The University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, in affiliation with The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, offers a two-year residency-training program in Pediatric Dentistry. The goal of the program is to prepare Pediatric Dentists who are proficient in providing primary and comprehensive preventive and therapeutic care for infants and children through adolescence, including those with special needs.
Four students are accepted per year (candidates must be citizens of the United States or Canada). Students will receive extensive clinical and didactic training in Pediatric Dentistry including, but not limited to, comprehensive care of both healthy and special needs children and adolescents, restorative dentistry, pulp therapy, periodontal therapy, oral surgery, pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic behavior management techniques, space maintenance, orthodontic therapy, growth and development, treatment of patients under conscious sedation, treatment of patients in the operating room under general anesthesia, and management of traumatic injuries and emergency care.
Hospital rotations will include General Pediatrics, Anesthesiology, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Craniofacial/Cleft Palate Clinic, Sedation, Oncology, Spina Bifida Clinic, General and Craniofacial Surgery, and Emergency Department. Hospital rotations will help students gain a deeper understanding of medical conditions and learn to work closely with medical colleagues and other members of the healthcare team. Students will have time designated for research and involvement in community activities. They will also teach at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine Pediatric Dentistry Clinic. Continuing education opportunities are encouraged. The program encourages development of critical thinking and inquiry in order to be able to participate in practice, education, and research in institutional, private, and public health settings; and to prepare students to grow into leadership roles in Pediatric Dentistry. The highly respected research environment at Penn Dental Medicine and throughout the University of Pennsylvania provides a valuable opportunity for students applying to post-doctoral programs to combine their specialty training with advanced research and academic opportunities.
Additional Program Options
Penn Dental Medicine also offers a Master of Science in Oral Biology (MSOB) and a Doctor of Science in Dentistry (DScD) that can be earned concurrent with a specialty certificate, preparing students to successfully enter the field of academic dentistry while also becoming skilled clinicians in specialty care. Through the MSOB and DScD programs, students are encouraged to pursue their individual research interests with projects that can span the diverse disciplines and research labs within Penn Dental Medicine's basic and clinical sciences and across the University.