Updated October 26, 2026

Stony Brook Dental School Interview: Kira, Format and Dates

What happens before and at the Stony Brook dental school interview, how you get one, and how offers are decided.

For 2027 entry, the October 1 AADSAS deadline has passed and rolling acceptances start in mid-December. Stony Brook School of Dental Medicine first invites complete applicants who meet its preferred criteria to an online Kira Talent Assessment. The Admissions Committee uses Kira with the AADSAS application to choose who to interview. Stony Brook does not publish the interview format.

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Key facts (2027 entry)

Next step: Rolling acceptances from mid-December, by email. Stony Brook has not posted this cycle's interview months.
Step before the interview: An online Kira Talent Assessment for applicants who are complete, have paid fees and meet the preferred criteria.
Format: Stony Brook does not publish whether the interview is one-on-one, a panel or an MMI, whether it is online or in person, or how long it lasts.
Who is picked: Chosen from the Kira assessment and the AADSAS application. Applicants under serious consideration are told if an interview is indicated.
Preferred minimums: 3.0 total and science GPA, and DAT 17 in Academic Average, PAT and Total Science.
Dental experience: At least 50 hours of dental assisting or shadowing.
Deadline: October 1 for AADSAS, plus a $100 supplemental fee. It has passed for 2027 entry. Files are not reviewed until everything is in.
Offers: Rolling from mid-December, by email. A $1,250 tuition deposit and acceptance statement confirm a seat.

What happens on the interview day

Stony Brook calls interviews an integral part of admissions but does not describe the day. Your invitation is the place to look for details.

By invitation. Applicants under serious consideration are notified if an interview is indicated.
Format not published. Stony Brook's admissions pages do not say whether the interview is one-on-one, a panel or an MMI, who interviews you, how long it lasts, or whether it is online or in person.
Months not published. This cycle's interview months are not listed. Last cycle, applicants who finished prerequisites by January 2026 could be considered for interviews in January and February 2026.

Prepare for any format. Since the format isn't public, practice both a conversational interview about your file and short scenario questions.

How offers are decided

An Admissions Committee makes all decisions and sends them by email. Stony Brook does not publish how the interview is scored.

Rolling from mid-December. The page gives both December 13 and December 15 as the start of acceptances.
Response time. 30 days for offers from December 1 to January 31, 15 days from February 1 to May 15, and possibly an immediate answer after May 15.
Seats fill as you confirm. An offer does not guarantee a seat. Seats fill as admitted students pay a $1,250 tuition deposit and return the acceptance statement.
Class full. If the class fills first, you may be offered a waitlist spot.

The current first-year class

The admissions page lists first-year averages of a 3.85 total GPA and 3.82 science GPA, with a DAT Academic Average of 469 (listed as 469/22.9).

How you get an interview

Stony Brook screens in two steps. A complete file that meets its preferred criteria earns a Kira assessment, and Kira plus AADSAS decides the interview.

Step 1: a complete file

Everything in. Your verified AADSAS application, all supporting documents and the $100 supplemental fee. Files are not reviewed until all of these arrive.
Prerequisites done. Stony Brook requires prerequisite courses to be completed before you apply.
Preferred minimums. Preference goes to a 3.0 total and science GPA and DAT scores of 17 in Academic Average, PAT and Total Science.
50 hours. At least 50 hours of dental assisting or shadowing.
Letters. A pre-health committee letter is required if your college offers one. If it doesn't, three letters from science faculty are accepted.

Step 2: the Kira assessment

Applicants who pass step 1 are invited to complete an online Kira Talent Assessment. Stony Brook uses it with your AADSAS application to decide who it invites to interview.

The Admissions Committee then uses Kira together with your AADSAS application to choose who to interview.

Treat Kira as part of the interview. Kira decides whether you get an interview at all, so prepare for it as seriously as the interview itself.

Dates for 2027 entry

Stony Brook lists its dates without a year. Its DAT rule names the 2026-2027 cycle.

May 12, 2026. The AADSAS cycle opened.
June 2, 2026. First day to submit an AADSAS application. This has passed.
October 1. AADSAS deadline for Stony Brook. It has passed for 2027 entry.
Mid-December. Rolling acceptances begin. This is the next date for 2027-entry applicants.
2028 entry. Stony Brook has not posted dates for the next cycle.
DAT. Only scores from after June 1, 2021 count for 2026-2027. The Canadian DAT is not accepted, and Stony Brook does not hold files for a retake.

How to prepare

At Stony Brook you prepare for two hurdles: the Kira assessment, then the interview.

Practice timed answers. Get used to answering a question you haven't seen in a short, set time, with a clear point and one example.
Use your 50 hours. Stony Brook requires dental assisting or shadowing. Have two or three specific moments from it ready to describe.
Know why Stony Brook. Read its program pages and pick one thing that fits your goals. Be specific, not general praise.
Check the invitation. The school doesn't publish the interview format, so read your invitation closely for how and where it happens.

Apply early next time. Acceptances are rolling and files aren't reviewed until complete, so in a future cycle submit and pay the supplemental fee as soon as you can.

Practice questions

Questions in the style of a Kira assessment, then interview (format not published) station, written for applicants to Stony Brook University School of Dental Medicine. They are practice questions, not the school's own. Open one for what a strong answer does.

During your shadowing, you may have seen a patient disagree with a dentist's diagnosis. Tell us how the dentist calmed the situation without backing down clinically.

Describe the exact words or actions you saw, and what you would copy in your own practice.

Tell me about a day while shadowing when the schedule fell completely apart. How did the dentist keep the team's morale up and the patients happy?

Pick a real day, focus on what the dentist did, and show you understand teamwork under pressure.

You're a dental student in the simulation lab. You realize you poured the wrong type of stone for a model, and remaking it will delay your partner's project by a day. The instructor hasn't noticed. What do you do?

Own the mistake openly, tell your partner and the instructor, and offer a plan to limit the delay.

A patient wants an aggressive whitening treatment that you know will cause severe pain because of their enamel erosion. They offer to sign a waiver. How do you handle this?

Explain why a waiver doesn't change your duty to avoid harm, and offer safer ways to meet their goal.

A nervous patient asks you a highly technical question about the materials you are using, and you can tell they are testing your knowledge. How do you reassure them without talking down to them?

Answer honestly in plain words, admit what you don't know, and treat the question as a sign of worry.

Many medical procedures happen while the patient is asleep, but most dental procedures happen while the patient is awake and watching. How does that appeal to you?

Link your answer to a real experience of talking someone through something stressful.

Frequently asked questions

Does Stony Brook dental use Kira?

Yes. Complete applicants who meet the preferred criteria are invited to an online Kira Talent Assessment, which the Admissions Committee uses with the AADSAS application to pick interviewees.

What is the Stony Brook dental interview format?

Stony Brook does not publish it. Its admissions page says interviews are an integral part of admissions and that applicants under serious consideration are told if an interview is indicated.

How many shadowing hours does Stony Brook dental require?

At least 50 hours of dental assisting or shadowing.

What GPA and DAT does Stony Brook dental want?

Preference goes to applicants with at least a 3.0 total and science GPA and DAT scores of 17 in Academic Average, PAT and Total Science. The current first-year class averaged a 3.85 total GPA.

When does Stony Brook dental send acceptances?

On a rolling basis from mid-December, by email. You have 30 days to respond to offers made from December 1 to January 31.

Sources

Official pages only, read on the date shown. Schools change their process every year, so check the school's own page before you apply.

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ADEA AADSAS Applicant Help Center: Application Cycle Dates · read October 26, 2026