Impact of a Prior Medical Degree on Students’ Dental School Performance in Innsbruck, Austria

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify the performance differences between two groups of Austrian dental students (one with a prior medical degree and one without a medical degree) during their dental school training and inal dental licensure examination. A speciic aim was to determine if having a medical degree is a predictive factor for dental students' scores on the Austrian Dental Admission Test (Austrian DAT), performance in the dental clinic, and scores on inal exam. The study consisted of a retrospective analysis of 122 students (thirty-nine with a medical degree and eighty-three without a medical degree) who were enrolled in the Dental Clinic at Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck, Austria, between 2001 and 2006. Three performance categories were considered: Austrian DAT results, clinical performance after the irst clinical year in dental school, and performance on the inal dental licensure examination. Information on students' age, gender, and previous medical degree was collected from oficial records. Analyses with student's t-test and Pearson's chi-square test revealed that the students with a medical degree had signiicantly higher Austrian DAT total test scores, grade point averages after the irst clinical year, and scores on the inal exam. Additionally, those students had signiicantly better performance on the inal exam in prosthodontics and oral and maxillofacial surgery. The linear regression analysis showed that a medical degree had an independent effect on average scores on the inal exam, age, and Austrian DAT test scores, while gender showed no statistically signiicant effect. Overall, the study found that dental students with a prior medical degree had signiicantly higher Austrian DAT total test scores and performed signiicantly better in the irst clinical year and on the inal exam than those without a prior medical degree.

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A literature review of the predictive validity of European dental school selection methods

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