DENTAL HYGIENE

Program to Fill a Critical Need

A new program leading to a Bachelor of Science degree in dental hygiene will be offered by the School of Dentistry beginning in January.

What's new about this program is that it will be offered online.

Dental hygiene students from around the country who have earned an associate's degree or certificate will be able to take the online courses, formally called "Degree Completion E-Learning Program," at home or elsewhere and at their convenience.

Filling a Critical Need

According to Prof. Wendy Kerschbaum, director of the School's dental hygiene curriculum who advocated the online initiative, there is a critical need for the program.

"There are 285 dental hygiene programs now being offered around the country, mostly at community colleges," she said. "Approximately 6,000 graduate from these programs annually, but only 12 percent confer a bachelor's degree."

Yet, Kerschbaum said, studies show that more than 70 percent of those receiving an associate's degree or certificate are interested in pursuing coursework that leads to a bachelor's degree.

But there are significant barriers these interested students face, geographical and financial.

"Most of these students are unable to travel to a college or university campus to take a course, and also don't want to quit their jobs to earn that degree," she said. "Our program is set up to give them the best of both worlds - the opportunity to learn from home or other location, to keep their jobs, and to study at times that are convenient for them.

Currently, about 15 dental hygiene degree completion programs in the U.S. are offered exclusively online. The School of Dentistry's would be the first online program offered by U-M that leads to a bachelor's degree.

Bachelor's Degree Vital

There is a growing need for dental hygienists with a bachelor's degree.

"The bachelor's degree is a cornerstone requirement for dental hygienists who may also want to become educators," Kerschbaum said. "But the degree also gives dental hygienists career options other than the traditional private practice, such as providing care to the underserved."

The School of Dentistry's online dental hygiene education program begins with a two-day orientation in December.

"Those who wish to participate will have to come here to learn more about the program, meet our dental hygiene faculty members who will be teaching the eleven courses, and also meet their colleagues," Kerschbaum said.

"Meeting their online colleagues will be an important part of developing that sense of community with their peers and our faculty," she added.

Students will also be required to purchase a laptop computer. The cost of the laptop, approximately $2,000, is included in the student's fees.

In-state tuition will be approximately $3,000 per term, or approximately $17,000 for the entire program. Out-of-state residents will pay approximately $8,000 per term or about $44,000 for the entire program.

Kerschbaum advised interested students that they should plan on spending at least 18 hours per week on coursework.

At the most recent meeting of the American Dental Hygienists' Association, several presentations on the subject of Web-based education leading to an undergraduate degree were presented, Kerschbaum said.

She said that a program launched by St. Petersburg College in Florida in 2004 has graduated 70 students, with 150 currently enrolled. Two other programs, established the following year by two other universities, enrolled 18 and 40 students in their respective first-year classes. Kerschbaum hopes that perhaps 10 students will enroll in U-M's first online dental hygiene program that begins in January.

For more information, visit the School of Dentistry Web site: www.dent.umich.edu/depts/pom/hygiene/dconline.html. Or you can send an e-mail to: hygiene.info@umich.edu, or call (734) 763-3392