Integrated Oral Health Foundations
The second year curriculum consists of three longitudinal courses that provide a foundational knowledge base for students to build on as they progress through the second and third years.
The Dental Basic Science Foundations course includes dental anatomy, craniofacial development and genetics, oral microbiology and immunology, oral physiology, and oral pathology and radiology. Topics are introduced individually at first and interwoven as the course continues through the fall and winter months.
In addition, the clinical observation rotations expand the focus from primary care to a wider range of dental topics such as oral medicine, oral hygiene, pediatric dentistry, behavioral science, the role of nutrition in dentistry, and dental treatment for patients with special needs.
All students are required to complete a research project by the end of the fourth year. It provides students with the opportunity to select an area of interest, find a mentor, design a project, perform the necessary data gathering and analysis, and present or publish the results. Projects can be in any area of dental research, from basic science to community health to dental education.