Practicing before you've picked a practice type
A new graduate or an associate looking to move often sends applications toward several kinds of offices at once: a solo general practice, a multi-location group, a pediatric office, maybe an oral surgery or orthodontics listing if a specialty path is still on the table. None of those employers have been contacted yet, so there's no posting to react to and no clinical case scenario specific to any one of them.
What does get asked in nearly every first conversation, regardless of which kind of office is on the other end, is why dentistry over another health field, what draws a candidate to patient-facing clinical work specifically, and how they've handled a disagreement with a coworker or a difficult day chairside.
Rehearsing that opening round before the search narrows means it's not the first time those answers come out of your mouth.
What the session actually asks
A general session draws from Intervieux's fixed base of standard questions rather than any posting or resume, since starting one needs neither. For a dentist, that keeps things on background and motivation, why this field, what a candidate is looking for in a next role, and common behavioral prompts, a time a patient was upset, a time a schedule ran long and something had to give.
It won't ask about a specific clinical case, a named specialty, or a particular office's patient population, since none of that exists yet in a general session. Three styles and twelve interviewer personalities are selectable, so a candidate can rehearse the same questions under a warmer tone or a more clipped, formal one depending on what a real first-round conversation might feel like.
Scoring
How scoring reads with no posting behind it
Communication and Behavioral carry most of the weight in a general session, since there's no clinical case or posting-specific material feeding the Technical dimension. Technical still generates a score and written reasoning, but it reads closer to a baseline here than it would once a job-description or comprehensive session gives it an actual diagnosis to reason through.
The penalty system runs in full regardless. A behavioral answer about a difficult patient interaction that skips a clear situation-action-result shape loses points the same as it would anywhere else, and closing the session without asking a question back costs points too, a habit worth catching before it happens in front of a hiring dentist.
Frequently asked questions
Should a dentist start with a general interview or go straight to job-description-based?
General is the faster starting point since it needs no posting or resume. It's reasonable to check communication and behavioral footing first, then move to job-description-based once a specific practice or specialty opening is in hand.
Does the general session ask whether I want general practice or a specialty?
No, it stays on standard motivation and background questions rather than practice-type specifics. Once a real posting exists, the job-description interview type builds questions from that posting's own requirements instead.
Will a general dentist interview cover a clinical case scenario?
No. Clinical case reasoning shows up in the job-description-based and comprehensive sessions, which have actual material to reason through. General stays on background and behavioral questions that apply regardless of practice type.
Can I pick the interviewer personality for a general session?
Yes. Three interview styles and twelve interviewer personalities are configurable, so you can rehearse the same standard questions under a warmer or more formal tone before deciding which fits your next real interview.
Related pages
Get a baseline read before the search narrows
Start a general AI interview to check your footing on background and behavioral questions before deciding which practice type or specialty to chase next.