PLANNING YOUR ORE JOURNEY 

Once you decide to give the ORE and move to the UK as a dentist, you need to get mentally prepared to embark on a journey. Along this journey, you will face a lot of hardship, roadblocks, disappointments and failure. But the price at the end will be worth the peril.  You need to keep your eyes on the target with a singular focus, and if you decide that you will work hard, and keep trying, success will be yours. 

The ORE journey begins with the decision to move. Once you have made up your mind then there is no looking back no matter what issues crop up. You will face many roadblocks, frustrations and issues right from your application, exam booking online, Part 1 and especially your Part 2 clinical exam.  It is never too early or too late to begin your ORE journey and some may take shorter or longer than the other but don’t feel disheartened or celebrate as the end goal is the same. Some may pass faster but take longer to secure a job and migrate while some may take longer to crack the ORE but secure a job immediately. 

Ideally aim to finish and get your application shipped and processed ASAP irrespective on when you decide to take the Part 1 because the application itself is very confusing and once it is processed you can concentrate purely on your Part 1 preparation. 

Part 1 Preparation primarily involves refreshing your theory knowledge, solving as many MCQ’s as you can and knowing the feedback questions well. This simple 3 point formula is sufficient to crack part 1. Remember you only need 50% in both papers for part 1. But always aim for higher than 70%. If you aim for only 50% you will get 49% which can be very frustrating. If you score 90% in part 1 or 50% both are pass and you progress to part 2. So focus your energies in the right direction.  

Once you clear your part 1, then you come into the arena of part 2 where I will personally be coaching you as part 2 is a whole new ball game. Frankly, this is where the fun starts. We moved away from physical tuitions and coaching for part 1 because we felt it was very easy and no point in teaching dentist theory again, so we made the part 1 module online self-study so we can concentrate and spend more time with candidates personally in part 2 as it is a practical exam, tougher and requires a lot of hard work from the tutor and student end. 

During part 1 and even part 2 I would suggest not quitting your job, or giving up clinical practise completely. During part 1, you can continue your theory study and prep side by side along with your personal and professional growth. Part 1 only once you receive a confirmed booking for the exam you should wind down your work, and 1 month before the exam stop work and concentrate fully on the exam prep.  Part 2 the more you stay in touch with clinical practice will help with your body language, confidence and communication skills that are important to crack part 2. The famous saying “ The More you sweat in peace, the less you Bleed in War “ comes to mind to summarize this journey. 

The journey is long, winding, with many challenges, frustrations and mental tests of fortitude, but then again nothing in life is easy. How fast you crack the ORE and progress depends on how badly you want the prize.  If your approach to this journey is half-hearted and with self-doubt and self-pity you will not be successful.  If your focus is singular, steady hard work and guidance, nobody can stop your success.  We are always here to help and guide you along the way.

Dr Shravan Chawla 

Founding Director 

ORE Chief Tutor 

Bay Dental Institute