Admission Criteria

We simply want the best candidates for our Eastern Washington dental residency program. We are searching for motivated learners who will enjoy the program, put their heart and soul into it, get as much out of it as they can, work well as a team, and go on to apply the knowledge in their future practices.

Eligibility Criteria

We only accept applicants from United States or Canadian ADA-accredited dental schools.

Application Process

All applicants must use the Postdoctoral Application Support Service (PASS). Completed applications will be reviewed by a committee composed of the faculty of the program. The packet will be considered en toto—weaknesses can be offset by strengths.

The criteria used to determine if a candidate is offered an interview include:

• Statement of intent. Demonstrate a clear reason for wanting postdoctoral education in General Dentistry, and how your goals will be met by our curriculum.
• Interest in future specialization is not a negative. If applicable, you should articulate how GPR training will augment your future specialty training.
• National Boards. Part I must be taken and passed.
• Class ranking, where available, will be considered as a good indicator of academic progress. The top 25-33 percent is preferred, but not mandatory.
• GPAs will be reviewed in the context of potential grade inflation or heavy competition.
• Letters of recommendation should describe excellent motivation, maturity, curiosity/inquisitiveness, ability, interest and personality. Technical skills must be sufficient to allow general supervision.
• Demonstrate interest. Throughout your application process, show why our program and what it offers is of high interest, and how you will be a dedicated and interested learner.

Invitations for Interview Are Issued Each October

Candidates will spend an entire day visiting with us, tour our office and hospitals and meet with the faculty and residents. Interviews are intended to both identify high-quality candidates for our program and allow each candidate an opportunity to evaluate our program for its appropriateness to their postgraduate training goals and expectations. The intent of the interviews is to make the final decision about who best fits our program from a personality, work-ethic, teamwork and learner point of view.

Selection Process

After interviews are completed, the interviewing faculty will meet and discuss the applicants. Submitted materials will be revisited as necessary and candidates will be placed in a Rank Order List. Our selections will be submitted to National Matching Services, and candidates will be notified through the matching process.