MPH/DDS Dual degree?

[akb0112]

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Does any one have comments/experiences on that track? What exactly does one do with an MPH in dentistry that you can't do without it?

 

[Sublimazing]

Does any one have comments/experiences on that track? What exactly does one do with an MPH in dentistry that you can't do without it?

Clinically it's worthless.

It helps for jobs in academia. It may help for certain residencies (peds).

 

[diasIItema]

I learned later that the Columbia DDS/MPH awards a full or partial scholarship to a dental student. This may or may not be true. But honestly since many programs (Harvard, Columbia, Berkeley, Hopkins, etc) offer 11-month MPH degrees to individuals with doctorates, there isn't much incentive to pursue the dual track. If you want to specialize in public health dentistry, then you must have an MPH first (only speciality of dentistry that requires a masters degree in addition to a DMD/DDS).

An MPH is a very rewarding degree for someone wanting to work in academic dentistry, research, or simply community based dentistry that works on a population level (e.g. social safety net programs, rural clinic dentistry, epidemiology, etc.).

 

[akb0112]

I learned later that the Columbia DDS/MPH awards a full or partial scholarship to a dental student. This may or may not be true. But honestly since many programs (Harvard, Columbia, Berkeley, Hopkins, etc) offer 11-month MPH degrees to individuals with doctorates, there isn't much incentive to pursue the dual track. If you want to specialize in public health dentistry, then you must have an MPH first (only speciality of dentistry that requires a masters degree in addition to a DMD/DDS).

An MPH is a very rewarding degree for someone wanting to work in academic dentistry, research, or simply community based dentistry that works on a population level (e.g. social safety net programs, rural clinic dentistry, epidemiology, etc.).

Great, thank you for your response. Public health dentistry certainly is a field that needs much attention... And has great potential. However I can see how it would be clinically "worthless" for the typical DDS/DMD whose goal is to run his/her own practice addressing oral health on an individual patient level.