A Scoping Review of Internationalization of Dental Education—Identifying Formats and Motivations in Dental Education

Abstract

BackgroundInternationalization efforts, including global health activities, in dental education can play an important role in preparing future oral healthcare professionals. To date, in the available literature, there is no common understanding of what internationalization of dental education might mean, and there are no agreed upon standards relating to, or a common definition of the term internationalization of dental education. Here, the authors investigate what has been published in the above area from 01/01/2000 to 12/31/2020, identifying perceived motivations and formats. A proposed definition and connection to the field of international higher education is provided.MethodsA scoping review of published literature was performed and identified 47 relevant articles. The articles were thematically sorted based on educational formats and concepts (previously established in international higher education) and motivations.ResultsDespite the paucity of articles directly addressing internationalization of dental education, there was a large variety of articles on topics that were identified to correlate with international higher education, ranging from international partnerships, student mobility, and language, to international curriculum at home—with different perceived motivations, including competition, international understanding, and social transformation.DiscussionMore research on internationalization of dental education is needed to provide guidelines and formalize standards for international educational goals to better align formats and motivations for international efforts in dental education.

Conceptual Framework for Implementation of Internationalization in Dental Education with Foundations in Dental Student Life

“…Therefore, these two indicators can motivate students to participate in extracurricular events, where they can improve generic skills such as leadership, teamwork and self-motivation, and global skills like cultural awareness, networking, language, and communication skills [ 20 ]. Institutional partnerships as well as student and staff mobility are also considered as important components of internationalization in dental education [ 15 ]. There is evidence showing that dental students perceived an international peer learning setting as beneficial due to different perspectives in clinical principles and cultural exchange [ 21 ].…”

“…While the issue of internationalization has gained great attention in higher education, there is a scarcity of research assessing its impact on student aspects. Further research on internationalization in dental education should also be required [ 15 ]. Consequently, this research was conducted to investigate whether there were any performance indicators of internationalization that influence student life, inclusive of academic performance and extracurricular activities, within the undergraduate dental curriculum.…”