Fall Dental Selective Options

In this elective course, the student with guidance of the mentor will complete individually designed research following the approved protocol. The student must continue to be in good academic standing to apply for and to complete this elective course. Enrollment in this elective can be extended from semester to semester when the mentor reports satisfactory progress.  

Student must present at the following meetings to fulfill the requirements of the elective:
1. Dental Science Symposium
2. AADR/IADR/CADR (NOTE: If you attend AADR/IADR/CADR, you will need to pay for your student membership, which is not reimbursed by the institution)
3. Any other Research meetings

Withdrawal from this elective course will result in entry on the transcript as WP or WF as determined by the mentor. Credit for the course is contingent on verification by the mentor that the research has been completed satisfactorily up to abstract submission and acceptance of presentation at a scientific meeting.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS3
Number of spots: 20
Meets clinical requirement: Yes
This selective requires permission to register: Yes, if you are interested please contact Callie Cass

In this elective course, the student with the guidance of their mentor will help prepare an abstract and Extended Abstract not to exceed six pages suitable for incorporation into a peer-reviewed publication. The student must also present their research at a national/international scientific meeting and the Annual Dental School Science Symposium. A copy of a published abstract, the Extended Abstract and paperwork showing completion of all required coursework must be submitted to the Dental School Research Committee by the end of March of their senior year for review. The student must be in good academic standing to participate in this elective course. The mentor will award a grade for the elective course. Withdrawal from the elective course will result in entry on the manuscript as WP or WF as determined by the mentor.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS4
Number of spots: 20
Meets clinical requirement: Yes
This selective requires permission to register: Yes, if you are interested please contact Callie Cass

During SELC 7094, dental students and dental hygiene students interview faculty members to assess the advantages and issues of an academic career, analyze teaching strategies, assess the learning environment in their educational program and gain hands-on experience in course planning. During the course, student teams design a new course for their academic program and present it to classmates. The course is the first of three selective courses in the Teaching Honors Program. Dental students and dental hygiene students who complete all three courses (SELC 7094, SELC 7095 and SELC 7096) are recognized with "Distinction in Dental Education". Withdrawal with notification is permitted at any time without recording on the transcript. Enrollment is limited to 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th year dental students, Dental Hygiene B.S. Completion students and Dental Hygiene Masters degree students.

Semester: Fall
Who can sign up: DS1, DS2, DS3, DS4
Number of spots: 20, 20, 20, 20
Meets clinical requirement: No
This selective requires permission to register: No

The goal of SELC 7096 is to provide dental students with an opportunity to conduct projects related to dental or dental hygiene education and complete an assessment of the project. Projects are developed in collaboration wit the THP director and faculty members. See the THP director before initiating a project.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS2, DS3, DS4
Number of spots: 10, 30, 30
Meets clinical requirement: No
This selective requires permission to register: No

This is an innovative interprofessional community service learning (CSL) course for UTHSA medical, dental, nursing, school of health profession, UT pharmacy and UTSA premedical students. The goal of this course is to promote social accountability among health professional students through the integration of meaningful service learning with the core competencies of interprofessional education. This course enables students from various health science professions to learn with, from, and about each other and each other’s roles on a health care team as they examine social determinants of health and social justice issues while applying these principles in a structured service learning practicum.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS3, DS4
Number of spots: 45
Meets clinical requirement:
This selective requires permission to register: No

This selective is limited to Teaching Honors Program (THP) students pursuing the Distinction in Dental Education. The course goal is provide THP students with opportunities to function as a teacher in preclinical labs or in the clinic by planning and conducting workshops for 1st and 2nd year students followed by self-assessment and feedback from the students who attended the workshop.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS3, DS4
Number of spots: 30, 40
Meets clinical requirement:
This selective requires permission to register: No

This selective is limited to THP students pursuing the Distinction in Dental Education. The course goal is to provide dental students with opportunities to function as a preclinical lab instructor in the "Dental Hand Skills Development Module" for 1st year students, and to function as a "Faculty for a Day" in the GPGs. In the later rotation, THP seniors supervise and instruct 3rd year students for a full clinic session.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS4
Number of spots: 50
Meets clinical requirement:
This selective requires permission to register: No

First year students will meet with faculty members to learn about academic careers: why did the faculty member choose to work in a dental school, what are the benefits of an academic career and what are the limitations of an academic career. Additionally, students learn about the roles and responsibilities of dental school faculty members in teaching, research , administration and service. Participating students prepare summaries of what they have learned about academic careers, submit these to the course director for review and then participated in a wrap-up seminar where teams of students share and discuss their experience and identify "take-home messages", insights and surprises about academic careers in dentistry. Dental students can take this course as a stand-alone selective without committing to the THP.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS1, DS2, DS3, DS4
Number of spots: 40, 40, 40, 20
Meets clinical requirement:
This selective requires permission to register: No

This selective is for 3rd and 4th year students pursuing the Distinction in Dental Education (School of Dentistry Teaching Honors Program; THP) who plan and conduct teaching for student peers in preclinical and clinical topics and skills. The course goals are to enhance THP students' capacity to: (1) design and implement courses and other raining events to help their student colleagues acquire technical and procedural skills.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS1, DS2, DS3, DS4
Number of spots: 20, 20, 20, 10
Meets clinical requirement: No
This selective requires permission to register: No

The Dental Gross Anatomy Teaching Elective allows qualified dental students to serve as teaching assistants for the CSBL 5016 Dental Gross Anatomy course which is offered during the fall semester. This elective is designed to: 1) provide an environment and an experience for dental students to develop, strengthen and practice effective teaching skills in human gross anatomy to near-peer students in CSBL 5016; 2) provide an experience for dental students to improve and augment anatomical knowledge and understanding through study of the dissected human body and their applications to dentistry; 3) provide an opportunity to develop and strengthen skills in communication, interpersonal relations, conflict management and teamwork.

Semester: Fall
Who can sign up: DS2
Number of spots: 20
Meets clinical requirement:
This selective requires permission to register: No

This level of local and global oral health immersion develops, coordinates, educational, and service engagement in population health and community setting/s. These immersions provide dental students with experiential learning outside the formal curricula and experiential learning led by UTHSA faculty, staff, and community organizers. Dental students will learn about the culture of healthcare and cultural humility approaches to evidence-based care as primary oral healthcare. The immersions aim to broaden students' worldviews as they embark on their professional growth, understand the burdens of oral health in community settings, and connect the gaps between the theory and practice of preventive outreach. While serving and fostering self-reflection, students will experience opportunities designed to challenge and inspire them to explore new perspectives on patient care. All dental care rendered is provided under the direct supervision of Dental School faculty, including adjunct faculty from the private sector. The settings for these immersions are carefully selected to offer a diverse and enriching experience. They range from local San Antonio health clinics to the border areas of South Texas and the Dominican Republic Mission trip. This variety ensures that each participant will have a unique and valuable experience. Students can participate in these events by registering with the Christian Medical and Dental Association( CMDA) on a 'first come, first served’ sign-up basis as well as registration for this Selective and determine the number of participants based on the need to ensure a smooth and efficient process for all involved.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS1, DS2, DS3, DS4
Number of spots: 10, 10, 20, 40
Meets clinical requirement: No
This selective requires permission to register: No

This course is designed for the student who is seriously considering specializing in Orthodontics upon graduation from Dental School. This course’s objective is to expose the selectee to all facets of clinical Orthodontics. Selectees will be expected to assist in a variety of Orthodontic procedures on patients under the supervision of clinical faculty and residents on a regular basis. The specific clinic rotation sessions will be determined by the Orthodontic residency program. Priority is given to DS3 students. Students must complete a minimum of 36 clinical hours per semester for credit.

Interested students applying for this Orthodontic selective will need to submit a one-page Letter of Intent. The Letter of Intent should include: Which selective they are interested in. Why they are interested in the selective. What they expect to learn.  

Interested students on the day they request permission to register for this Orthodontic selective should send their Letter of Intent to Ms. Mabel Hernandez (hernandezmr@uthscsa.edu). In some cases, obtaining permission may include a face-to-face meeting.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS3, DS4
Number of spots: 2, 2
Meets clinical requirement:
This selective requires permission to register: Yes, if you are interested please contact Mabel Hernandez

Selectees will have the opportunity to review, present, and discuss current and classic articles in the clinical and research areas of Orthodontics. This course’s objective is to broaden the Orthodontic educational experience for those students interested in an Orthodontic graduate program. Only one absence will be permitted to get transcript recording for the course.

Interested students applying for this Orthodontic selective will need to submit a one-page Letter of Intent. The Letter of Intent should include: Which selective they are interested in. Why they are interested in the selective. What they expect to learn.  

Interested students on the day they request permission to register for this Orthodontic selective should send their Letter of Intent to Ms. Mabel Hernandez (hernandezmr@uthscsa.edu). In some cases, obtaining permission may include a face-to-face meeting.

Semester: Spring
Who can sign up: DS3, DS4
Number of spots: 5, 5
Meets clinical requirement:
This selective requires permission to register: Yes, if you are interested please contact Mabel Hernandez

This selective is for students pursuing the Distinction in Dental Education who desire to acquire skills in educational research beyond the core expectations of the THP. The course goal is to enhance the capacity of participants to design research studies that explore educational issues, to obtain funding to support research and to disseminate findings via publication. RIDE has 3 components: designing educational research, grant writing, and writing for publication. Students work in teams to plan and implement an educational research project. During seminars on grant writing, teams develop and present a grant application project and receive a critique. During seminars writing for publication, participants complete writing exercises, critique a manuscript and write an abstract, which is presented to the class for peer feedback.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS4
Number of spots: 4
Meets clinical requirement: No
This selective requires permission to register: No

The ADCFP is a 12 month fellowship to prepare students to enter academic dentistry. Students complete ADCFP in collaboration with a faculty mentor. ADCFP students and mentors complete workshops on teaching strategies, curriculum innovation and education issues. Students do supervised classroom, lab and clinical teaching and interview faculty with different job foci to learn roles, functions and career development issues. Students conduct an educational research project and meet regularly with their faculty mentors to discuss their progress, culminating in poster presentations at educational conferences at UTHSCSA, UT System and national dental education meetings.

Semester: Fall and Spring
Who can sign up: DS4
Number of spots: 4
Meets clinical requirement:
This selective requires permission to register: No