2 November 2022
By email: [FYI request #20743 email]
Dear Jane
I refer to your information request dated 4 October 2022 made under the Official Information Act
1982. You have requested information in relation to the interview selection process for the Bachelor
of Dental Surgery (BDS) programme at the University of Otago.
Please see below our responses to each of your questions.
1. What is the selection criteria for the BDS interviews and how is the scoring made?
The interview is a structured interview consisting of three sections. These are Motivation, Decision
Making and Communication. All sections have the same format and are weighted equally.
There are two interviewers for each interview. Each interviewer scores the interviewee separately
before discussing their scores, reaching a decision, and submitting a joint final score. If the
interviewers cannot agree on a decision the interviewee is given another interview.
2. For each of the selection criteria, how much are they weighted in the overall interview?
As noted above, each section of the interview is weighted equally.
3. What is the threshold score for successful interview applicants and how does this work?
Does this differ between the HSFY and Graduate category?
Each section is scored the same and are set with the same thresholds. There are no differences
between the HSFY and Graduate categories in terms of interview scoring.
4. Are offers given preferentially to those with higher interview scores in each category? And
how does this weighting work with GPA?
Offers are not necessarily given to applicants with higher interview scores. Once the interview score
thresholds are set, offers are made to students who have met these threshold scores as well as
meeting all other admission criteria as per the Regulations for the Degree of Bachelor of Dental
Surgery (BDS):
HSFY:
“Selection of applicants who have met these criteria will be based on their average mark in
the Health Sciences First Year papers”.
Graduate:
“Selection of applicants who have met these criteria will be based on their GPA, as
calculated by the Division of Health Sciences”.
5. If an applicant were to do incredibly well in one section but score very poorly in another,
are they still eligible to pass the interview selection process if their overall score was high
enough?
Yes, if an applicant were to do incredibly well in one section but score poorly in another, they may
be eligible to still pass the interview selection process if their overall interview score meets the
threshold as determined by the Dental Admissions Committee.
6. Is the University able to release threshold scores to individuals if they request for it? And
subsequently, are appeals possible if individuals believe they were unfairly marked?
No, threshold scores are not released to individuals for privacy reasons.
A student may appeal under the University’s
Appeals Statute 2011 against “any other decision of the
University affecting the student against which the Appeals Board grants leave to appeal under the
provisions of this statute” (Clause 4b). An application for leave to appeal may be sought by providing
the University’s Registrar and Secretary to the Council
([email address]) with a Notice of
Appeal, which must be received within ten working days of the communication to the student of the
decision, as specified in Clause 6.3 of the Appeals Statute 2011.
I trust that this information will be helpful.
Yours sincerely
Kelsey Kennard
Official Information and Compliance Coordinator
Office of the Registrar
