International dentist program: Due changes in admission criteria!
A few U.S. dental schools offer International Dentist Programs (IDP) that is separate from their other dental education programs. According to International Dental Program, only National Board of Dental Examination (NBDE) score is considered for admission to dental program. The American Dental Association (ADA) ruling does not change for specialists (applicants who already have had Masters in Dentistry from India or any other country). The licensing rules remain the same for specialists, as mentioned for the BDS graduates. This discourages qualified specialists from taking the exams and teaching and practicing dentistry in US. To improve the above situation dental schools need to have a more holistic approach to the admissions process. Keywords: Admission criteria, international dentist program, specialist, foreign trained dentist