MSc Restorative Dental Science – an Online Q&A with the Course Leader

[MUSIC PLAYING] - So the actual teaching and learning is delivered through online medium through both sort of seminars things like that, but also self-directed learning, which is pretty much what you'd expect as master's level.

When it comes to the practical side, we do offer hands-on days and things like that. But they're not actually part of the core curriculum, so they aren't compulsory for people to do. And, in fact, you know, obviously, attending things like that there's extra costs. So they're a sort of [? bolt-on ?] that the really keen students if they want to do them they can do them, but it's not actually part of the course itself.

- And can I just ask in regard to those, would the practical days, those sort of add-ons that you mentioned, would they involve coming to Plymouth itself?

- Yes. They are run in Plymouth or Exeter, which is about 3/4 of an hour up the road.

- OK. That makes sense. So we do you have one more question that I think we should deal with now. Would this course be suitable for someone living overseas?

- I think of all the courses, it's eminently suited to someone living overseas really. I mean, obviously, studying any master's from the UK, there are language issues. And so we try and be realistic about the entry requirements for that. But the nice thing about this course is that you can study it sort of in your own time zone, as it were.

You don't have to attend physically on site, which makes life so much easier for people. They're not having to pay a huge amount in travel, and also having to take days out at a time. I mean, quite often, when people attend for the hands-on days, they'll sometimes need to spend previous half a day traveling to places in the UK quite easily. Well, we don't do that. Because if it's accessible online, we've cut that out. So yeah.

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I think as far as it goes, you've got to remember that this is one of a suite of courses that we do. And I think it's fair to say that any provider that provides a number of courses continually develops them and adjusts them and learns an awful lot from it. I've been involved in all sorts of different courses over the years, sort of full-time specialty training courses, blended learning and things like that. And having experience in these different things just helps make courses slightly better in terms of how they work.

The whole idea behind this course is really about teaching people the science behind things. So realistically, any dentist from any background can benefit from things like that. But the thing to remember is, is it's a master's course, and it's very much focused on master's level skills.

So this isn't just a question of giving someone a series of lectures. We teach them to go out, to look at the literature, to be able to read papers and understand them and then apply them as well in the sort of discussions and things that we have, which is a really, really important thing. Otherwise, it's no difference. It's just sort of buying a book, frankly.

So I think there are some of the things that differentiate it. And of course, not everywhere does that. You will find courses like diplomas and certificates, which just simply produce rote teaching for people. And they're not actually teaching them at master's level and equipping them with those skills.

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First of all, having an MSc certainly tends to enhance the employability of graduates. So, say, for example, they go for a job maybe. They decide to move into private practice or things like that, then having an MSc in Restorative Dentistry has shown that it really does impress employers, things like that. So from that aspect, it can certainly help people. It doesn't guarantee you'll get the job because it does depend on the rest of your CV and things like that. But it certainly does help.

Within the UK, we have things more advanced care pathways. So we're introducing a different tier of clinical work that's between speciality work and general practice. So it's effectively advanced general practice. And interesting enough, things like MScs in Restorative Dentistry are one of the criteria that they actually look for when appointing people to do things like that.

The other thing we hear from our students is quite often, once people know they're studying for something like this, and they've got a little way through it, that they'll begin to get more referrals from colleagues with their own sort of network, things like that. So that can help benefit people. But I think there are other skills as well.

For example, if you want to become involved in teaching or research or things like that, as more and more dentists do as they sort of form portfolio careers, then things like the MSc can help with developing skills and getting jobs as they think-- these sort of areas, too.

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I think the things that make it stand out are, one, the flexibility it offers, which as we said before, with people who come from other countries. Things like that has proven to be very useful. But it's the same with other people who are working in the UK as well. Having that flexibility is a really good selling point for them as it were.

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- I would say that the most successful students that I've spoken to have been in regular contact with me because we are here to help. We can get things to admissions. We can advise you. We can do everything for you on that sort of end about getting your application in. We can refer you to English language tests and things like that if they're necessary. So definitely speak to your course advisor and perhaps take heed of our advice if we give it to you.

I would also say ensure that you can manage the time commitment. We have been talking about this quite a bit. But this is a serious qualification, and it requires a serious level of commitment for that reason. You will be working 20 to 25 hours per week on top of your normal work for two years, and it's a large commitment. But it is the kind of commitment you need to make if you want to get this high level of qualification and benefit your career and your practice with that.

And I would say just as a final bit on our end, apply early, get your offer early, and enroll early because it's the way that everything goes smoothly. And it just sort of-- it sets you off on the right foot for your journey with us at Plymouth.

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