An article from the Journal of Dental Education defines motivational interviewing (MI) as a “person-centered, goal-directed method of communication for eliciting and strengthening intrinsic motivation for behavior change.” In dentistry, MI is a strategy that can be used to improve patient outcomes and acceptance of treatment plan and suggestions for oral health care by increasing a patient’s motivation for behavior change.
One of the most challenging parts of being a first-year dental student has been figuring out the most efficient and effective study strategies. Unlike in college, in dental school, you are expected to study large amounts of material in short periods of time. For example, a 10-question quiz on two weeks of material for one class might be on 200–300 PowerPoint slides. Is it possible to study this much material, or possibly more for every class, while still doing well? Yes, it is!
The last thing I expected to do was take a gap year after college. Everyone around me was applying and getting accepted to dental school right, and it was frustrating that I was not on the same path. What I had yet to realize was that going to dental school immediately after college was a path for some, and even though it wasn’t my path, that didn’t make my path any less fulfilling.
