Pediatric Dentistry Certificate
Admissions Requirements
Students are admitted to the certificate programs through registration as postdoctoral certificate students in the School of Dentistry. To be eligible for admission, individuals must have earned a D.D.S. or D.M.D. degree or non-U.S. equivalent prior to matriculation and must present their dental education transcripts, three letters of recommendation and three personal potential index evaluations. A personal interview is required.
All applications should be submitted through the PASS program. The application cycle begins May 21 and continues through September 16.
Graduates of dental schools which have not been accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation must have successfully passed the National Boards prior to application.
Applicants for whom English is not the native language are required to submit scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).
The Pediatric Dentistry Certificate students studying in Laredo receive 100% of their instruction off-site in Laredo.
Degree Requirements
A Certificate will be awarded upon the student’s successful completion of the prescribed curriculum with a 3.0 minimum grade point average, recommendation of the program director to the Assistant Dean for Students and certification by the dean to the president.
The M.S. in Dental Science degree will be awarded to students who successfully complete the certificate and the required courses in the Graduate School.
Plan of Study
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credit Hours | |
| PEDO 5020 | Pediatric and Orthodontic Clinic 1 | 2 |
| PEDO 5026 | Orthodontics I | 2 |
| PEDO 5043 | Pediatric Dentistry 2 | 6 |
| PEDO 5021 | Pediatric & Orthodontic Clinic 2 | 5 |
| PEDO 5027 | Orthodontics 2 | 2 |
| PEDO 5042 | Pediatric Dentistry I | 2 |
| Spring | ||
| PEDO 5044 | Pediatric Dentistry 3 | 6 |
| PEDO 5022 | Pediatric and Orthodontic Clinic 3 | 6 |
| PEDO 5028 | Orthodontics 3 | 1.5 |
| PEDO 5051 | Pediatric Physical Diagnosis | 1.5 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 34.0 | |
| Second Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credit Hours | |
| PEDO 6023 | Pediatric And Orthodontic Clinic 4 | 7 |
| PEDO 6045 | Pediatric Dentistry 4 | 6 |
| PEDO 6024 | Pediatric and Orthodontic Clinic 5 | 4.5 |
| PEDO 6029 | Orthodontics 4 | 2 |
| PEDO 6083 | Investigative Project | 1 |
| Spring | ||
| PEDO 6025 | Pediatric and Orthodontic Clinic 5 | 7 |
| PEDO 6030 | Orthodontics 5 | 2 |
| PEDO 6084 | Investigative Project | 1 |
| PEDO 6146 | Pediatric Dentistry 5 | 5 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 35.5 | |
Objectives/Program Outcomes
The Certificate in Pediatric Dentistry program at the Health Science Center is designed to prepare students to have the knowledge and clinical skills to provide comprehensive pediatric preventive and restorative oral health care to infants, children and adolescents, including those with special health care needs.
At the completion of the program the student will:
- Demonstrate excellence as a clinical pediatric dentist.
- Demonstrate excellence in evidence-based clinical practice.
- Demonstrate a thorough knowledge base of medical and dental diseases and their management according to accepted standards of care in the pediatric dental setting.
- Complete a research project that includes protocol development, data accumulation and analysis, preparation of a scientific paper and presentation of findings in a scientific forum.
PEDO 5020. Pediatric and Orthodontic Clinic 1. 2 Credit Hours.
The postdoctoral program in pediatric dentistry is designed to provide each resident with clinical experience that will enable her or him to function as a proficient and competent provider of comprehensive dental services for children. Throughout the two-year program, residents will be expected to apply the information gained in the didactic part of the program to the delivery of dental care in the various clinical settings encompassed by the program. Although supervision by faculty is always provided, residents are expected to demonstrate increasing independence and initiative as they progress in clinical experience.
PEDO 5021. Pediatric & Orthodontic Clinic 2. 5 Credit Hours.
The postdoctoral program in pediatric dentistry is designed to provide each resident with clinical experience that will enable her or him to function as a proficient and competent provider of comprehensive dental services for children. Throughout the two-year program, residents will be expected to apply the information gained in the didactic part of the program to the delivery of dental care in the various clinical settings encompassed by the program. Although supervision by faculty is always provided, residents are expected to demonstrate increasing independence and initiative as they progress in clinical experience.
PEDO 5022. Pediatric and Orthodontic Clinic 3. 6 Credit Hours.
The postdoctoral program in pediatric dentistry is designed to provide each resident with clinical experience that will enable her or him to function as a proficient and competent provider of comprehensive dental services for children. Throughout the two-year program, residents will be expected to apply the information gained in the didactic part of the program to the delivery of dental care in the various clinical settings encompassed by the program. Although supervision by faculty is always provided, residents are expected to demonstrate increasing independence and initiative as they progress in clinical experience.
PEDO 5026. Orthodontics I. 2 Credit Hours.
This course comprises two seminar series in which orthodontic diagnosis and treatment principles for the primary and mixed dentitions are presented. Included also are laboratory technique exercises in which commonly used orthodontic appliances are constructed.
PEDO 5027. Orthodontics 2. 2 Credit Hours.
These seminars consist of a series of selected orthodontic topics that will be assigned to individual residents for presentation to their classmates and faculty. The course director will provide a seminal article on the assigned topic from which the resident will research additional references and present a seminar session based on the material.
PEDO 5028. Orthodontics 3. 1.5 Credit Hour.
These seminars consist of a series of selected orthodontic topics that will be assigned to individual residents for presentation to their classmates and faculty. The course director will provide a seminal article on the assigned topic from which the resident will research additional references and present a seminar session based on the material.
PEDO 5042. Pediatric Dentistry I. 2 Credit Hours.
This course comprises several seminar series and lectures on a variety of subjects pertinent to advanced pediatric dentistry. Included are conscious sedation, pulp therapy, traumatic dental injuries, cariology and prevention, periodontal problems, special patient care, infection control, restorative materials and techniques, radiographic principles and practice, and pediatric grand rounds.
PEDO 5043. Pediatric Dentistry 2. 6 Credit Hours.
This course is largely a continuation of lectures and seminars on the subject matter introduced in PEDO 5042 Pediatric Dentistry 1, but also adds case conferences and current literature seminars.
PEDO 5044. Pediatric Dentistry 3. 6 Credit Hours.
In part, this is a continuation of some lecture and seminar topics from PEDO 5043 Pediatric Dentistry 2. In addition, the following subject matter will be presented: behavior management, psychosocial growth and development, pediatric oral pathology, advanced nutrition, craniofacial growth and development, antibiotics, and analgesics and sedatives.
PEDO 5051. Pediatric Physical Diagnosis. 1.5 Credit Hour.
The pediatric dental resident will be given the opportunity to learn physical evaluation of a child's various systems to determine the patient's status prior to administration of general anesthesia.
PEDO 6023. Pediatric And Orthodontic Clinic 4. 7 Credit Hours.
The postdoctoral program in pediatric dentistry is designed to provide each resident with clinical experience that will enable him or her to function as a proficient and competent provider of comprehensive dental services for children. Throughout the two-year program, residents will be expected to apply the information gained in the didactic part of the program to the delivery of dental care in the various clinical settings encompassed by the program. Although supervision by faculty is always provided, residents are expected to demonstrate increasing independence and initiative as they progress in clinical experience.
PEDO 6024. Pediatric and Orthodontic Clinic 5. 4.5 Credit Hours.
The postdoctoral program in pediatric dentistry is designed to provide each resident with clinical experience that will enable him or her to function as a proficient and competent provider of comprehensive dental services for children. Throughout the two-year program, residents will be expected to apply the information gained in the didactic part of the program to the delivery of dental care in the various clinical settings encompassed by the program. Although supervision by faculty is always provided, residents are expected to demonstrate increasing independence and initiative as they progress in clinical experience.
PEDO 6025. Pediatric and Orthodontic Clinic 5. 7 Credit Hours.
The postdoctoral program in pediatric dentistry is designed to provide each resident with clinical experience that will enable him or her to function as a proficient and competent provider of comprehensive dental services for children. Throughout the two-year program, residents will be expected to apply the information gained in the didactic part of the program to the delivery of dental care in the various clinical settings encompassed by the program. Although supervision by faculty is always provided, residents are expected to demonstrate increasing independence and initiative as they progress in clinical experience.
PEDO 6029. Orthodontics 4. 2 Credit Hours.
These seminars consist of a series of selected orthodontic topics that will be assigned to individual residents for presentation to their classmates and faculty. The course director will provide a seminal article on the assigned topic from which the resident will research additional references and present a seminar session based on the material.
PEDO 6030. Orthodontics 5. 2 Credit Hours.
These seminars consist of a series of selected orthodontic topics that will be assigned to individual residents for presentation to their classmates and faculty. The course director will provide a seminal article on the assigned topic from which the resident will research additional references and present a seminar session based on the material.
PEDO 6045. Pediatric Dentistry 4. 6 Credit Hours.
A continuation of the case conferences, current literature seminars, and pediatric grand rounds, this course also introduces practice management and topics in clinical genetics.
PEDO 6083. Investigative Project. 1 Credit Hour.
Each resident is required to carry out an investigative project that may be laboratory-, clinic-, or library-based, depending on the interests of the student. Projects must be submitted in the form of a manuscript or publishable quality.
PEDO 6084. Investigative Project. 1 Credit Hour.
Each resident is required to carry out an investigative project that may be laboratory-, clinic-, or library-based, depending on the interests of the student. Projects must be submitted in the form of a manuscript or publishable quality.
PEDO 6146. Pediatric Dentistry 5. 5 Credit Hours.
This course continues the case conferences, current literature seminars, and pediatric grand rounds of PEDO 6045 Pediatric Dentistry 4, adding craniofacial anomalies seminars.