How to Avoid Taking the Additional Exam for Dentists in Slovakia and What Conclusions Can Be Drawn

How did the supplementary exam for dentists in Bratislava on October 15, 2024, go? Impressions and conclusions of a foreign dentist after their first attempt at passing the supplementary exam (doplňujúca skúška pre zubárov):

✓ How was the supplementary exam for dentists (doplňujúca skúška pre zubných lekárov) conducted on October 15, 2024?

✓ How many dentists attended the exam on October 15, 2024, and how many successfully passed it?

✓ How did the dentist prepare for the exam, and what did they realize during the exam?

✓ Which aspects of the exam were the most challenging?

✓ What should be focused on during preparation for the supplementary exam?

✓ What resources were used during preparation, and what caused the failure in the oral part of the exam?

✓ Is it true that the examination committee is biased against foreign medical professionals?

- First of all, thank you for agreeing to come this Sunday to answer these questions. I am sure your answers will be very helpful for someone preparing for the exams. Can you please describe in just a few sentences how this year’s recent exam was conducted, and did you notice any nuances that were unusual for you, something you didn’t know or weren’t prepared for?

- I’m happy to answer your questions. I took the exam for the first time this year. There were about 30 people in total. Overall, there weren’t any unexpected situations. The exam consisted of two parts: a written part and an oral part. The written part was tests. So, if you prepare well, passing the tests is quite possible. Well, the oral part is much more difficult, as it requires more in-depth knowledge.

- So, in principle, the exam was conducted roughly as it is usually described. In groups, in chats, on Telegram. So, there were no surprises for you, right?

- Well, yes. On the examiner’s side, everything was positive, calm, and there was no fuss.

- Okay. Then can you describe your usual preparation routine in a few words? How did you prepare, what materials did you use, how much time did you dedicate, and when did you start preparing?

- I prepared from several sources, including the internet, Telegram—there’s a lot of information there based on school materials and additional literature found online.

- Okay, so mostly the learning platform, Telegram channels—do they have direct answers there?

- Printouts from Czech authors' books and Slovak books.

- So, these aren’t specific answers to specific questions but rather comprehensive materials?

- Yes, some topics or chapters, and you choose what suits you.

- How much time did you spend on preparation?

- Overall, I didn’t study that much, about two and a half to three months.

- Every day?

- Every day. On weekends, I spent more time studying. I focused more time when I had it, writing things down for myself and simultaneously learning the Slovak language. Because in the exam, not only do they test your knowledge, but also your proficiency in the Slovak language. That is, how you can construct sentences, understand their questions, and navigate the material.

- Okay, then a more specific question. The students we previously interviewed, who passed on their first attempt, said they prepared for six months, studying for 8 hours a day. You prepared for 3 months—how many hours a day was that approximately? 2–3 hours a day?

- I combine studying with work, so during workdays, it was about 3–3.5 hours, no more. On weekends, with breaks, about 6 hours in total.

- Understood. Then the next question: which aspects of the exam caused you the most difficulty, and what was the most challenging part?

- The difficulty, I think, was the additional questions in the exam. You need to know the material at the university level more thoroughly.

- So, the most challenging thing was the additional questions?

- Yes, that is, if you’re preparing and they steer you slightly off-topic, you need to be ready to know the question more broadly and more deeply.

- There’s feedback from some students—it’s, of course, their opinion—but I’d like your view. When they ask so many in-depth additional questions during the exam, some students (this was feedback from a girl who passed on her 8th attempt) have noted, "They just don’t want us here; it’s a biased attitude toward foreign doctors who came here to work and live." You took it for the first time—did you get that feeling, even briefly?

- I took it for the first time, so I can’t say for sure whether there was bias or not. I can judge this after several attempts—if I answer clearly and well and still don’t pass, that would be a signal. But as for myself, there were some questions I didn’t know well, and I could have studied them better. So, I can’t objectively say whether they want us here or not.

- Which topics and tasks were easiest for you, where you felt comfortable and passed easily? I take it this was the test part?

- Well, the tests, yes, you can prepare for them.

- Maybe in the oral part?

- In principle, I also prepared general medicine well enough, so it wasn’t too difficult for me. The difficulties were in the additional questions in dentistry. That is, the questions I had prepared to answer went off track, and I couldn’t answer them. You need to know the material more thoroughly.

- So, the easy part was general medicine, and the success factor was that you simply knew the material very well and could reason and deviate from the main question, right?

- Well, no, I can’t say I knew it very well; what was in my ticket, I could answer.

- For the additional questions, did they deviate significantly from the topic or not?

- For general medicine—no, not significantly.

- So, this can be combined, yes, that they didn’t deviate much.

- My impression is that you need to know your specialty question in dentistry better.

- Next question: at what stage did you face difficulties? I understand this was in dentistry when additional questions were asked in the oral part?

- Yes, in dentistry, there were additional questions on the level of histology and microbiology, so you need to know them. It wasn’t just about indications and your actions at work but also why it happens. Not only "how" and "why," but also "why exactly."

- Okay, then knowledge of the language. Did your language proficiency negatively impact you, or did it not affect you? Did you understand everything, and could you say everything you wanted, or did you feel restricted?

- It felt like the language wasn’t polished yet. Some examiners repeated questions several times for me to understand. But the deciding factor, I think, wasn’t the language but the lack of in-depth knowledge of the topic.

- Well, did any distracting factors come into play? Maybe you studied all night before the exam and were tired, or there was some stress, or perhaps you came straight from a night shift? Were there any distractions, maybe colleagues nearby—someone noisy or nervous? Did any distracting factors exist, and did they affect your result?

- There weren’t really any distracting factors. I recommend getting a good night’s sleep before the exam and not stressing.

- Everyone was quiet at the exam, right?

- Everyone was quiet. Mostly, there were people who had already taken the exam multiple times, so they were prepared and knew what to expect. The statistics on passing the exam aren’t very encouraging.

- What are the statistics? Do you have any information? Around 30 people, right?

- Yes, 30 people, and I think only two passed out of thirty.

- That’s excellent—I mean, very unfortunate. Okay, let’s delve into the most critical moment or deciding factor for your result. Was it solely insufficiently in-depth knowledge, or was there something else?

- Well, the language proficiency, first of all, I think. If you don’t know something completely, you can compensate with good language skills. This also influences the examiners. If you construct proper, long sentences and can explain the question from another perspective, I think that also affects success.

- Was there a moment when you realized, “That’s it, I failed”? Was there a moment during your answer when you felt, “That’s it”? Maybe you can describe your feelings at that moment—it could be interesting for others.

- Of course, when I started answering the second or third question, I could feel the examiner was already skeptical.

- You could tell by their reaction, right?

- Yes, they were already like, “Next question, next question.” You feel like there’s no point in continuing with the rest of the questions.

- About the aspects of the exam that require more time, we’ve discussed that. It’s important to dive deeply into everything, plus the language—the freer it is, the more benefits you have. Looking back at this exam, now that you have experience, what changes would you make to your preparation? What would you do differently, or maybe you’re already doing something differently for your next exam?

- Well, first of all, I would dedicate more time to each exam question. Write everything down for myself. And I think it’s important to say everything out loud. Know the questions more thoroughly and comprehensively.

- Okay, let’s dive deeper into this question (this is the last question). You say, “Write everything down for yourself.” So, I understand that there aren’t really ready-made answers to the tickets or topics in these Telegram chats or anywhere else yet, right? People mostly say you need to make notes and prepare from books—nobody shares these directly, is that correct?

- In the chats, there are answers, but they’re somewhat scattered. I write things down separately for myself to remember the questions better and to break them down and structure my knowledge.

- Okay, so I understand your future routine is to dedicate more time, not rush to take the exam in a month, but prepare longer, make notes, and practice saying them out loud?

- Yes, out loud. And improve my conversational Slovak.

- Okay, are you planning to practice speaking out loud, like presenting in front of a mirror, or maybe team up with other doctors?

- No, I think not with doctors, just by myself.

- By yourself?

- Yes, by myself.

- Thank you very much for your answers. I hope they’ll be helpful for you as well.