Admission level and students' performance at a Norwegian dental school

Data on students' performance at the Oslo Dental Faculty for 1977-86 were divided in two 5-year periods and analyzed in accordance with admission levels, largely on the basis of academic performance in junior college. During these years admission level decreased considerably, whereas the frequency of 'not passed', 'dropouts', and candidates using prolonged student time increased. The dental school grade average and the distribution of high- and low-performance candidates varied with the admission level. This trend was visible most clearly in the first 5-year period, when the admission point range included a considerable number of high admission level students. However, the admission level was not a good predictor of students' performance in the large middle or low admission level groups prominent in the second 5-year period. Poor preclinical results were not compensated for by clinical skills. All comparison of students' performance gave results in favor of the female students, but no sex-related differences were statistically significant. Most dropouts left dental school during the 1st year without visible examination difficulties. Students with several 'not passed' tended to repeat examinations, dropping out at a later stage or graduating after prolonged student time with poor results. With low interest in odontology, selection of students on the basis of minute differences in academic performance in the lower admission point scale is of limited value as a predictor of students' performance.     

Relationship of selection criteria to subsequent academic performance in an Australian undergraduate dental school

In 1998, in addition to previous academic achievement, an aptitude test (UMAT) and a structured interview were introduced into selection for the Bachelor of Dental Science (BDSc), the undergraduate dental course at the University of Western Australia. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between the combination of school‐leaver dental students' entry scores, some demographic characteristics and subsequent student performance in the undergraduate course. Three hundred and ninety‐eight school‐leavers who enrolled in the BDSc from 1999 through 2011 were studied. Regression models were constructed comprising entry scores, gender and age as predictors in relation to subsequent academic performance. The main outcome measure was the weighted average mark (WAM) for each of five academic year levels as well as results in specific units, defined as either ‘knowledge’ based or ‘clinically’ based. Of the variables studied, previous academic performance and female gender had the strongest relationship with yearly WAM for Years 1 through 4 and for both ‘knowledge’ based and ‘clinically’ based units. The interview score showed a strong relationship in the major clinical years and in a range of ‘clinically’ based units. UMAT scores were less consistent in relationship to WAM. These results support assessment through a highly structured interview together with prior academic achievement as an evidence‐based approach to selection of students for this undergraduate dental course.     

The importance of ‘student voice’ in dental education

Although much published school and higher education research have established a strong conceptual foundation for eliciting student feedback, this element is relatively poorly developed in dental education research. This paper examines ‘student voice’ as a conceptual/theoretical framework and justification for attending to students' perspectives in dental education. The aims of this review paper were: to explore the concept of student voice, including some pragmatic considerations and key critiques of listening to student feedback; to critically analyse key debates about the importance of a research focus on student perceptions using themes from the seminal and contemporary educational literature on student voice from the school, higher and dental educational sectors; to identify gaps in the dental education literature in relation to students' perceptions of their learning, and highlight some practical implications drawn from the ‘student voice’ literature for dental education; and to assist dental educational researchers in developing a strong rationale for listening to student voice in dental educational institutions. This paper is intended to assist dental educational researchers in justifying future research projects which require eliciting dental student feedback/perceptions.     

Does performance in selection processes predict performance as a dental student?

Objective: This study investigated associations between the performance of dental students in each of the three components of the selection procedure [academic average, Undergraduate Medicine and Health Sciences Admission Test (UMAT) and structured interview], socio‐demographic characteristics and their academic success in an undergraduate dental surgery programme. Materials and methods: Longitudinal review of admissions data relating to students entering dental education at the University of Otago, New Zealand, between 2004 and 2009 was compared with academic performance throughout the dental programme. Results and discussion: After controlling for variables, pre‐admission academic average, UMAT scores and interview performance did not predict performance as a dental student. Class place in second year, however, was a strong predictor of class place in final year. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that the best predictors of higher class placement in the final year were New Zealand European ethnicity and domestic (rather than international) student status. Other socio‐demographic characteristics were not associated with performance. These interim findings provide a sound base for the ongoing study. Conclusion: The study found important socio‐demographic differences in pre‐admission test scores, but those scores did not predict performance in the dental programme, whether measured in second year or in final year.     

Admission systems to dental school in Europe: a closer look at Flanders

Dental education in Europe faces enormous challenges. One deals with the admission to dental school. Although admission procedures vary considerably across Europe, a characteristic of some systems is that the same procedure is used across students who will ultimately pursue different majors (medical or dental). This is based on the assumptions that there is no significant difference in these students’ scores and that the requirements for medicine and dentistry are equal. This study examines these assumptions in the admission exam ‘Medical and Dental Studies’ in Flanders. Students who pass may choose whether they start medical or dental education. Over an 8‐year period (2000–2007), admission exam scores of students starting medicine (n = 4492) were compared to those of students starting dentistry (n = 547). Second, the validity of this exam is examined for both medical and dental education. It was found that students starting dentistry had a significantly lower total score on the admission exam than students starting medicine. Differences were especially striking for the cognitive part of the admission exam. For both medical and dental students, the admission exam score was a valid predictor of academic grades in the first 3 years, although correlations were lower for dental education. These results have implications for admission procedures in countries where the same system is used for both majors. The findings that students who have a lower score choose dental education and that the validity of the exam is slightly lower for dentistry, raise questions about using the same admission exam for two obviously different majors.     

Tweezer dexterity aptitude of dental students

The rationale for using the Perceptual Ability Test (PAT) as a component in admissions decisions for dental schools is that candidates vary in an underlying aptitude that is predictive of degree of success in technique course performance and perhaps in clinical performance. There have been periodic attempts to identify tests that more directly measure manual dexterity aptitude that would supplement the predictive power of admissions decisions. Previous research has demonstrated that a commercially available "speeded" tweezer dexterity test (Johnson O'Connor Test #32022) is not associated with performance in dental school or dental practice. Our research investigated both Test #32022 and Test #18 that measure both speed and accuracy as potential predictors of dental school performance in technical and clinical courses. This article reports the results of a longitudinal, comparative study of tweezer dexterity scores for students at the University of the Pacific School of Dentistry during their first and last quarters in school. The goals of the study were to 1) evaluate the correlation between beginning students' scores on two different types of tweezer dexterity tests; 2) compare dental students' scores to normative data for the general population; 3) determine the effect of a dental curriculum on students' performance on Test #18; and 4) evaluate the two tests as potential dental school admission screening instruments in comparison to the PAT. Fifty first-quarter students were tested from a class of 134. Forty-nine of these students were retested on Test #18 during their final quarter. The predictor value of the initial scores for the two dexterity tests was assessed for seven outcome measures reflecting student technique performance. Analysis showed a significant correlation (r=0.318, p<0.05) between the two dexterity tests. The difference between the norm mean (41.58) and the dental student mean for Test #18 (40.42) was not significant (p>0.05). The correlation between the first and final quarter administrations for Test #18 was r=0.517 (p<0.01). The predictive power of these tests for the seven educational outcomes measures was weak. Results suggest that dental student tweezer dexterity is no different from that of the general population and is not changed by completing a dental school curriculum. The ability for an applicant to perform successfully in dental school will not be reliably predicted by tweezer dexterity score.     

Associations among predental credentials and measures of dental school achievement

The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations among several dental school admission criteria and several measures of dental school achievement. Data were collected for 2000-07 University of Iowa dentistry graduates, including five specific preadmission credentials and five specific measures of dental school achievement for each student. Pearson product moment correlations or Mann-Whitney U statistics were computed for the association of each of the ten variables with the nine others. The strongest correlation observed was between predental science grade point average (GPA) and overall predental GPA. Dental Admission Test (DAT) Academic Average was very strongly correlated with DAT Total Science, and both of these were each moderately correlated with DAT Perceptual Ability, predental science GPA, and overall predental GPA. Among the measures of dental school achievement, the strongest association was observed between National Board Dental Examination (NBDE) scores and dental school GPA. These were also moderately correlated with final clinical grade. All of the measures of dental school achievement were slightly stronger for candidates who passed the Central Regional Dental Testing Service (CRDTS) examination than for those who failed that exam. Of the predental credentials considered, predental science GPA and overall predental GPA were the best predictors of dental school GPA. DAT Academic Average was the best predictor of NBDE scores. Although DAT Perceptual Ability was the best predictor of clinical competency at the time of graduation, these two variables were only weakly correlated. DAT Perceptual Ability scores and overall predental GPA were slightly higher for candidates who passed the CRDTS examination than for those who failed that exam.     

Identifying student profiles and their impact on academic performance in a Brazilian undergraduate student sample

The recognition of the student profile provides strategic information for planning educational policies in the university environment. The aims of this study were to identify natural segmentation of freshman undergraduate dental students based on demographic, socioeconomic and educational variables, and to subsequently investigate their impact on academic performance of Brazilian undergraduate students. Cluster analysis (two‐step algorithm) was used to segment students who entered dental school in the time period from 1999 to 2001 (n = 158) into groups based on responses to a questionnaire completed by students at the time of the admission examination. Clustering analysis revealed three natural groups. Age, the parents’ level of education, and performance on the first admission test were the most important variables for cluster segmentation. Cluster 1 (n = 42; 26.6%) was characterized by female students with higher socioeconomic status and better previous educational indicators. Cluster 2 (n = 62; 39.2%) represented disadvantaged socioeconomic profiles, with a predominance of females and older students. Cluster 3 (n = 54; 34.2%) showed similar socioeconomic characteristics to cluster 1, except for male prevalence, higher age, and experiencing difficulty in the admission test. Clusters’ academic performance was satisfactory in both overall course and course groups (grade point average of at least 7.0), with average ranging from 7.89 (SD = 0.44) to 8.13 (SD = 0.31) and 7.37 (SD = 0.75) to 8.31(SD = 0.26), respectively. Our findings provide encouraging evidence for the current context of equality of access to education and reveal the importance of financial support to maximize successful educational experiences of socioeconomically disadvantaged dental students.     

Is there a link between writing ability,drawing aptitude and manual skills of dental students?

In France, students have to choose between medical or dental courses, according to their rank, after a competitive examination at the end of their first year of study. Intellectual ability is evaluated, while manual competence is not, and this is a paradox. The purpose of the present study is to investigate whether it is possible to predict the manual aptitude of a dental student through tests that allow the qualities of reflection and organization to be judged. We administered writing tests and drawing tests to 45 students of the Bordeaux dental school to ascertain whether there was a correlation between the competitive examination, the criterion examined (reflection, organization, aesthetics…) and the results of the dental practical assessments during the first year of dental study. The results showed that although manual competence in dental practical work, graphic qualities and writing skills are connected, it is difficult to correlate them directly with competitive examination performance. In view of the number of uncontrolled variables influencing the students' outcome, is it useful to be able to predict who will become a good practitioner? One indication may be found in the moral reasoning of candidates.     

Correlation of admission criteria with dental school performance and attrition

This study was conducted to provide current information on the relationship between admission criteria and dental school performance, including the association of admission criteria and dental school outcomes such as remediation and attrition. Standard tests of bivariate association and multivariate regression models appropriate for continuous and discrete dependent variables were used to examine the relationship between multiple indicators of admission criteria and dental school performance for six recent classes at the University of Florida College of Dentistry (UFCD). The admission criteria included the undergraduate science grade point average (GPA), undergraduate non-science GPA, Dental Admissions Test (DAT) academic score, Perceptual Motor Aptitude Test (PMAT) score, and admission interview score. Measures of dental school performance were the National Dental Board Examination Part I and Part II (NB-I, NB-II) scores, yearly and final dental school GPA, and academic progress through the UFCD program. In general, most admission criteria were good bivariate indicators of dental school performance. Multivariate analyses indicated that students with higher undergraduate science GPAs and DAT academic scores were more likely to achieve higher NB-I and NB-II scores. The undergraduate science GPA and admission interview score were the most consistent determinants of dental school GPA. Students with lower undergraduate science GPAs, DAT academic scores, and PMAT scores were more likely to remediate, to repeat an academic year, or to be dismissed. Although bivariate differences were observed in several admission criteria of students who remediated one or more courses, repeated an academic year, or were dismissed only the undergraduate science GPA and the PMAT score were indicators of programmatic progress in the multivariate analysis.     

Undergraduate basic science preparation for dental school

In the Institute of Medicines report Dental Education at the Crossroads, it was suggested that dental schools across the country move toward integrated basic science education for dental and medical students in their curricula. To do so, dental school admission requirements and recommendations must be closely reviewed to ensure that students are adequately prepared for this coursework. The purpose of our study was twofold: 1) to identify student dentists' perceptions of their predental preparation as it relates to course content, and 2) to track student dentists' undergraduate basic science course preparation and relate that to DAT performance, basic science course performance in dental school, and Part I and Part II National Board performance. In the first part of the research, a total of ninety student dentists (forty-five from each class) from the entering classes of 1996 and 1997 were asked to respond to a survey. The survey instrument was distributed to each class of students after each completed the largest basic science class given in their second-year curriculum. The survey investigated the area of undergraduate major, a checklist of courses completed in their undergraduate preparation, the relevance of the undergraduate classes to the block basic science courses, and the strength of requiring or recommending the listed undergraduate courses as a part of admission to dental school. Results of the survey, using frequency analysis, indicate that students felt that the following classes should be required, not recommended, for admission to dental school: Microbiology 70 percent, Biochemistry 54.4 percent, Immunology 57.78 percent, Anatomy 50 percent, Physiology 58.89 percent, and Cell Biology 50 percent. The second part of the research involved anonymously tracking undergraduate basic science preparation of the same students with DAT scores, the grade received in a representative large basic science course, and Part I and Part II National Board performance. Using T-test analysis correlations, results indicate that having completed multiple undergraduate basic science courses (as reported by AADSAS BCP hours) did not significantly (p < .05) enhance student performance in any of these parameters. Based on these results, we conclude that student dentists with undergraduate preparation in science and nonscience majors can successfully negotiate the dental school curriculum, even though the students themselves would increase admission requirements to include more basic science courses than commonly required. Basically, the students' recommendations for required undergraduate basic science courses would replicate the standard basic science coursework found in most dental schools: anatomy, histology, biochemistry, microbiology, physiology, and immunology plus the universal foundation course of biology.     

Situational judgment tests as a new tool for dental student selection

Cognitive tests are used to select students into dental school, yet cognitive predictors explain only part of the variance in academic performance. Therefore, interviews and personality tests are often used to measure noncognitive (e.g., interpersonal) characteristics. Recently, situational judgment tests (SJTs) have drawn attention since there is evidence that SJTs can be valid predictors in medical admission contexts. This study examines the validity of an SJT measuring interpersonal skills for predicting academic performance of dental students. Incremental validity over cognitive tests is also examined. In this study, 796 dental students who passed the admission exam for medical and dental students in Flanders, Belgium, and enrolled in one of the two Flemish dental schools were evaluated. Grade point average (GPA) in the five years of dental studies served as the criterion. Corrected correlation between the cognitive tests of the admission exam and GPA equaled .38. Their validity dropped from .45 (year 1) to .18 (year 5). However, the validity of the SJT increased from .05 (year 1) to .20 (year 5). The SJT had incremental validity in year 5. Dental admissions committees that envision assessing a broad set of capabilities might consider using an SJT as a valuable supplement to cognitive tests. Future research needs to confirm these findings with job performance as another criterion.     

Predicting performance in Canadian dental schools: the new CDA structured interview, a new personality assessment, and the DAT

Using a sample of dental students (N=373) from four Canadian dental schools, this longitudinal study determined whether the new Canadian Dental Association (CDA) structured interview was a predictor of clinical and academic performance. The new interview predicted clinical performance in the third and fourth years of dental school, but not academic performance. The Canadian Dental Aptitude Test (DAT) continued to predict first- and second-year academic performance, but not clinical performance in the senior years. A personality factor, "Conscientiousness," predicted clinical and academic performance to various degrees across the four years of dental school. A second personality factor, "Openness to Experience," predicted third-year academic performance. The results suggest that a combination of scores from the DAT, a valid measure of personality, and a well-designed structured interview will provide the best prediction of those applicants who will do well in both the academic and clinical aspects of dental school.     

Students' attitudes and knowledge on pain and pain management in paediatric dentistry—An observational study

Introduction

The dental and dental hygienist educational programs prepare students with knowledge on children's prophylactic pain treatment and pain management. Observing the students' understanding could help educational efforts to be more student oriented. The aim was to evaluate dental and dental hygienist students' knowledge and attitudes on pain prevention and pain management in children and adolescents, applying a multidimensional questionnaire previously used on general dental practitioners.

Materials and Methods

Three hundred and four dental and dental hygienist students at Swedish universities were eligible for the survey. Written and oral information was given about the study's aim, methods, anonymity and voluntary participation. The multidimensional questionnaire included 47 closed questions.

Results

The total responding rate was 65.4%; dental students 61.1% and dental hygienist students 92.8%. The total mean of knowledge and attitudes, beneficial for the treating of patient pain, varied between 57.1% and 83.3%. The biggest knowledge gap was identified regarding the items: Children under 2 years of age experience less pain than children over 2 years undergoing similar treatment(34.3%), The dentist is better suited than the parent to judge if a child is in pain (29.4%), and usually the child's pain experience diminishes when the parents are present (24.2%).

Conclusion

Dental and dental hygienist students reported vastly spread knowledge and attitudes regarding pain prophylactic and pain management in children and adolescents, as measured by a multidimensional questionnaire previously used on GDPs. Knowledge on students' understanding of the young patient's pain could help educational efforts to be more student oriented. The questionnaire must be further modified and more extensively tested to meet each participating students' program level.     

Exploring uses of the UK Clinical Aptitude Test‐situational judgement test in a dental student selection process

Aim

In 2013 the UKCAT included a non‐cognitive situational judgement test in addition to the four cognitive subtests commonly used by UK dental schools to select students. However, little is known about the situational judgement test's psychometric properties and relationship to other selection tools. This study's aim was explore these issues to inform decisions about the inclusion of the UKCAT SJT in the dental student selection process.

Method

The sample comprised a cohort of applicants to a Bachelor of Dental Surgery programme, at a UK dental school, which does not use achievement in the UKCAT SJT in its selection process. The impact on applicant outcomes of two theoretical uses of the UKCAT SJT was examined. First, SJT Band was used as the criterion for offers of a place instead of the school's admission interview, and second, weighted UKCAT scores, including a weighted SJT Band score, were ranked to make interview invitation decisions. Associations between SJT Band, UKCAT cognitive scores, interview score and performance in first year assessments were examined.

Results

If SJT Band 1 & 2 were used as the criterion for an offer of a place, some applicants rejected by this school's interview, including ‘red flagged’ applicants, would have received an offer of a place. Using a weighted UKCAT/SJT system for invitation for interview decisions increased the mean total UKCAT cognitive score of those invited for interview but included applicants rejected by this school's structured interview, including ‘red flagged’ applicants. Neither usage disadvantaged under‐represented groups. SJT Band correlated with UKCAT score (n = 228, r_s = ?0.38, P < 0.01) with interview score (n = 186, r_s = ?0.17, P < 0.05) but not with first year study assessments.

Conclusion

This study has shown that the UKCAT SJT does not add value to the existing methods of this dental school to make valid, reliable and fair student selection decisions.     

Moral reasoning in dental hygiene students

Sixty-five students participated in a study designed to identify the level of moral reasoning of dental hygiene students. Comparisons were made with typical college students and a normative group composed of individuals representing a cross-section of ages and educational levels. The relationships among level of moral reasoning and clinical performance, other selected academic measures, and cognitive style were also assessed. The results indicated that post-certificate dental hygiene students reasoned about moral dilemmas at a higher level than the normative group and at the same level as the college student group. In addition, clinical performance, National Board Dental Hygiene Examination scores, Dental Hygiene Aptitude Test (reading scores), high school rank, and cognitive style correlated positively with level of moral reasoning and specific stages of moral development for postcertificate students.