OMFS specialty interview
Oral and maxillofacial surgery specialty interviews commonly draw on four themes: audit, research and quality improvement; acute clinical scenarios such as the compromised airway and the failing free flap; communication and professional dilemmas; and commitment to a doubly-qualified specialty. Station names and weighting vary by year and round, so always confirm the current person specification and applicant guidance.
Format based on published 2026 recruitment guidance. Last checked: September 2026. This is general information, not advice about your application — always confirm details with the official source for your round.
Structure
The stations, reproduced with real timings.
The simulator keeps to these durations and moves you on when the clock runs out.
Audit, research and quality improvement
The audit cycle, PDSA and QI tools, critical appraisal, governance and OMFS-specific audits and registries such as QOMS and HANA.
Clinical scenarios
Acute maxillofacial emergencies: post-operative airway compromise, compromised free flap, retrobulbar haemorrhage and prioritising simultaneous emergencies.
Communication and difficult scenarios
Consent in minors, refusing treatment, lost specimens, wrong-site surgery, cancelled operations and breaking significant news.
Commitment to specialty
Why OMFS, the reality of dual qualification and second degrees, your career plan and managing the demands of training.
Weighting
Where the marks sit.
Practice is weighted the same way, so your time goes where it counts.
What candidates work on here
- A bank of your own stories (audit, clinical save, mistake, conflict, teaching) told with STAR — borrowed answers score poorly
- Closing every clinical and difficult scenario with escalation, patient safety and reflection
- OMFS-specific landscape: QOMS, HANA, the flap registry, orthognathic and third-molar audits, and the second-degree question
Example questions
Original scenarios, written with clinicians.
Each question is mapped to the domains it assesses, so the summary you receive is specific rather than generic.
Clinical scenario
“A patient develops rapidly worsening neck swelling and stridor six hours after neck dissection. Walk us through your management.”
A panel would listen for
A systematic approach, safe prioritisation and knowing when to escalate
Communication
“A 15-year-old refuses fixation of a mandibular fracture, and their grandparents arrive asking what is happening. How do you proceed?”
A panel would listen for
Empathy, honesty and checking the other person has understood
Audit and QI
“Describe the audit cycle, then take us through an audit you have completed and what changed.”
A panel would listen for
A closed loop, your personal role and a measured change
Practise this interview until it feels routine.
One free mock interview, no card required. Scores describe your practice performance only.
Start a free mock interview