I know firsthand how difficult it is to siphon through threads here in an attempt to find information on residencies, so I am going to try and do my part to contribute. I had a unique opportunity to either visit or receive detailed information on many AEGD/GPR programs as I was preparing for the application cycle. I’ll do my best to recall all of the things I have learned. I want to issue a disclaimer that this information is only based on my experiences and opinions and may be completely different for others. If I present any misinformation, I welcome any corrections from faculty or current/previous residents from these programs. I was highly interested in finding a program that has a lot of implant experience and gets me certified in IV sedation as well. If it had a strong endo component, that was absolutely a bonus.
Houston AEGD/GPR: I was in town visiting my sister-in-law so I decided to check out the program. I personally was not very impressed. The two programs are merged in the same clinic and it seemed that there was little distinction between them. I may be wrong, but that is just how it appeared at first sight. The clinic experience was set up pretty similar to my dental school experience where they would perform a comp exam, create a treatment plan, sit in the faculty’s office to review it, and proceed from there. The residents mentioned that they would be lucky if they got to place 2 implants by the end of the program, so it didn’t make it to my application list.
Salt Lake George E. Wahlen VA GPR: I liked this program. The day that I visited, only one resident was present. The others were all taking vacation time for the holidays. The staff and resident were all really kind. They let me sit in on case discussions in a conference room. It looked like they had some cool stuff going on. I think the resident was on track to place 30 or more implants by the end, as was well on his way to completing enough sedation cases to receive a permit. He seemed really happy and not too stressed out. I received an interview invite, but later declined it due to having several invites to higher priority programs.
University of Utah GPR: I toured this program thinking they offered IV sedation experience, but found out from the residents that the anesthesiologists at the hospital do everything, so I didn’t apply. I thought the program was okay. It seems that they have a pretty strong endo component. They are a small clinic tucked away in the hospital that looks pretty outdated. If I recall correctly, I think they reported numbers of residents placing about 20 or so implants. Nothing about the program particularly stood out to me other than the $60,000 stipend and that you get to attend the Whitecap Institute implant course. I would absolutely rank it above Houston.
Idaho State University Pocatello AEGD: I had a buddy at this program so I was able to get a lot of information as well as visit. It’s a great program and seems to really advocate for the residents’ clinical experience. The Program Director is able to approve financial discounts to patients from time to time if the resident really wants to take on a big case. They have an endo microscope, do IV sedation, get about 20 endos, and place 30+ implants, so a lot going for them. I applied but was accepted to a different program prior to interviewing. The stiped is around $40,000 and the cost of living is pretty low as it’s a smaller town. My concerns were that previous residents mentioned that it can be difficult to schedule certain procedures due to specialist availability. My biggest hesitation was that the procedure counts were on a downward trend. The implant and endo numbers were about half of what they were several years ago, but I still would have been happy with the current numbers that they were doing. A great option.
The Foundry AEGD in Bessemer, Alabama: I wasn’t able to make it to tour this program. The previous resident I spoke with stated that if I couldn’t visit, the chances of acceptance may be pretty limited, so I didn’t apply. They do A LOT of work here though. The previous resident mentioned that if you aren’t looking to limit your practice of dentistry to implants, this may be a little overkill. They are really, really busy all of the time from what it sounds like. If implants and IV sedation are your thing, this is definitely king. They are placing 100+ implants. I have a family so though I want to be busy, I didn’t want to be THAT busy. I also wanted a slightly broader clinical experience. Otherwise, sounds like an awesome residency.
Augusta, Georgia Charlie Norwood VA GPR: The Program Director Dr. Martin seems like a phenomenal guy! He was really inviting and open about his program. They do implant placement and IV sedation. My hesitation was that he stated that sometimes residents have to help out with hygiene. I wasn’t too on board with that, but everything else checked out! I received an interview invite but declined it due to having several invites to higher priority programs.
Prisma Health GPR in Columbia, SC (previously Palmetto Health): I really liked this program. Dr. Hicklin in one of the most relaxed and personable Program Directors that I met. I toured the program on the same trip that I toured the Georgia VA. The clinic is in its own building right next to the hospital, so you get a clinic feel, but they are going to the hospital all the time for different things. I’m not too keen on the prospect of hospital dentistry, but this program made it look really fun. Lots of trauma cases. You get a nice stipend, cost of living is low, the hospital provides scrubs, and best of all, the hospital feeds you 3 meals a day. They place 25+ implants, perform IV sedation, and perform several (5-10?) impacted third molar cases. I couldn’t quite get a feel for how strong or not their endo department was. I received an interview invite but declined it after being accepted to a different program.
New Horizon Dental Center AEGD in Tempe, AZ: I didn’t tour the actual program as it is new for the upcoming 2020-2021 cycle, but I shadowed at Implant Pathways and got some information on it. Implant pathways is an implant continuum that finishes with two days of live implant surgery. The doctors come and place around 15-20 implants ranging from single sites to denture cases in those two days. The issue is that they don’t have nearly enough resources to restore all of those cases, so they decided to create a residency to do just that. The stipend is $40,000. They are guaranteeing 50+ implant placements, and then something like 300 implant restorations. If that resonates with you, it sounds like it could be really cool, and you’ll be an implant restorative master! They don’t do IV sedation and I again wanted a broader clinical experience, so I didn’t apply.
UT San Antonio AEGD: I toured here beforehand and then interviewed and really loved it. They have the most faculty/specialists available out of anywhere that I visited. The Program Director is an Endodontist. They have multiple endo rotary systems as well as 3 microscopes. They have an IV sedation mannequin simulation room, a fantastic sedation instructor, and do a lot of cases. They are doing a bunch of soft tissue grafting and utilizing PRF all the time. They have multiple digital scanning systems, as well as an in-house 3D-printer. They do several wisdom teeth cases as well as aesthetic cases. There are 17 residents between first and second years and there seems to be a really great comradery among them. They have a lot going for them. There were a couple downfalls too though. The stiped is only $33,000 (the lowest of the residencies I investigated). Also, the implant experience varied greatly. One second-year I spoke with mentioned they had placed less than 10 implants, while another previous resident had placed around 50 in their one-year tenure. It seems to vary depending on your desire to seek out implants referral sources from the pre-doc program. That definitely worried me a little bit, but it seems that the harder you work to find them, the more implants you place.
San Antonio VA AEGD: This program is often regarded as the holy grail of one-year residencies. I applied but did not receive an interview. I did tour the program, but was left with somewhat of a sour taste in my mouth when the Program Director was not there on the day he told me to come meet him (mind you, I flew into town to tour the program). So I ended up just shadowing the residents for the morning. During that morning, they were definitely going pedal-to-the-metal with all sorts of procedures. Unfortunately, every resident seemed to me to be absolutely exhausted and over-worked. I was told by one resident that the Program Director has made VA dentistry his life, and essentially expects the residents to do the same for that year. I’m told they are there about 12 hours or so a day. I have also heard from many others that he is a very unique person in general. If you can look past that and you’re not afraid to be exhausted for a year, you’ll leave here a very competent and well-rounded clinician. Though not guaranteed, I hear a good class rank will certainly help you in receiving an interview invite.
Temple, Tx Olin E. Teague VA AEGD: Temple was a dark horse for me. I had heard that due to government funding issues, it had been shut down, so I had written it off and did not tour the program. I was surprised to see them on the PASS website while I was readying my application, so I went ahead and applied. I later found out that there were government funding issues, but that it only limited them to taking on 1 resident instead of 3 this year. Everything has been put in order though and they are taking on 3 residents again next year. I spoke with a previous resident that mentioned they placed 40 implants and a co-resident placed 65. There appears to currently be way more patients wanting implants than there are resources. So they do a lot of implants and surgery, as well as get quite a bit IV sedation including an anesthesia rotation with 100+ venipuncture encounters as well as a few intubations. That definitely appealed to me along with the fact that they still maintain a good workflow of general dentistry. The stipend is around $55,000 and cost of living is pretty low as it’s also a smaller town. My biggest concerns were that they don’t have any digital scanners for impressions or to fabricate surgical guides (though there was word that they may be getting one sometime in the near future), and that their endo department is somewhat lacking (there was also word that they may be bringing on an endo faculty). The faculty did mention that there is as much endo available as I would want to take on, so that was a little more comforting. Barring those things, the program seemed really strong. I interviewed here.
UNLV GPR: This was another unexpected program for me. I had heard some decent things but admittedly only applied as a backup since this is a Match program and most of the other programs to which I applied were Non-Match. I ended up touring the program shortly after applying and was really surprised. They have a beautiful clinic and are doing a lot of stuff. They have multiple endodontic microscopes, they are placing 30+ implants, they have a full-time dental anesthesiologist on staff for all things sedation, and it just had a pretty cool overall vibe. I was accepted to a different program before interview invites were extended, but I would have loved to attend here if I had the chance.
I was accepted to one of the two programs that I interviewed at and I’m really excited. I hope that this helps some future prospective residents in finding a program that fits their needs. Most of these programs are absolutely fantastic, it just depends on what you are looking for in a residency. Good luck!
Houston AEGD/GPR: I was in town visiting my sister-in-law so I decided to check out the program. I personally was not very impressed. The two programs are merged in the same clinic and it seemed that there was little distinction between them. I may be wrong, but that is just how it appeared at first sight. The clinic experience was set up pretty similar to my dental school experience where they would perform a comp exam, create a treatment plan, sit in the faculty’s office to review it, and proceed from there. The residents mentioned that they would be lucky if they got to place 2 implants by the end of the program, so it didn’t make it to my application list.
Salt Lake George E. Wahlen VA GPR: I liked this program. The day that I visited, only one resident was present. The others were all taking vacation time for the holidays. The staff and resident were all really kind. They let me sit in on case discussions in a conference room. It looked like they had some cool stuff going on. I think the resident was on track to place 30 or more implants by the end, as was well on his way to completing enough sedation cases to receive a permit. He seemed really happy and not too stressed out. I received an interview invite, but later declined it due to having several invites to higher priority programs.
University of Utah GPR: I toured this program thinking they offered IV sedation experience, but found out from the residents that the anesthesiologists at the hospital do everything, so I didn’t apply. I thought the program was okay. It seems that they have a pretty strong endo component. They are a small clinic tucked away in the hospital that looks pretty outdated. If I recall correctly, I think they reported numbers of residents placing about 20 or so implants. Nothing about the program particularly stood out to me other than the $60,000 stipend and that you get to attend the Whitecap Institute implant course. I would absolutely rank it above Houston.
Idaho State University Pocatello AEGD: I had a buddy at this program so I was able to get a lot of information as well as visit. It’s a great program and seems to really advocate for the residents’ clinical experience. The Program Director is able to approve financial discounts to patients from time to time if the resident really wants to take on a big case. They have an endo microscope, do IV sedation, get about 20 endos, and place 30+ implants, so a lot going for them. I applied but was accepted to a different program prior to interviewing. The stiped is around $40,000 and the cost of living is pretty low as it’s a smaller town. My concerns were that previous residents mentioned that it can be difficult to schedule certain procedures due to specialist availability. My biggest hesitation was that the procedure counts were on a downward trend. The implant and endo numbers were about half of what they were several years ago, but I still would have been happy with the current numbers that they were doing. A great option.
The Foundry AEGD in Bessemer, Alabama: I wasn’t able to make it to tour this program. The previous resident I spoke with stated that if I couldn’t visit, the chances of acceptance may be pretty limited, so I didn’t apply. They do A LOT of work here though. The previous resident mentioned that if you aren’t looking to limit your practice of dentistry to implants, this may be a little overkill. They are really, really busy all of the time from what it sounds like. If implants and IV sedation are your thing, this is definitely king. They are placing 100+ implants. I have a family so though I want to be busy, I didn’t want to be THAT busy. I also wanted a slightly broader clinical experience. Otherwise, sounds like an awesome residency.
Augusta, Georgia Charlie Norwood VA GPR: The Program Director Dr. Martin seems like a phenomenal guy! He was really inviting and open about his program. They do implant placement and IV sedation. My hesitation was that he stated that sometimes residents have to help out with hygiene. I wasn’t too on board with that, but everything else checked out! I received an interview invite but declined it due to having several invites to higher priority programs.
Prisma Health GPR in Columbia, SC (previously Palmetto Health): I really liked this program. Dr. Hicklin in one of the most relaxed and personable Program Directors that I met. I toured the program on the same trip that I toured the Georgia VA. The clinic is in its own building right next to the hospital, so you get a clinic feel, but they are going to the hospital all the time for different things. I’m not too keen on the prospect of hospital dentistry, but this program made it look really fun. Lots of trauma cases. You get a nice stipend, cost of living is low, the hospital provides scrubs, and best of all, the hospital feeds you 3 meals a day. They place 25+ implants, perform IV sedation, and perform several (5-10?) impacted third molar cases. I couldn’t quite get a feel for how strong or not their endo department was. I received an interview invite but declined it after being accepted to a different program.
New Horizon Dental Center AEGD in Tempe, AZ: I didn’t tour the actual program as it is new for the upcoming 2020-2021 cycle, but I shadowed at Implant Pathways and got some information on it. Implant pathways is an implant continuum that finishes with two days of live implant surgery. The doctors come and place around 15-20 implants ranging from single sites to denture cases in those two days. The issue is that they don’t have nearly enough resources to restore all of those cases, so they decided to create a residency to do just that. The stipend is $40,000. They are guaranteeing 50+ implant placements, and then something like 300 implant restorations. If that resonates with you, it sounds like it could be really cool, and you’ll be an implant restorative master! They don’t do IV sedation and I again wanted a broader clinical experience, so I didn’t apply.
UT San Antonio AEGD: I toured here beforehand and then interviewed and really loved it. They have the most faculty/specialists available out of anywhere that I visited. The Program Director is an Endodontist. They have multiple endo rotary systems as well as 3 microscopes. They have an IV sedation mannequin simulation room, a fantastic sedation instructor, and do a lot of cases. They are doing a bunch of soft tissue grafting and utilizing PRF all the time. They have multiple digital scanning systems, as well as an in-house 3D-printer. They do several wisdom teeth cases as well as aesthetic cases. There are 17 residents between first and second years and there seems to be a really great comradery among them. They have a lot going for them. There were a couple downfalls too though. The stiped is only $33,000 (the lowest of the residencies I investigated). Also, the implant experience varied greatly. One second-year I spoke with mentioned they had placed less than 10 implants, while another previous resident had placed around 50 in their one-year tenure. It seems to vary depending on your desire to seek out implants referral sources from the pre-doc program. That definitely worried me a little bit, but it seems that the harder you work to find them, the more implants you place.
San Antonio VA AEGD: This program is often regarded as the holy grail of one-year residencies. I applied but did not receive an interview. I did tour the program, but was left with somewhat of a sour taste in my mouth when the Program Director was not there on the day he told me to come meet him (mind you, I flew into town to tour the program). So I ended up just shadowing the residents for the morning. During that morning, they were definitely going pedal-to-the-metal with all sorts of procedures. Unfortunately, every resident seemed to me to be absolutely exhausted and over-worked. I was told by one resident that the Program Director has made VA dentistry his life, and essentially expects the residents to do the same for that year. I’m told they are there about 12 hours or so a day. I have also heard from many others that he is a very unique person in general. If you can look past that and you’re not afraid to be exhausted for a year, you’ll leave here a very competent and well-rounded clinician. Though not guaranteed, I hear a good class rank will certainly help you in receiving an interview invite.
Temple, Tx Olin E. Teague VA AEGD: Temple was a dark horse for me. I had heard that due to government funding issues, it had been shut down, so I had written it off and did not tour the program. I was surprised to see them on the PASS website while I was readying my application, so I went ahead and applied. I later found out that there were government funding issues, but that it only limited them to taking on 1 resident instead of 3 this year. Everything has been put in order though and they are taking on 3 residents again next year. I spoke with a previous resident that mentioned they placed 40 implants and a co-resident placed 65. There appears to currently be way more patients wanting implants than there are resources. So they do a lot of implants and surgery, as well as get quite a bit IV sedation including an anesthesia rotation with 100+ venipuncture encounters as well as a few intubations. That definitely appealed to me along with the fact that they still maintain a good workflow of general dentistry. The stipend is around $55,000 and cost of living is pretty low as it’s also a smaller town. My biggest concerns were that they don’t have any digital scanners for impressions or to fabricate surgical guides (though there was word that they may be getting one sometime in the near future), and that their endo department is somewhat lacking (there was also word that they may be bringing on an endo faculty). The faculty did mention that there is as much endo available as I would want to take on, so that was a little more comforting. Barring those things, the program seemed really strong. I interviewed here.
UNLV GPR: This was another unexpected program for me. I had heard some decent things but admittedly only applied as a backup since this is a Match program and most of the other programs to which I applied were Non-Match. I ended up touring the program shortly after applying and was really surprised. They have a beautiful clinic and are doing a lot of stuff. They have multiple endodontic microscopes, they are placing 30+ implants, they have a full-time dental anesthesiologist on staff for all things sedation, and it just had a pretty cool overall vibe. I was accepted to a different program before interview invites were extended, but I would have loved to attend here if I had the chance.
I was accepted to one of the two programs that I interviewed at and I’m really excited. I hope that this helps some future prospective residents in finding a program that fits their needs. Most of these programs are absolutely fantastic, it just depends on what you are looking for in a residency. Good luck!
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