The University of Maryland School of Dentistry: Leading the Way in Next-Level Clinical Education

[Incis0r]

Check this out, guys. The University of Maryland School of Dentistry is playing on a whole new level with their elite DIAMOND SCHOLARS program.
If you are doing an excellent job by the end of D3, you get to spend D4 in the AEGD clinic working alongside general dentistry residents!

How amazing is this???

Click on this to see a link explaining the program.

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[DDSER1]

So wait, is this only for maryland students or can students from other schools apply?

 

[Incis0r]

So wait, is this only for maryland students or can students from other schools apply?

This program is only for 4th-year dental students at the University of Maryland.

 

[deleted696582]

Sounds like a neat opportunity. I'll ask the student panel about it when I visit Maryland in a few weeks.

 

[dshen92129]

I don't know if this was similar but, I have a friend that is in D4 and he came to my clinic as a student, and worked alongside some of the AEGD residents we have.

 

[distressstudent]

Seems kinda gimmicky tbh

Why not just the students rotate through the AEGD clinic instead of playing excessive favoritism? Seems like the rest of the class isn't getting as much "attention" as these diamond scholar folks. Personally speaking, I would feel pretty raw about getting a lower quality of education than my classmate despite paying the same tuition.

Plus, half of them went into endo/ortho... Seems like a waste when the spot could have gone to someone else if they are truly doing advanced general dentistry.

 

[Screwtape]

The average senior dental student produces only $20k at Maryland ? That seems crazy low... anyone else here agree/disagree? Or are they applying some weird calculation other than just plain production ?

Also LOL at 10/12 of the scholars being " in the top 10 in the class". So they took all of the top 10 students... and probably 11 and 12 ha.

 

[Incis0r]

The average senior dental student produces only $20k at Maryland ? That seems crazy low... anyone else here agree/disagree? Or are they applying some weird calculation other than just plain production ?

Also LOL at 10/12 of the scholars being " in the top 10 in the class". So they took all of the top 10 students... and probably 11 and 12 ha.

Where do you go, and how much does the average Senior in your school produce?

 

[Faux]

The average senior dental student produces only $20k at Maryland ? That seems crazy low... anyone else here agree/disagree? Or are they applying some weird calculation other than just plain production ?

Also LOL at 10/12 of the scholars being " in the top 10 in the class". So they took all of the top 10 students... and probably 11 and 12 ha.

At my school, we only see two patients a day.


Also, Rutgers has a similar program but they actually send out their students to several clinics in NJ for the full day. They mentioned that during my cycle but not every student can do it.

and if 6/10 were ortho, wasn't that a bit of a waste?

 

[Incis0r]

and if 6/10 were ortho, wasn't that a bit of a waste?

Is it really a waste for a specialist to get some general dentist training?

I know that several specialty programs, including those in the military, prefer applicants with some general dentistry experience or an AEGD/GPR.

 

[Incis0r]

Every student at ASDOH spends their entire year rotating through public health clinics around the nation seeing 10 patients a day every day - most graduating with 60 endos and/or extractions under their belt. I sometimes laugh when schools boast about their clinical experience and students are graduating with 4-5 endos senior year.

Glad you're getting that awesome experience! ASDOH is really a fantastic program....I would have applied but I didn't have the high # of volunteer hours that they were looking for.

Yeah it's unbelievable how few endos some schools have!

 

[Faux]

Is it really a waste for a specialist to get some general dentist training?

I know that several specialty programs, including those in the military, prefer applicants with some general dentistry experience or an AEGD/GPR.

I don't know any orthos doing crowns or setting dentures. Give it up to the GPs of the class.

 

[Incis0r]

I don't know any orthos doing crowns or setting dentures. Give it up to the GPs of the class.

At the time that these students are accepted into Diamond Scholars, they do NOT know if they will successfully match into an ortho residency. I do want to point out that the results of the specialty programs (through the Match) do not come out until well into the D4 year. Phase 1 results for the Match are not available till 11/30. Phase 2 results are not available till 1/30.

So at the point when these students are accepted into this program (likely end of D3 year), they are not sure of what their future will be, given how competitive specializing has become.

Also, many specialists have done an AEGD in the past because they were not sure of what path to take after graduating. An AEGD allows you to rotate through each specialty and determine where your interests lie.

 

[cacazor]

Looks like this "Next-Level Clinical Education" hasn't impressed any dental students thus far

 

[Faux]

At the time that these students are accepted into Diamond Scholars, they do NOT know if they will successfully match into an ortho residency. I do want to point out that the results of the specialty programs (through the Match) do not come out until well into the D4 year. Phase 1 results for the Match are not available till 11/30. Phase 2 results are not available till 1/30.

So at the point when these students are accepted into this program (likely end of D3 year), they are not sure of what their future will be, given how competitive specializing has become.

Also, many specialists have done an AEGD in the past because they were not sure of what path to take after graduating. An AEGD allows you to rotate through each specialty and determine where your interests lie.

But the school obviously knows that they are applying for such residencies. Prosthodontics? Sure, Endo? yeah, Perio? sure. But Ortho? 6/10 of them too? These individuals will not use those skills in their practice, yet alone ortho residency. I just feel like this could have been more useful for the GPs of the class.

Plus people with that high of a GPA are applying for residency. The average was 3.8, people in the 3.0-3.4 range were barely looked at.

 

[Incis0r]

But the school obviously knows that they are applying for such residencies. Prosthodontics? Sure, Endo? yeah, Perio? sure. But Ortho? 6/10 of them too? These individuals will not use those skills in their practice, yet alone ortho residency. I just feel like this could have been more useful for the GPs of the class.

Plus people with that high of a GPA are applying for residency. The average was 3.8, people in the 3.0-3.4 range were barely looked at.

If I am understanding you correctly, the point you are making is that this training in the AEGD clinic is far more beneficial for someone planning to stay a general dentist as opposed to someone planning to specialize. I completely agree with you on this point.

You looked at the link I posted in my opening post, and I'm sure you also noticed that one of the objectives of the program was to expand it to even more people.

I do want to emphasize one point after speaking with my contacts at UMD (to include D3s, D4s, and a few instructors) about this program: dental school is what you make of it. You CAN be a prolific student at UMD in your D4 year if you take initiative- sure, this program would be nice, but you're still going to get access to a world-class clinic, to amazing faculty, and you'll have more than enough patients waiting to get in your chair even if you're not in the program.

The University of Maryland guarantees each D4 at least 8 patient sessions per week. I say "at least" because it is possible that more chairs open up on the online reservation system and anyone can book the free chairs and get additional sessions in.

 

[umbtoothfairy]

If I am understanding you correctly, the point you are making is that this training in the AEGD clinic is far more beneficial for someone planning to stay a general dentist as opposed to someone planning to specialize. I completely agree with you on this point.

You looked at the link I posted in my opening post, and I'm sure you also noticed that one of the objectives of the program was to expand it to even more people.

I do want to emphasize one point after speaking with my contacts at UMD (to include D3s, D4s, and a few instructors) about this program: dental school is what you make of it. You CAN be a prolific student at UMD in your D4 year if you take initiative- sure, this program would be nice, but you're still going to get access to a world-class clinic, to amazing faculty, and you'll have more than enough patients waiting to get in your chair even if you're not in the program.

The University of Maryland guarantees each D4 at least 8 patient sessions per week. I say "at least" because it is possible that more chairs open up on the online reservation system and anyone can book the free chairs and get additional sessions in.

I am a D3 at Maryland and can tell you that clinic is great for the most part. It truly is what you make of it. We are given chairs and then schedule our patients ourselves. Thus you are responsible for truly treating your patient yourself. It really helps if you are proactive in bringing patients in, finding your own patients, marketing yourself, and acting like the professionals we are supposed to be.

The quality of education I have experienced here is on par if not better than that a lot of my peers are receiving. This is after I speak with friends at other schools. The school has almost every postgrad program and as a result, we do refer out as needed. Example: endo. You can do single root endo and multi root after your single (except most 2nd and 3rd molar cases). As a GP, you will likely refer out for more difficult cases anyway.

 

[Incis0r]

I am a D3 at Maryland and can tell you that clinic is great for the most part. It truly is what you make of it. We are given chairs and then schedule our patients ourselves. Thus you are responsible for truly treating your patient yourself. It really helps if you are proactive in bringing patients in, finding your own patients, marketing yourself, and acting like the professionals we are supposed to be.

The quality of education I have experienced here is on par if not better than that a lot of my peers are receiving. This is after I speak with friends at other schools. The school has almost every postgrad program and as a result, we do refer out as needed. Example: endo. You can do single root endo and multi root after your single (except most 2nd and 3rd molar cases). As a GP, you will likely refer out for more difficult cases anyway.

You go to an amazing dental school. That is all.