Professionalism in undergraduate dental education: a pause for thoughtThis should support appropriate solutions to the challenges associated with delivering graduates with 'proven' professional attributes. AbstractProfessionalism in dental education, as well as in the wider dental profession, is a regularly discussed and debated topic. It may seem obvious what is meant by 'professionalism' and in many situations it is clear what constitutes a professional approach or behaviour, but contention exists in how to articulate, measure and consider aspects of this complex and context dependent phenomenon. Getting 'it' right early on, with our students and new graduates, is a strategic priority, contributing to 'upstream' activities which have an intention of preventing future issues or harm. The aim of this article is to summarise the challenges faced by providers of undergraduate education (and the dental regulator) in the UK in defining and determining attainment of 'professionalism' before registration. It is timely to take an opportunity for pause, re-assess frameworks and consider future direction.

A demonstrable impact in mapping connections was observed when the detail within the learning outcomes was changed. This has implications for programme leaders in structuring LOs for a curriculum.

Explicitly-stated learning outcomes are an expected, integral part of contemporary under- and postgraduate learning programmes in dentistry. Writing learning outcomes, however, can be challenging and undertaken with a risk of not understanding what is meant by them and what well-constructed outcomes are meant to do. Written badly, learning outcomes will not help capture the goals of educational interventions or, perhaps worse, they end up as nothing more than a complex, frustrating hoop-jumping exercise in both their conception and utilisation. Underlying misconceptions of the purpose of learning outcomes or how to develop them are likely contributors to this situation. We would argue that if one understands the background, construct and intended purpose of learning outcomes we are more likely to write them so that they can actually be applied and therefore used effectively.

In well-designed and currently effective curricula, we would like to recommend that virtual course development can enhance programme transparency, demonstrate external regulatory requirements and promote quality assurance without disruption to current content.

The different purposes of education and training are exemplified by the competing priorities between different stakeholders.Acknowledging different agendas of those involved is the first stage in progressing towards a shared understanding of what the new graduate should 'be'.