Program Overview

Doctor of Science in Dentistry, DScD

The Doctor of Science in Dentistry (DScD) program at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Dental Medicine provides a valuable opportunity for students to combine their specialty training with advanced research and academic opportunities. The program prepares students for careers as clinical or basic science researchers in academic dentistry.

Program Overview

• The DScD program combines the research and clinical strengths of the School, drawing faculty mentors from throughout the clinical and basic science departments.
• Students have the option to work with researchers from the School of Dental Medicine, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, and School of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania.
• Both rigorous clinical and research experiences are central to the DScD program, with students devoting 40% to 80% of their time in each year to research and clinical training.

Eligibility and Admission

• The DScD program is open to students with a DMD/DDS degree or equivalent who are pursuing advanced training in the School's Periodontics, Endodontics, Orthodontics, Periodontics/Prosthesis, or Oral Medicine postgraduate programs.
• Candidates concurrently complete their clinical specialty training and DScD degree, engaging in an intensive research program that culminates in a thesis and oral defense.
• The program is also open to individuals who have completed their clinical specialty training but are interested in obtaining a DScD degree; these students complete all of the didactic courses and research requirements but do not directly participate in clinical care.

Curriculum

DScD with Postgraduate Certificate Program

• The program is tailored to meet CODA requirements for each clinical specialty, with varying program lengths:
  • Endodontics, Orthodontics, Oral Medicine, and Pediatric Dentistry: 5 years
  • Periodontics: 5.5 years
  • Periodontic/Prosthesis: 6 years
• Clinical, didactic, and research aspects of the program are integrated, with a greater focus on clinical training in the early years and research training in the later years.
• All courses taken as part of clinical training are credited toward the DScD degree.
• Three didactic courses from Penn's Biomedical Graduate Studies program related to the research topic are required, typically taken in years two through four.
• Each student will write a K08 or K23 grant award, which becomes the basis of a qualifying exam for the program.

DScD without Postgraduate Certificate Program

• This program is 4 years in length and is open to students who have completed clinical specialty training at an accredited institution.
• Students in this program are associated with a clinical specialty and will take all didactic courses in the specialty as well as a dissertation project, but will not receive clinical training.
• The didactic, research, and dissertation components for this program are the same as those for the combined DScD/Certificate program.

General Requirements

• All DScD students must complete the Core Graduate Dental Education courses, as well as three didactic courses from Biomedical Graduate Studies and a dissertation.
• Additional requirements depend on the track and clinical specialty.

Core Graduate Dental Education Courses

• The following courses are required:
  • DADE 9330: Ethics, Professionalism and Jurisprudence (1-3 units)
  • DADE 9340: Evidence-based clinical practice (1.75-3 units)
  • DADE 9350: Oral and systemic diseases (3.75-5 units)
  • DADE 9360: Oral infection and immunity (4-6 units)
  • DADE 9370: Conservative and regenerative clinical practice (2-5 units)
  • DADE 9380: Vulnerable populations across the lifespan (1.5-3.5 units)

Degree Requirements

• The degree requires a minimum of 80 Credit Hours.