ADEA academic dental careers fellowship program experience
Introduction/Context/Diagnosis
- To gain an insight into the life of a dental educator
- To establish a successful mentee-mentor relationship
- To explore different options for teaching and faculty positions available following a DDS education
Methods/Treatment Plan
Identified a faculty mentor, Dr. Gupta, who is passionate about education and is willing to spare the time and resources to be an academic career guide. To know what motivates people to become educators, and what different paths did they take to get to where they are now, I planned to interview 10 faculty members who hold various different positions and learn from their journey and experiences. I also obtained an Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval to be able to conduct surveys involving students, faculty and alumni. Together with my mentor, I formulated a teaching assignment schedule to be able to observe and assist in various fields of education. My teaching assignment schedule:
- Clinical: Observe and help Dr. Gupta as a clinical instructor
- Didactic: Presentation to the first and second year dental students as part of thereconstructive dental care course
- Laboratory: Instructor in the simulation laboratory for basic procedures in fixed prosthodontics and operative dentistry for first and second year dental students
- Small group presentation to first year dental students as part of the integrated clinical sciences course
Results/Outcome
The program allowed me to realize what to expect as an educator in terms of working on curriculum and programs as part of the behind-the-scenes process. Personalized instruction methods work best when working in a one-on-one environment like the pre-clinical laboratory and clinic. Preparation for the teaching session is more important than the actual session itself. There is no formula for success as an educator. It is important to realize your strengths and play them to the students’ advantage. My personal take: A combination of private practice and academics appealed to me as an option after graduation.
Location
University of the Pacific, Dugoni Dental School, San Francisco, CA
Format
Poster
Poster Session
IDS Student Presentations
ADEA academic dental careers fellowship program experience
University of the Pacific, Dugoni Dental School, San Francisco, CA
- To gain an insight into the life of a dental educator
- To establish a successful mentee-mentor relationship
- To explore different options for teaching and faculty positions available following a DDS education
Comments/Acknowledgements
This poster was presented at the ADEA Annual Convention in Long Beach, California on March 19, 2017