All Glasgow Uni dental students to have an additional year of study due to the pandemic

Due to the pandemic, it has been confirmed that all dental students at the University of Glasgow will have an additional year of study added.

Covid has impacted some of the face-to-face and clinical components of the degree and therefore students have not received the necessary clinical experience required to enable finishing their degree.

All dental students were emailed this morning explaining why an additional year was required, along with information on the financial mitigations that have been put into place. More information will be sent out to students in the next few days.

Students will not be charged any further tuition fees, and negotiations are currently underway regarding accommodation and subsistence costs.

Dental students at Aberdeen, Dundee and Glasgow dental schools have all deferred graduation.

The Scottish government’s Public Health Minister Mairi Gougeon said: “This difficult but necessary decision by Scotland’s Dental Schools will be extremely disappointing news for dental students across the country. This is not their fault and that is why the Scottish Government is doing all we can to support them and ensure they do not suffer financially.

“Due to the potential risk of spreading COVID from aerosol generating procedures, dental training has had to be restricted and many students have not gained the necessary clinical experience this year which has resulted in the difficult decision to defer graduation. To ensure dental students who have to repeat a year are supported, we are giving each student an extra year’s bursary to the value to of their normal student loan of up to £6,750.

“Aerosol procedures are common in dentistry placements and unusual in other student placements. Therefore we are assured that despite the wider impact on clinical placements for other controlled entry university subjects, such as medicine, nursing and midwifery, students on those courses will not be required to repeat a year and any extensions to their programmes will be covered by other arrangements.

“The quality and calibre of dental treatment in Scotland is outstanding and it needs to be protected by taking the appropriate measures in education to ensure future dental professionals have reached the General Dental Council’s standard of clinical competence and can enter the workforce with confidence.”

Featured image: Steve Houldsworth, licensed for reuse under Creative Commons Licence

Related articles recommended by this writer:

• Glasgow Uni will not be implementing a no detriment policy this year

• Strathclyde has given staff Fridays off during Lockdown

• The impact of the pandemic on Glasgow Uni Freshers so far