INSTITUTIONAL DENTIST SCIENTIST AWARD

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This institutional DSA program has graduated a total of eight clinical scholars. In addition, four clinical scholars were trained on individual DSA/PSA awards. Four clinical scholars funded by other mechanisms have also graduated. Ten other graduates have been funded through other sources. Thus, our training history is a total of twenty-six graduates. Six of the present roster of ten active students are in combined programs, attesting to our commitment to combined certificate/Ph.D. training. All of our DSA clinical scholars have completed their certificate and Ph.D. programs and have entered productive careers; no one has defaulted either by leaving the program or by entering private practice. The clinical scholars who are positioned to obtain independent funding have done so; 89% are funded. The programs, both clinical and graduate, accommodate their schedules to ensure efficient and successful progress through the program. Because of the diversity and complexity of oral disease, training is focused on basic biological problems related to the oral cavity in health and disease rather than a single discipline- centered program. The organization of a faculty of basic scientists and dental and medical clinicians in this training program has permitted us to offer a range of opportunities for students of dental health and disease. In addition, research centers in chemosensory systems, dental and general clinical research and biomaterials have fostered the active participation of the Oral Biology Graduate Faculty (OBGF) in the clinical and scientific education of clinical scholars by serving as mentors for their research. Because the faculty are engaged in multidisciplinary collaborations, individually and through research centers and program projects, the OBGF is diverse, is drawn from all segments of the Health Center and represents a range of investigative expertise and interests. This mix of clinical programs and manifold research opportunities provides a dynamic and stimulating training environment. Consequently, the research projects devised for our students have had a similar breadth and scope. The objective of this program is to offer a program that produces highly qualified clinical scholars competent in their clinical disciplines and as independent scientists able to initiate and maintain funded research programs. In addition, the program will provide educational experiences that are tailored to each candidate, while maintaining a focus in the oral biological sciences through seminars, courses, clinical research centers and collaborative research activities.