Current differences in dental education between Chinese and Western models

Abstract

Dental education is the foundation of a country's development of dental science. Economic conditions and cultural backgrounds vary across countries; hence, there are some differences in dental education between Chinese and Western models, including the education programmes, licensures, curricula, teaching methods, facilities. These differences may become obstacles for mutual communication and the development of dental education. In the last 5 years, China has introduced several policies and published some standards, such as the residency programmes and Accreditation Standards for Undergraduate Dental Education Programs. These actions aim to improve the current situation of dental education and reduce the gap between Chinese and Western education models. Indeed, some changes have been made. This article provides a brief introduction of the existing differences and changes and can, thus, serve as a reference for educators.

A strife of interests: A qualitative study on the challenges facing oral health workforce policy and planning

“…While we recognise that this situation varies by country, [56][57][58] the availability of government financial support and private college tuition fees does play a major role. For example in the United States, the number of students receiving financial assistance in the form of loans is as high as around 90% [58].…”

Eleven‐year experience implementing a dental undergraduate research programme in a prestigious dental school in China: Lessons learned and future prospects

“…To improve individual skills and knowledge and to overcome barriers towards conducting a research project, a supportive research environment is required 16,20,53‐56 . To create camaraderie amongst the dental school, faculty and undergraduates, there are several plans that have been clearly set up by our dental school, including to perform curricular reform for research training, set up career development plans for both faculty and students, establish research groups based on different research topics, initiate faculty training programmes and introduce dental students peer mentoring 15,43,57,58 . These plans have been well summarised in Figure 7 as our suggestions for dental schools that have interest in launching a similar research programme for their students.…”

“…Dental undergraduate research programmes, however, still have challenges that prevent its wide implementation. These critical limitations include but are not limited to: The time when an undergraduate research programme is initiated during the dental education varies from institution to institution, not to mention the length of dental education and the degree type provided also varies from country to country 2,12,14‐17 Ill‐defined relationships between the dental school, its dental faculty and dental students in the implementation of a dental undergraduate research programme 14,16‐20 …”

The perceptions of anatomy teachers for different majors during the COVID-19 pandemic: a national Chinese survey

“…Some new majors have also been established at medical schools, such as forensic medicine, medical laboratories, medical imaging and pharmacies, to meet the needs of medical developments. Among these majors, the undergraduate curricula of the basic sciences are quite similar across medical schools in mainland China, and curriculum differences among them mainly exist in clinical curriculum arrangements [18,19]. Anatomy is an essential course for all students in the aforementioned different majors.…”