Dear University of Otago Dentistry Admission Team,

I am writing with some inquiries regarding recent changes to the admission process for the Bachelor of Dentistry programme. Prior to 2024, the BDS interview selection process considered GPA and UCAT scores, with thresholds established by the Dental Admissions Committee each year.

Specifically, the minimum GPA requirements for an interview before 2024 were as follows:

• Health Science First Year (HSFY) applicants: An average mark of at least 65% in the best seven papers, with no individual mark below 60% in the prescribed papers.
• Graduate entry applicants: A minimum weighted grade point average (GPA) of 5 across all papers in the qualifying programme.
• (Notably, since 2022 international students were exempted from the UCAT requirement.)

As of 2024, I understand that the Dental School has removed the UCAT (requirement for all admission categories (HSFY, Graduate, and Alternative entry).

The UCAT has been used internationally by numerous dental and medical schools to assess critical characteristics and skills relevant to healthcare professionals. I believe that sections like Situational Judgement provide valuable insight into a candidate's ethical and personal suitability for roles in healthcare. This is particularly important in dentistry, where practitioners perform irreversible and invasive treatments, requiring not only a strong ethical foundation but also an understanding, compassionate demeanour to ensure patients feel safe and confident in their care.

Given this significant change, I have a list of questions:

1. What was the rationale behind the decision to remove the UCAT requirement from the admission process for all categories?
2. How does the Dental School now determine which applicants to interview without UCAT as a selection tool?
3. How many applicants were invited to the 2024 dentistry interviews?
4. Of those interviewed, how many people were from each category (HSFY, Graduate, Alternative)?
5. And of those, how many general category applicants received interviews from each category (HSFY, Graduate, Alternative entry)?
6. How many interviewed applicants were from equity groups (Māori, Pacific, Socioeconomic Equity, Refugee, and Rural) across the different application category (HSFY, Graduate, Alternative entry)?
7. Could you please provide the lowest successful GPA that were selected for interview across the different admission categories (HSFY, Graduate, Alternative entry) for general category applicants?
8. Of those invited to interview, what was the lowest successful GPA for each equity group (Māori, Pacific, Socioeconomic Equity, Refugee, and Rural) across the different categories (HSFY, Graduate, Alternative entry)?
9. Is there a cap on the number of subcategory candidates (e.g., Māori, Pacific, Rural) who can be admitted or not?

Thank you for taking the time to address my questions. I look forward to your response.

Yours faithfully,

Laura Black