"Whether for a simple cleaning or critical oral procedure, effectively treating patients comes down to a dentist's problem-solving abilities, and I'm confident that my use of solid judgment will make me a confident dentist. During my undergraduate program, I worked in a small retail store just off campus, and one weekend afternoon, our POS system went down. My first course of action was to call the store owner to let them know what was happening. Then, I called the help desk number for the system, and my coworker began manually accepting cash and handwriting receipts for customer transactions. We knew that shutting down the shop on a busy weekend wasn't an option, so some extra effort was needed on our part. In the end, the system was back up and running in about an hour, and our quick thinking made the situation a success."

As you prepare for your dental school interviews, think of a few real-life examples that showcase your logic and reasoning abilities. Share a brief overview of the problem you faced, discuss the pros and cons of each decision you could have made, and tell the interviewers why the solution you chose was the best. Include details of the positive impact you generated by using strong judgment. The goal of your response is to assure the interviewers that you approach issues with care and logic so they will be confident in your ability to use this same logic in their training program.