Dental Sciences M.A. Program
Degree Programs:
Full-Time: Free-Standing M.A.
The College of Dental Medicine of Columbia University offers a
graduate research training program exclusively for students in its postgraduate
clinical programs. Through this program, selected students have the opportunity
to earn the M.A. degree from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The
program is primarily intended for those clinical trainees whose career goals
include participation in academic teaching programs and institutional research
programs. Because the program involves clinical training, students become
highly trained dental specialists, capable of incorporating new biological
concepts in treatment, and act as dental investigators.
Program of Study
The research training program is combined with the clinical training program
in order to offer the maximum opportunity for interaction between clinical and
research fields. Two Residence Units, including 30 points of academic credit,
are required for the degree. The two types of training are combined and spread
over a 30- to 36-month period. Students receiving training at certain
affiliated hospitals may be eligible for admission based on the recommendation
of the director of the relevant clinical program at Columbia. All graduate course work and
research must be done at Columbia.
Students are expected to indicate a specific
area of research specialization when they apply for admission or during the
first term of attendance. Based on this selection, a small appropriate faculty
committee is named and, with the student’s participation, maps out the
student’s program. Of the 30 required graduate points, approximately one-third
consists of courses required of all students in the dental specialty programs,
one-third of thesis-related elective courses, and one-third of original
laboratory or clinical research done under the supervision of an appropriate
member of the faculty, and thesis preparation. The research segment of the
training is expected to extend over a three-term period.
Continuation and Completion
Because this program has as its purpose the
research training of clinical specialists, students must maintain satisfactory
performance in their clinical training as well as in their graduate studies.
While each program has its own set of requirements, their structure is
interrelated. Both must be completed at the same time, and in no event is the
M.A. degree given unless the clinical training is also completed.
Research Facilities
Three research laboratories shared by groups of
investigators exist in the College
of Dental Medicine. In
addition, selected members of the various basic science departments of the College of Physicians and Surgeons and of the
Biomedical Engineering department are prepared to make laboratory facilities
available and to act as sponsors of students in this program.
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