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Opportunities for undergraduate dental research

BDJ Student volume 32, pages 55–57 (2025)Cite this article

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Research is an integral part of dentistry, providing the evidence base that underpins clinical practice and education. Oral and dental research spans a wide range of areas, including microbiology, dental materials, regenerative dentistry, and practitioner wellbeing, to name just a few. This drives advancements that lead to better patient outcomes and contributes to making oral and dental care accessible and equitable for all. At undergraduate level, experience in research offers an opportunity for obtaining novel skills, CV enhancement and inspiration for a career in research. These experiences can be beneficial when applying for further clinical and non-clinical career opportunities and training, such as postgraduate studies, academic foundation training or an academic clinical fellowship. Beyond career advancement, undergraduate research experience enhances the experience of dental school, providing you with the knowledge to better evaluate evidence and critically analyse research that directly impacts your clinical practice.

The aim of this article is to demonstrate the approaches and benefits to undertaking dental research as an undergraduate and the experiences of students at Peninsula Dental School who have completed them.

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Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Dr. Zoe Brookes, Dr. Raul Bescos, Dr. Katie Muddiman, Dr. Amazon Doble, Dr. Lisa du Toit, Dr. Ian Mills and Dr. Tina Joshi for supervising our projects and thank you to Peninsula Dental Social Enterprise and Peninsula Dental School for use of their facilities.

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  1. Peninsula Dental School, Plymouth, United Kingdom

    Tomas Nicholas, Emily Akister, Nadezhda Anim-Somuah & Dhruti Mysore

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  1. Tomas Nicholas
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  2. Emily Akister
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  3. Nadezhda Anim-Somuah
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  4. Dhruti Mysore
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Correspondence to Nadezhda Anim-Somuah.

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Nicholas, T., Akister, E., Anim-Somuah, N. et al. Opportunities for undergraduate dental research. BDJ Student 32, 55–57 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41406-025-1502-3

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