dental hygiene interviews Archives - RDH Resumes and Career Guidance

Dental Hygiene Job Interviews: Dress for Success

October 12, 2015 By Doug Perry, Dental Hygiene Resume Coach

First impressions are usually made in the first 30 seconds of meeting someone. Before the first impression timeline is up, you haven’t even opened your mouth to tell your future employer how perfect you are for the job! That’s why what you wear and how you present yourself is critical in a dental hygiene interview setting.

Here are a few wardrobe tips to help you land your dream job.

Tops

Lindsey Shores, professional stylist, recommends “wearing a classy blouse – something that’s suiting to you, but doesn’t have too bold patterns or colors as to distract from what you’re saying.” Have your resume, your confidence, and your experience do the talking instead of your shirt.

Bottoms

There are lots of options you can wear when it comes to bottoms of your outfit. Slacks and skirts are usually best for interviews. If you decide to wear a skirt, stick to a pencil skirt. “Skirts with too much flare can easily make you look young and you want to stay with looking professional while confident,” recommends Lindsey.

Accessories

Keep accessories to a minimal during an interview. Too much jewelry can come across as cheesy, so one or two simple pieces worn as an accent to your outfit is key.

Hair and Makeup

We loved Lindsey’s advice with hair: “For hair and makeup, keep things more natural looking and don’t put your hair up in any sort of braid or updo. Keep your hair down with a bit of wave or no wave at all, OR pull it up in a professional bun (but stay clear from a top knot, it’s too trendy for an interview).”

Make up should be professional and simple as well. Stay away from make up trends, even though you love to wear them on a regular basis. Keep your lip color more neutral and whiten your smile to make you stand out as a candidate.

Colors

There are several colors to stick to, and lots to stay away from. First, try to wear a neutral color that isn’t too bold. Stick with black, navy, grey, white, and brown. A pop of red in an outfit can be smart, but having the majority of your outfit red may come across as too bold and too distracting. Definitely stay away from orange and yellow.

A Final Note

Make sure your outfit is pressed, steamed, or ironed. Even the smallest wrinkles can make a big impression in a negative way to a potential employer.

With these simple dressing tricks, you’ll definitely ace your next interview. Good luck!

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Melia Lewis is one of 4 dental hygienists who runs the website Hygieneedge.com. Hygiene Edge is built by dental hygienists for dental hygienists. Our goal is to provide resources to further hygiene education, promote industry best practices and inspire every hygienist to become the best hygienist for their patients and their practice.

Dental Hygiene Job Interview Fashion Tips

June 3, 2015 By Doug Perry, Dental Hygiene Resume Coach

With the competition for dental hygiene jobs fierce right now you can’t do too much to stand out. Margins at the job interview stage are often razor thin.

So, this week, let’s review some important dental hygiene job interview fashion tips that will compliment the marketing of your skills and personality.

[Resume Service]

The Basics

Overall: Both pant suits and skirt suits are acceptable attire for job interviews, but always remember it’s better to err on the side of over-dressed than under-dressed.
Colors: Choose a dark, two-piece, gray, navy or black suit as this gives you a basic confident and conservative look. But add to it a light-colored or tailored blouse or shirt. Avoid well-worn shirts and strapless or spaghetti straps under your jacket.
Simple Compliment: Dress up your look with a necklace or other piece of conservative jewelry.
Hosiery: Some are pretty relaxed on panty hose, but you just never know for sure who is or isn’t. Go with a sheer or nude tone that matches your skin.
Shoes: It’s Best to go with a mid heel, closed-toe pump. You may love flashy shoes, but it’s best to choose a pair that won’t distract.

Additional Tips

Make sure the nails are neatly manicured with a neutral polish
Keep makeup minimal
Neatly groom your hair, pulled back or away from the face
Wear a conservative watch (subtle hint you care about time)
If the weather is bad, bring an umbrella and wear a black or neutral-colored trench coat

And, Finally, Some Heck No’s

Short skirts or extra form-fitting clothing
Loud, textured or patterned hosiery
Wet hair (yuck!)
Perfumes or lotions applied to heavily
Too much jewelry; or jewelry that is large and distracting
Body piercings and tattoos that are visible (other than a single pair of conservative earrings)
Jeans, t-shirts, sneakers, canvas slip-ons, and hats (hopefully this is obvious)
Sunglasses should be removed and put away once you enter the building
Exposed technology; turn off cell phone and keep out of sight (this is a huge red flag for employers)

PS – Bring a copy of your awesome cover letter and resume (and testimonial sheet and CAR Sheet if you have them), printed on nicer paper with a little bit of thickness to it (but not cardstock).

First Impressions in Dental Hygiene Job Interviews

March 11, 2015 By Doug Perry, Dental Hygiene Resume Coach

You only get one of them at a dental hygiene job interview and it happens within seconds of the introduction.

First impressions!

According to research, it takes just one-tenth of a second for someone to quickly size us up. But it takes a full 20 seconds before a person is confident in their judgement, and then they tend to stick with that judgement for a while (at least 20 minutes) before they re-assess.

It all happens pretty fast, but if you are prepared you can come out of that first 20 seconds with a favorable first impression that will linger. This week, let’s review some things that will help you prepare for making a positive first impression in your dental hygiene job interviews.

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Smile
I think this has to be the most important because it precedes any verbal interaction. It’s your first shot at an impression. There’s a ton of science on the impact of a smile and if there’s anyone who knows that well, it’s a dental hygienist. Everyone gets nervous and can forget – but this is one you simply can’t forget.

Eye contact
Admittedly, this is hard for some because there’s a bit of an art to it, a balance. Some give too much and others too little. Base yours on what others do – if they are looking away a whole bunch, you may be making them feel uncomfortable by giving them too much. Of if they are giving you too much eye contact, maybe it’s because they feel they need to get your attention (because you are looking away too much). If it’s hard for you to give eye contact, try looking slightly above or below their eyes. But give your stare a break, look away from time to time, that actually makes people feel more comfortable when you are talking to them if you aren’t looking for too long in one direction.

Grooming/dress
I’ve written about this in other articles. Always err on the side of over-dressed for job interviews – business casual is acceptable to some, but business professional impresses everyone.

Demeanor
Your demeanor or your presence is set by how you feel emotionally. If possible, do things that help you relax prior to your interview. Familiarity is good – it brings us comfort and allows our mind to handle and process things much more rationally. Get up the same time you normally do in the morning, eat similar things, drive a familiar route, etc.

Firm handshake
For men, a firm handshake is an absolute. For women , it’s important too. But I guess some of the advice here is to make sure your handshake is neither a death grip or nor a wimpy clasp – find the medium and go with it. If you care to read more, click here for a good article on it.

Posture
Good posture shows confidence and stability – both attributes employers want in an employee. Check yours out and practice. Sit on the edge of your seat when being interviewed as this tends to force or more correct pose and shows you are interested and engaged.

Conversation
I would seriously practice your pacing, how long you take to answer questions, and your choice of words. I’ve seen people bomb an interview the second they open their mouth by saying something that, while not necessarily offensive, is immature or unprofessional. Or maybe they get a little too nervous and dominate (say too much) or are speaking too rapidly.

Personal hygiene
Most dental hygienists I have met and interviewed are very much in-tune with this area. So it’s mostly just a quick reminder to make sure the levels of your perfumes and such are good and not overwhelming. It would be better to not smell them at all than to smell someone that has over-done it.

All of these tips are fairly simple to master, but they do take some preparation ahead of time and a little of awareness. But above all else, be real – be yourself. It’s really easy to spot someone who isn’t being genuine, even within that brief first impression.

Why Am I Not Getting Dental Hygiene Job Interviews?

November 12, 2014 By Doug Perry, Dental Hygiene Resume Coach

Everyone knows, the dental hygiene job market stinks. But there are job openings (maybe not enough, but they do happen) and so you should be getting regular interviews.

Are you getting interviews? If so, that’s good – you are doing some things right. But if your phone isn’t ringing much or at all, despite applying for lots of jobs, you should read on because there could be a variety of things going on.

If you feel good about your resume (how it looks and reads) then consider the following:

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Your Bad Contact Information
Sounds ridiculous, right? A lot of employers today reply by e-mail these days to schedule interviews. This avoids the whole phone-tag thing since most people don’t answer their phones when it’s an unfamiliar number. You can’t avoid when someone mistyped your address but two suggestions – create a really easy-to-type or remember e-mail address and then make sure YOU have it listed correctly on your resume (I wrote more about e-mail addresses here). Also, make sure your phone number is listed correctly and that you have a clear, simple voice message greeting.

Their Bad Contact Information
Sometimes the problem is on their end. Whenever you e-mail your resume always ask for a quick confirmation they received it. If they don’t respond within 24 hours I would recommend you call, visit or try e-mailing again. If they legitimately didn’t get your resume, you’ll be glad you followed up.

No Cover Letter
Lots of employers don’t even ask for a cover letter but if your peers applying for the job all send one and you don’t that could be downfall. It’s a standard practice to include a cover letter so always send one and then make sure you are using it to help sell or market you for that specific job you are applying for. Here’s seven tips for writing a great cover letter.

Unaddressed Qualifications
Review the job advertisement carefully and address each of the things they are requesting. This is one of your best tools for helping to sell yourself to them. They want someone who is a good fit and if you ignore the qualifications or don’t adequately share how you fit your application will be easily dismissed (you can read more about this here)

Directions Not Followed
In job markets where there is lots of parity between hygienists, employers will look for anything to differentiate candidates. That includes playing little tricks on them. I’ve read lots of job announcements where the employer will plant a very important statement at the end of the advertisement to see who’s paying attention. For example, there will be a line that reads something like “Please include in your cover letter the name of the current president of the United States.” Those that comply pass the first test of being “attentive to details” and those that don’t… well, they don’t get the call.

Nothing Has Happened Yet
It’s frustrating for sure, but employers will sometimes hold off for various reasons, putting not just you but everyone in limbo. It would be appropriate, assuming you have confirmed they received your information in the first place, to contact them 1-2 weeks after you submitted your resume (I wrote more about that here). I sometimes look at that as a red flag that perhaps the employer isn’t someone you would want to work for anyway.

My wife, Tracie, had an experience like that when she was first seeking employment. There was a doctor that had her come in as a temp several times and told her he would soon be seeking a permanent hygienist, but he would never pull the trigger even though he got to the point where he had no permanent hygienist. For whatever reason he struggled with making decisions and it wasn’t just this situation, there were others Tracie heard about later.

Four “P”s of Evaluating Every Dental Hygiene Job

October 29, 2014 By Doug Perry, Dental Hygiene Resume Coach

You and I have both heard lots of horror stories about how an employer mistreated an employee – maybe you are like me and have even experienced a little of it yourself.

While you can’t predict with 100% accuracy when you are going to accept a job that is horrible, often times there are warning signs – little red flags waving around that things don’t seem quite right.

So here’s the four “P”s of evaluating each job you consider – from job announcement to job offer. I would suggest these are also good criteria for evaluating a job you have been at for a long time.

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People
The Goal: Join a team of like-minded professionals, who compliment one another.

What to Watch for: Try to determine if the office has a high employee turnover rate. You can often casually ask staff you come in contact with how long they’ve worked there – it’s a common small-talk type question as long as it’s not the first thing you bring up.

The people you work with are really important to your overall job satisfaction. If it doesn’t feel like you would click with the personalities you meet during the interview process, consider your decision carefully. Every office has some drama and different personalities, but if the “crazies” are running the office it may not be the best fit for you.

Purpose
The Goal: Join an office that focuses more on patients than revenue.

What to Watch for: Sometimes the salary structure can tip you off, if it’s heavily-laden with bonuses, quotas, goals and benchmarks and if that seems to dominate the doctor or office manager’s discussion with you – more so than building relations and caring for patients – this might be a sign of an office that lacks a solid purpose.

Some people are comfortable with that kind of atmosphere. But I am a big believer that profits will take care of themselves the better you serve patients. If your office just absolutely bends over backwards to ensure every patient gets a personal touch attention (even the fussy-difficult ones), they will sense it and help you grow the practice just by word of mouth.

And a word about “fussy” people – I have also found that I have grown and benefited more from working with them than any other personality type. Why? Because they challenge me and when I am challenged I get the opportunity to learn new things and become a better professional – I get the chance to rise to the occasion to meet the challenge.

Product
The Goal: Join an office that invests in technology and advanced learning.

What to Watch for: Ask them in your interview what kinds of equipment they have purchased recently and how they like it. You could even ask what their plans are for future investments. And, also, ask about any on-going training they offer as a staff. Take note of how up-to-date the waiting room is and other aesthetics.

This, too, is important because an office that is not investing in new equipment, office cosmetics, or training can mean they are struggling to cover the costs they do have. Maybe they would like to do those things, but their patient load or collections rates are going south. This can, of course, create many potential problems for you as that lack of in-coming business may lead to you getting laid-off or a reduction in hours.

The flip side, of course, would be an office that is over-spending on new equipment without being able to justify it with the current patient load. That’s a little bit harder to see, certainly a red flag if you sense it.

To stay viable, dental practices have to make continued capital improvements to equipment and invest in training. The competition is too stiff not to so it’s important to watch for any kind of history of steady investments in these areas.

Potential
The Goal: Join an office that has a strong upside.

What to Watch for: Talk to the interviewer about how long they have been in business and at that particular location. It wouldn’t be appropriate to ask about their production numbers (unless the job is commission-based), but you want to try and determine if there is an air of optimism about the direction the business is going in.

You want to know that the business is not going backward but also not just staying the same year after year (staying the same is not much better than going down). This can manifest itself in many ways, but listen carefully about how the doctor or office manager talks about the future of the business – do they seem to not care or are a little pessimistic? Probably some red flags.

Dental Hygiene Job Interviews: Dress for Success

Dental Hygiene Job Interview Fashion Tips

First Impressions in Dental Hygiene Job Interviews

Why Am I Not Getting Dental Hygiene Job Interviews?

Four “P”s of Evaluating Every Dental Hygiene Job

Creating a Transitional Resume for a Dental Hygienist

Contact GetHiredRDH Now

Positive Resume Action Words

Passive vs. Active Writing

Positive Personality Adjectives

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