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The student perspective on the DVT and DFT recruitment systems: a survey

BDJ Student volume 28, pages 28–33 (2021)Cite this article

By Kirsty Dickson* and Sophie Lane, Dental Vocational Trainees

Dental Foundation Training (DFT) and Dental Vocational Training (DVT) have separate recruitment pathways which both present unique challenges for students. The results of this survey identify the strengths and weaknesses of both of these systems. Students felt the online platforms developed to help with recruitment could be more user-friendly. The largest areas of concern for DFT were in the standardisation of interviews and the heavy reliance on a Situational Judgement Test (SJT). The areas that were highlighted for the Scottish system included the transparency of preferencing between trainers and prospective trainees. However, when identifying which system students preferred, 62.1% said the Scottish DVT recruitment pathway. This review aims to identify if there are any changes that could be made to help students with the recruitment process.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Bosco Dental Studio, 25, Unit 3, Thorny Crook Gardens, EH22 2RF, Dalkeith, UK

    Kirsty Dickson

  2. Family Dental Care, Lothian, UK

    Sophie Lane

Authors
  1. Kirsty Dickson
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  2. Sophie Lane
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Correspondence to Kirsty Dickson.

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Dickson, K., Lane, S. The student perspective on the DVT and DFT recruitment systems: a survey. BDJ Student 28, 28–33 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41406-021-0196-4

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