Since the COVID pandemic, many accredited US dental school programs have implemented virtual assessments to better facilitate their selection process for dental student candidates. In the last few years, we have seen a rise of dental schools utilizing the KIRA as a part of their review process.
While you may start to feel some “application fatigue” after having completed your primary and supplemental application, the KIRA must not be dismissed as it serves as a qualitative marker to grant an invitation to interview at the dental school. So, head to your favorite coffee shop, grab your soothing beverage of choice and laptop, and let's dive into everything you need to know to ace your KIRA dental school interview. Stay tuned to the end of the blog post to find common sample KIRA questions to practice.
What is the KIRA?
Kira interview is originally a Canadian-based online interview platform that is commonly being used in accredited US dental school programs. It is a standardized pre-recorded short interview. It can feel awkward as the purpose is not to have a two-sided conversation with another interviewer. It is simply to assess your verbal or written response to an open-ended question. This interview format can take anywhere from 5-10 minutes to complete. Questions will be answered in either a written, video, or combination response.
Why is the KIRA important?
The KIRA allows schools to interview prospective students by asking standardized questions. The rationale is many admissions committees believe past behavior are indicators of future and present behavior. The major factors admissions will be assessing are critical thinking, professionalism, communication skills, ability to overcome adversity, and leadership potential.
When would I expect to see the KIRA?
Once you submit your primary AADSAS application and supplementals, your application will be verified and “in review”. If a program utilizes KIRA as a screening method, expect to complete a KIRA assessment between the verification and being invited for a virtual or in-person interview.
While this is not an exhaustive list, here are some schools that are known to use KIRA:
University of Southern California, Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry
Roseman University School of Dental Medicine
UNLV
ASDOH
NYU
University of Michigan School of Dental Medicine
How do I prepare for the KIRA?
First, understand your timeline available for completing the KIRA. The usual timeline that you have will be anywhere from 2 -7 days. So you’ll need to be prepared relatively quickly.
Note: USC historically allows 48 hours upon receiving the KIRA invitation to complete the KIRA.
Practice open-ended questions such as:
Why do you want to go to _____ (insert school name)?
How do you adapt to change?
How do you exemplify the values/mission statement of ____ (insert school name)?
What would you contribute to our school as a prospective student?
Name one time you experienced conflict with others in a team environment and how you solved it.
Ethical scenarios ie. cheating on a test classmate/ you were not able to fulfill a commitment/ disagreement in patient communication. How do you navigate these?
Invest in a ring light for KIRA and any virtual interviews to create a professional lighting background. My go to ring light that can be attached to desktop and laptops is linked here.
Schedule a mock kira interview session with us by emailing @thepredentalguide@gmail.com. We can offer you insight on many schools' kira format, facilitate a mock practice, and provide you guidance on how to prepare for unexpected questions.
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