U.S. Dental School Applicants and Enrollees, 2017 Entering Class.

The American Dental Education Association (ADEA) collects information on U.S. dental school applicants and first-time, first-year enrollees as part of the administration of dental school applications. This report presents an analysis of the data on the characteristics and academic qualifications of the 11,873 applicants who applied to U.S. dental schools during the 2016-17 application cycle and of the 6,122 first-time, first-year enrollees who began dental school in fall 2017. Among the key findings are the following: the number of applications decreased in 2016-17, while enrollment continued its steady 12-year rise; the number of women applicants exceeded the number of men by a larger margin than the previous two years, reversing the long-term trend of having more men apply to dental school (although men continued to have slightly higher levels of enrollment); when race/ethnicity was viewed alone or in combination, the number of applicants and first-time enrollees from most race/ethnic groups increased, although falling slightly were Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander and White applicants and enrollees; regionally, the Mid-Atlantic had the highest share of its population applying to dental school and the Northwest had the highest share to enroll in dental school; and applicants overwhelmingly had a biological or biomedical science educational background. The data and analysis presented in this report offer a unique picture of dental school applicants and enrollees. It provides school administrators with a national view of the qualifications of applicants, and it provides prospective applicants with a better understanding of the qualifications they likely need to enroll. The analysis also gives policymakers a preliminary view of future trends in the dental workforce.

Annual ADEA Survey of Dental School Seniors: 2016 Graduating Class.

This report examines the results of the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) Survey of Dental School Seniors graduating in 2016. Data were collected from 4,558 respondents at all 59 U.S. dental schools with graduating classes that year. This annual survey asks graduating students about a variety of topics in order to understand their motivation for attending dental school, educational experiences while in school, debt incurred, and plans following graduation. Motivations for choosing to attend dental school typically involved family or friends who were dentists or students' personal experiences. The timing of the decision to enter dentistry has been getting earlier over time. Similar to previous years, the average graduating student had above $200,000 in student debt. However, for the first time in two decades, inflation-adjusted debt decreased slightly. The reduction in debt was due to students from private schools reducing their average debt by $23,401. Immediately after graduation, most seniors planned to enter private practice (50.5%) or advanced dental education (33.8%). Approximately half of the respondents planned to work in underserved areas at some point in their careers. These findings underscore the continued value of the senior survey to offer a unique view of the diverse characteristics and career paths of the future dental workforce.

20 Years Beyond the Crossroads: The Path to Interprofessional Education at U.S. Dental Schools.

In 2003, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) called for interprofessional education (IPE) to be adopted by the health professions education community as the pedagogical approach to educating future practitioners for practice in multidisciplinary teams. In dentistry, this call built on points made in the key 1995 IOM report Dental Education at the Crossroads. Currently, IPE and collaborative practice are among the most significant changes to health care education and delivery in the 21st century. This report describes the path that dental education has taken regarding IPE since the first national report on the subject was released in 1995. It also reports the results of a 2014 survey of U.S. dental schools to ascertain their progress in adopting and implementing IPE, as well as perceived obstacles that persist. Of the 63 dental schools, 62 participated, for a response rate of 98%. While over 90% of the respondents reported that their schools offer IPE experiences, only 58.1% had formal university-led and -promoted IPE programs. Formal IPE experiences were more prevalent at public institutions (67.6%, compared with 44% of private institutions). In 2012, a previous study reported that 66% of the IPE experiences offered to dental students were voluntary; today, 69.1% of these activities are required. Interprofessional core competencies occupy four of the top five content areas of IPE programming, providing a framework for schools to implement IPE activities. However, finding the bandwidth within the dental curriculum to accommodate IPE competencies, identifying adequate time in the schedule, providing faculty training, and assessing IPE activities were the most frequently reported challenges. The results of this survey lead to recommendations for academic dental institutions moving through this transitional phase in adopting IPE.

U.S. Dental School Applicants and Enrollees, 2014 Entering Class.

This report analyzes data collected annually by the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) on the characteristics of applicants to and first-year enrollees in dental schools. Among the key findings this year are that, since 2010, there has been a gradual decline in the number of individuals taking the Dental Admission Test (DAT), while the number applying to dental schools has remained relatively flat. During the same five-year time period, the number of first-year dental students has continuously increased. The result is an increasing rate of enrollment among applicants. While the overwhelming majority of dental schools utilize some aspect of a holistic admissions process, the DAT scores and grade point averages of applicants and enrollees continue to rise. Unlike a decade ago, women now account for nearly half of all applicants and enrollees. At least part of the gain has come from a decline in the number of men applicants, rather than a change in the enrollment rate. Among underrepresented minorities, there remains a relatively low number of applicants and a lower than average enrollment rate. Overall, by analyzing data about individuals applying to and matriculating in dental schools, this report provides a window into the future dental workforce.

Dental School Vacant Budgeted Faculty Positions, Academic Years 2011-12 Through 2013-14.

The American Dental Education Association (ADEA) Survey of Dental School Faculty is conducted annually to provide an overview of the hiring and retention activity of U.S. dental school faculty. The survey collects data on the dental faculty workforce, including vacant budgeted positions by appointment and discipline, number of new and lost positions, sources of new hires, and reasons for faculty separations. This report highlights the results of three years of survey data, from the 2011-12 academic year through the 2013-14 academic year. After declining in previous years, the number of vacant faculty positions in U.S. dental schools has begun to increase, rising to 242 full-time and 55 part-time positions in 2013-14. Additionally, the number of schools having more than ten vacancies increased from five to 12. Although the number of vacancies has increased, the length of faculty searches that took more than one year declined from 25% to 16% in the same period. Retirements as a share of full-time faculty separations increased from 14% in 2008-09 to 31% in 2013-14. The current average retirement age of dental school faculty members is 69.7 years. The percentage of full-time faculty members leaving for the private sector remained constant over the last three years at approximately 16%. Full-time faculty members were more likely to be recruited from other dental schools, while part-time faculty members were more likely to come from the private sector.

U.S. Dental School Deans' Perceptions of the Rising Cost of Dental Education and Borrowing Pressures on Dental Students: Report of Survey Results.

This report presents findings from a survey of U.S. dental school deans designed to capture their perceptions regarding the rising cost of dental education and its impact on borrowing by dental students to finance their education. The survey included questions about factors influencing the cost of dental education, concerns about dental student borrowing, and financial awareness resources for students. The survey was distributed to the deans of all 63 U.S. dental schools in January 2013; 42 deans responded, for a 67% response rate. The results indicate that, according to the responding deans, new clinical technologies, technology costs, and central university taxes are the main factors that contribute to the increasing cost of dental education. Coupled with reduced state appropriations at public dental schools and declines in private giving at all dental schools, dental school deans face a perplexing set of financial management challenges. Tuition and fees are a primary source of revenue for all dental schools; however, many deans do not have total control over the cost of attending their schools since tuition and fees are often tied to mandates and policies from the parent university and the state legislature. The findings of this study indicate that U.S. dental school deans are aware of and concerned about the impact of increases in tuition and fees on dental student debt and that they are using a variety of strategies to address the growth in dental student borrowing.