Sir, we read with interest the opinion piece by colleagues from Newcastle University discussing the challenges all dental schools face at the moment1 in satisfying a range of stakeholders: 'Unless there is acknowledgement of tensions and competing agendas and consideration/agreement by stakeholders on what attributes the end product (new graduate) can or should have, there will always be this mismatch of expectations and continued tensions'.1

Much as in patient care, managing expectation is key as highlighted. Similarly, transparency of process and sharing information as students transition from dental school is equally important. Ultimately, the key aim is to ensure patient safety, as students move from dental school to foundation training, and this goal is one all stakeholders would agree is in everyone's shared interests. Similarly, looking after recent graduates and ensuring they are not being set up to fail in the next stage of their professional journey is in the interests of all.

Whilst the COVID-19 pandemic brought a myriad of challenges in graduating students in 2020 and 2021, it also made dental schools think innovatively to ensure standards of assessment and minimal clinical requirements remained at pre-COVID levels, in a bid to ensure patient safety. In the far South West Peninsula with transparency in mind, the local dental dean was invited to sit in and contribute to discussions around 'sign up to finals', where individual student data sets are considered. Similarly, the local dental foundation training (DFT) programme director was invited to assess final clinical case presentations, which in our view helped ensure transparency and assurance of outcomes from the dental school.

This required some flexibility from both the deanery and university regulatory processes, but allowed the baton to be handed on to the next career phase in as transparent a manner as possible. Whilst far from the solution to the authors' points above, this cooperation and shared interest can only benefit new graduates, DFT trainers, and ultimately our patients and regulators. As highlighted by the authors, the global pandemic has not only led to great tragedy, but in some areas such as blended learning and closer cooperation between dental schools and postgraduate deaneries, there are some glimmers of hope as we move forward.