice and team. The practice you are offered might not be the one you wanted, but with time, you'll soon realise it was the right one for you!
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