Student feedback spurs new course offerings
Every year prior to graduation, senior students are asked to provide feedback on their overall educational experience that is used to improve the dental and dental hygiene programs. Over the past several years, graduating dental students expressed that they wished more opportunities were available to tailor their educational experiences to their own areas of need and/or interest. As a direct result, the faculty of School of Dentistry has designed several senior “selectives” in a program that was implemented for the first time this fall.
Currently, there are seven selectives offered to senior students: endodontics, oral diagnostic sciences, oral surgery, orthodontics, pediatric dentistry, periodontics and prosthodontics. An eighth offering is in the works; cosmetics and aesthetics, housed within the Department of General Practice with cooperation from the other specialties, is expected to be available to students starting in summer 2015. Most selectives run for one semester, with the exception of orthodontics and prosthodontics, which are full-year, longitudinal experiences. They are designed to enhance the individual student experience by allowing students to customize their education and offer advanced experiences that are not typically available to senior dental students. “The selectives are not mini-residencies,” shared Meredith Baines, director of curriculum innovation. “While students planning to specialize are welcome to participate, most selectives are intended for the generalist – to give generalists extra experiences in areas they personally want to further develop.”
For now, the clinical, patient-based selectives are open to senior dental students only. “We are open to the possibility of offering appropriately designed selective opportunities to other students in the future,” said Baines. And the hope is to expand current selective offerings to include a broader range of topics based on student feedback and faculty interest.
The student-driven initiative has proven beneficial to the clinical faculty and residents as well. They enjoy working in a one-on-one setting with enthusiastic and highly motivated students. A student’s primary responsibility still is to his or her core educational program, which includes a patient panel and service learning rotations. Students work carefully to schedule their selective experiences so as not to disrupt their primary clinical experiences.
The response from the current D4 class was outstanding. The first round of applications outnumbered the selective spots available at the moment. Every selective was filled to capacity for the fall semester. Applications for spring selectives will open soon. Senior dental students in good academic standing may apply.
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