Bachelor of Dental Surgery

Overview

Description:
 The Bachelor of Dental Surgery at James Cook University is a five year undergraduate degree that provides students with the knowledge, skills and attitudes they need to become competent practitioners of dentistry. It is a broad-based program which includes all aspects of dental practice but also has a special focus on issues of special concern to the northern Australian region, particularly those relating to tropical, rural and Indigenous practice.

Students will have early exposure to clinical practice, with an increasing proportion of the course dedicated to clinical skills in the later years. The curriculum integrates the basic sciences with dental clinical sciences and preventative oral health strategies. Students will study the first three to four years on the Cairns Campus, and will spend the final year developing their clinical skills on placements in public and private dental clinics across northern Queensland, including Mackay, Proserpine, Atherton and Thursday Island.

Graduates of this course will have the knowledge and skills to provide appropriate dental health care in a variety of settings, including rural, remote and Indigenous communities.
 
Duration:
 5 years full-time
 
Mode:
 On campus (Internal), full-time
 
Workload:
 Normal workload expectations are a minimum of 10 hours per week for every subject, including class contact hours, preparation and time spent on assessment tasks.
 
Type:
 Undergraduate
 
Credit points:
 120 credit points o
 
Intake:
 February
 
Campus:
 Cairns
 
Faculty:
 Faculty of Medicine, Health and Molecular Sciences
 
School:
 School of Medicine and Dentistry
 
Special Entry Requirements
 APPLICATIONS FOR 2009 ENTRY HAVE NOW CLOSED
 
Prerequisite/s:
 English, Maths B and Chemistry
 
QTAC code:
 327091 Cairns
 
Course code:
 73010
 

o Credit points: Represent the combined value of individual subjects in a degree. One subject usually constitutes three credit points.
 

Career Opportunities

There is a severe shortage of dentists in Australia, particularly in rural, remote and Indigenous communities. Queensland in particular, with its highly decentralised population faces some unique challenges in providing a health workforce for all its communities, and the demand for dental services is high. Dentists work in private practice, in state operated dental health services, and in teaching and research. The demand for dentists will increase in coming years as the range of services provided by dentists continues to expand and the population ages.

Professional Accreditation

JCU's Bachelor of Dental Surgery will prepare graduates as generalist dentists in accordance with the dental profession's scope of practice. The Faculty of Medicine, Health and Molecular Sciences has applied for accreditation by the Australian Dental Council.

Graduates will be eligible for professional registration with all dental boards in Australia and New Zealand, enabling them to enter dental practice.

Back to James Cook University

To enrol and find out course fees, intake dates, entry requirements and more details about courses and the Institute please click on the Enquiry button and complete our form and one of our staff member will get back to you very soon.