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A success story for dentistry

BDJ In Practice volume 32, pages 23–24 (2019)Cite this article

It has been suggested that dentistry is a profession for those from upper socio-economic backgrounds, and research seems to support this suggestion.1 The results showed that more dental applicants were from minority ethnic backgrounds; the proportion of female applicants was similar for all three groups studied; fewer applicants were mature; more dental (23.5%) and medical (25.8%) applicants were from upper socio-economic backgrounds. It seemed that for dentistry a student was more likely to be successful if they were from a higher social class and a minority ethnic background than applicants to higher education in general.

It was also discovered that of the applicants to dentistry, 23.5% were from higher managerial and professional occupation backgrounds, similar to, but slightly less than, medical applicants (25.8%). For accepted applicants, this rose to 27.4% for dentistry and 34.4% for medicine.1

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Reference

  1. Gallagher J E, Niven V, Donaldson N, Wilson N H F. Widening access? Characteristics of applicants to medical and dental schools, compared with UCAS HEFC. Br Dent J 2009; 207: 433-445.

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  1. Editor, BDJ In Practice, British Dental Association, 64 Wimpole Street, London, UK

    David Westgarth

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  1. David Westgarth
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Correspondence to David Westgarth.

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Westgarth, D. A success story for dentistry. BDJ In Pract 32, 23–24 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41404-019-0038-z

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