Dental Therapy and Dental Hygiene, BSc (Hons)

Course summary

Our aim is to educate professional Dental Hygienists and Dental Hygiene/Therapists eligible for unsupervised clinical practice (under the prescription of a Dentist) integrated within dental teams. The course has been re-validated by the General Dental Council as recently as 2015.As a member of a team directed by a dentist, you will be equipped with all the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed to prepare you for the working environment of dental hygiene and therapy. On graduation, you will be registered with the General Dental Council.The School of Dentistry is located in the University Dental Hospital on Cardiff University’s Heath Park campus, a 53-acre site shared with the University Hospital of Wales. This is where the majority of clinical teaching takes place on our undergraduate programmes. With around 100 undergraduate students per year, we are still a relatively small dental school. We believe that this facilitates a friendly and supportive sense of community that helps ensure that our students succeed. As evidence of such the NSS 2015 found that 97% of our students agreed that staff were good at explaining things.Studying at the only dental hospital in Wales you will have the opportunity to serve and manage patients of diverse ages and backgrounds with a wide range of dental disease.Dental hygienists and therapists work closely with other members of the dental team. A dental hygienist can carry out treatments such as scaling and polishing, oral health promotion and preventative fissure sealants for both adults and children.In addition to the duties described for dental hygienists, therapists are able to carry out a variety of restorative treatments (fillings) on patients. They may also extract deciduous (baby) teeth, undertake pulpotomies (nerve treatments) and place preformed crowns on badly decayed children’s teeth.Clinical skills are developed in the School’s recently refurbished £2.2M clinical skills laboratory, a facility that closely simulates the real clinical experience, allowing you to prepare and practice for patient care. You will have the opportunity to train alongside dental therapists, dental hygienists and dentists learning the same skills. This will support your understanding of how your role fits the dental team environment in preparation for when you qualify.The dedicated dental library houses an extensive collection of books and journals to aid your learning. You will also have access to an undergraduate IT suite and to a new £1.5M redevelopment of lecture theatres and student social spaces on the Heath Park campus.You will be taught by a dedicated team of academic clinical staff and consultants within the dental hospital as well as clinical staff working in the primary care environment. The quality of the teaching you will receive has recently been ranked the best in the UK for dentistry (Guardian’s University Guide 2016). The School's courses were given a maximum 100 out of 100 score.Our students have one the best employability records amongst the UK dental schools. In 2015, 99% of our undergraduate students secured a UK position 6-months post qualification. Key destinations include primary dental practice, hospital dental practice, academic or research posts.Distinctive features

• Cardiff University School of Dentistry was ranked 1st in the Guardian University Guide 2016 and the Times Good University Guide 2016, making it the best place to study as a dental care professional in the UK.

• The BSc course is delivered in the only dental school in Wales.

• We offer integrated theoretical and practical components of learning, teaching and assessment.

• Students benefit from early clinical exposure in year one.