Abstract
With the aim of optimising dental education without overburdening students, new legislation restructuring the undergraduate dental curriculum in German is under way. The goal of this study was to survey the current situation of dental students at one specific university with respect to their socio-economic background, admission to dental school, curriculum perception and work-life balance. An online questionnaire was presented to all undergraduate students enrolled at Saarland University who had at least completed the first preclinical practical course in dentistry. A response rate of 85% was reached with two-thirds of the student body being females. The profession of 40% of students' parents either was physicians or dentist. Students reported a slight reduction in time spent for leisure activities during their studies, however, with sports activities hardly being affected. With respect to a proper work-life balance, almost 50% of respondents considered their clinical workload as being too high. Students did not express a clear opinion regarding curriculum structure, whilst the content mostly satisfied their expectations (59%). The majority (71%) of students considered their preclinical training as being demanding whilst less than 3% fully agreed that preclinical training provided an optimal background for patient treatment. The learning modules in the first clinical semester were considered as being adequate by 56% of students. Examinations during courses were seen as properly reflecting the students' knowledge by 79% of students. The status quo of German dental students is characterised by a high workload affecting the students' work-life balance and by a transition between preclinical and clinical education which only about half the student body perceives as being adequate. Patient-based examinations obviously are not considered as being problematic.
Highlights
With the aim of optimising dental education without overburdening students, new legislation restructuring the undergraduate dental curriculum in German is under way
Following long periods of preparation and discussion, new legislation restructuring the undergraduate curriculum in German dental schools will come into effect in fall 2020
Besides lecture formats which have been shown to be favourably organised in the form of problem based learning,[15] assessment of students' performance is critical in this context with varying results being reported for traditional test methods[16,17] and objectively structured clinical examinations (OSCE).[18,19]
Summary
With the aim of optimising dental education without overburdening students, new legislation restructuring the undergraduate dental curriculum in German is under way. Exposure to self-dependent patient treatment as already implemented in the current curriculum is a unique feature of studying dentistry, which raises several questions These start with appropriately weighted, reliable and valid student selection methods[3] taking into account the feminisation of the workforce in dentistry[4,5] and range up to the graduates' confidence and preparedness for their professional life.[1,6,7]. Due to the interdependent relationships between students, patients, instructors and administrators,[12] novel curricula should ensure the creation of an educational environment which is satisfying to future dentists.[13,14] Besides lecture formats which have been shown to be favourably organised in the form of problem based learning,[15] assessment of students' performance is critical in this context with varying results being reported for traditional test methods[16,17] and objectively structured clinical examinations (OSCE).[18,19]
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