Personal Statement

The personal statement is a statement that expresses essentially why you are interested in studying dentistry.

You may wish to include in your statement why you are choosing Ireland as your location of study.

Letters of Recommendation

Choose people who know you well to write your letters. If possible, do not include letters from family members.

Remember to ask your referees well in advance of the deadlines, as their schedules may be tight. Also, at least one reference should be from an academic.

The following are some points for your referees to include in their letters. It is not required that the referee speaks to each of the points below, these are only suggestions and ideas that you may give to your referee to help her/him to understand what sort of information the admissions committees find useful:

• Your full name
• How they know you
• How long they have known you
• Your communication skills (oral and written, if applicable)
• Your interests and your future plans
• Briefly, why or why not they feel that you would make a good dentist

If the reference is from an academic, then ask that she/he comment on:

• Your intellectual qualities
• Your performance in class and examinations
• Whether or not your performance in class and/or examinations is a good reflection of your academic ability
• Why or why not they feel you will be able to manage the rigors of a dental curriculum