The Pacific Dugoni dental school interview format

The University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry in San Francisco invites applicants selected by its Executive Admissions Committee to interview. Its DDS admissions FAQ says applicants are invited to the school for an interview with one or more members of the Admissions Committee, and that the interview assesses your interest in dentistry, future plans, maturity and other personal qualities needed for successful work with patients.

Item	What Pacific says
Where	In person at the school in San Francisco; candidates are told about any virtual interview days if offered
Who interviews you	One or more members of the Admissions Committee
What is assessed	Interest in dentistry, future plans, maturity and other personal qualities needed for work with patients
Also on the day	An orientation seminar, informal time with current dental students and a tour of the school
Invitation	By phone, confirmed by email; interviews are required for any offer or alternate position
Interview months	Mostly September through March; all applicants are notified by May
Length, panel or one-on-one, question types, open or closed file	Not published

The FAQ adds a caution: the Executive Admissions Committee reserves the right to override recommendations made by faculty interviewers. The interviews matter, but they are one input.

Manual dexterity is a stated selection factor

Pacific names hand skills in its FAQ. The factors that decide who is invited to interview include scholastic record, DAT scores, the AADSAS essay, letters of evaluation, "evidence of manual dexterity (including the perceptual ability portion of the DAT)," other personal attributes and understanding of a career in dentistry. The FAQ also recommends coursework that builds hand skills, such as mechanical drafting or drawing, jewelry making, sculpting or ceramics, and recommends public speaking, debate or drama for patient communication.

Since manual dexterity is a stated selection factor, it is reasonable to prepare a story about a hands-on skill you have developed and how you practiced it. Pacific does not say interviewers will ask about it.

What Pacific is like

Pacific's DDS program page says the Dugoni School is the only dental school in the United States with a decades-long track record of offering a year-round, accelerated three-year DDS program. It is 36 months, divided into 12 quarters and starting in July. The school describes a humanistic model of instruction that stresses the dignity of each individual, students being called "doctor" from day one and faculty acting as mentors. It also describes the Pacific Dental Helix Curriculum, which integrates disciplines through small-group, case-based learning, a preclinical simulation laboratory and a small-group private practice model in the clinics. During the first quarter, students practice using dental instruments and materials and basic laboratory procedures, and students begin working with patients in their second year.

A three-year program is fast. Be ready for questions about pace, time management and whether you want a compressed schedule (our expectation, not something Pacific states).

The application and numbers

Size of the pool: the FAQ says the school has one of the largest applicant pools in the country, with more than 2,700 applicants for 140 positions in the year it describes. It says competitive applicants may need to apply several times before being invited to interview.
Grades: the incoming class averages 3.6 overall and 3.5 in science, per the FAQ.
AADSAS: Pacific recommends applying as early as June and no later than November. The official deadline is early February. Final DAT scores submitted before November 1 get priority.
Letters: three, two from science professors, or a committee letter. Letters must be submitted through AADSAS.
Supplemental fee: $75, with no fee waivers for the supplemental fee.

How to prepare for Pacific

Prepare a hand-skills story. Describe a skill, how you trained, what you got wrong and how you improved. Do not rely on the DAT perceptual ability score alone.
Prepare for a conversation with a committee member. The interviewer is making a judgment about maturity and fit with patients.
Be ready to explain why three years. A reason that connects to your plans is stronger than "it is cheaper" or "it is faster."
Know the humanistic model. Read the DDS program page and bring one example of treating someone with dignity.
Treat the student time as part of the day. Ask what the clinical workload feels like in the second year.

Pacific Dugoni practice questions (written by us, not Pacific)

Pacific does not publish its questions. These are ours, built from the selection factors and the program's features. Practice each aloud for about two minutes.

Tell me about a skill you do with your hands. How did you learn it, and what went wrong along the way?
Why dentistry, and why not another health profession?
Our program is three years. What appeals to you about that, and what worries you?
What does treating a patient with dignity look like in a dental chair?
A patient is in pain and also in a hurry, and the best treatment takes two visits. How do you approach it?
Describe a time you worked alongside someone who was better than you at something. What did you do?
You are shadowing and a patient asks you a clinical question. What do you say?
What would you do if you made an error with a patient in your first clinic year?
What do you see as the biggest change in dentistry in the next ten years?
Why Pacific, and how will you contribute outside the clinic?

For a wider set, see our dental school interview questions guide.

A drill for a committee interview

Write a two-minute story on a hands-on skill, with a specific mistake and a specific fix.
Tell the story to a friend and ask them to repeat back the lesson. If they cannot, simplify it.
Answer six questions from the list aloud, then repeat the three weakest.
Run one answer as if the interviewer is skeptical, and one as if they are warm. Notice how you change.
Repeat two days later.

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Pacific Dugoni dental school interview FAQ

Is the Pacific dental interview an MMI?

Pacific does not describe an MMI. It says you interview with one or more members of the Admissions Committee.

Is it virtual?

Pacific says interviews are in person, and that invited candidates will be told of any virtual interview days if offered.

How long is the DDS program?

Three years, 36 months, starting in July.

Does Pacific consider manual dexterity?

Yes. It is named in the selection factors, along with the perceptual ability portion of the DAT.

Can I send updates?

Pacific says application updates are not accepted unless the Office of Admissions requests them. A letter of intent may be emailed, but receipt is not confirmed.

Applying elsewhere in California or New York? See our guides to the UCSF School of Dentistry and NYU College of Dentistry interviews, or our dental school interview prep page.

Sources: University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry DDS admissions FAQ and DDS program pages.

Confetto isn't affiliated with the University of the Pacific. Everything here about the school comes from its public admissions pages, checked in October 2026. Formats and dates can change between cycles, so go by your invitation email.