518 College of Dental Medicine—Postdoctoral Programs Master of Science Program The Master of Science (M.S.) Program in the College of Dental Medicine (CDM) provides advanced education in study design and research methodology that culminates in a thesis. This program provides graduates with a foundation for academic careers and a better understanding of oral biology and the scientific basis of clinical dentistry. Typically, integrating clinical specialty training with the Master of Science degree requires up to three years for completion. According to the American Dental Association Foundation, the quality of dental education in the United States serves as a standard for the remainder of the world. As such, maintaining the quality of future faculty members teaching in dental schools is of utmost importance. Currently, there is a significant lack of academic training for future dental academicians, especially those trained in both clinical and academic dentistry. Moreover, there are many unfilled, funded faculty positions available in U.S. dental schools. The research and thesis experiences of this program require graduates to develop critical thinking and independence, enabling them to more readily pursue research activities and academic careers. A student graduating from this program will, therefore, have many opportunities to pursue a career in academics, as well as in the private sector. One of the main characteristics of the Master of Science Program is the mentee/mentor collaborative relationship. Mentors not only provide guidance for student’s research efforts, but they are also faculty role models who exemplify the pursuit of academic careers within dentistry and other health professions. The collaborative efforts of mentee and mentor provide students with firsthand insights of an academic or research career. This program provides the dental professional student with an overall knowledge of health sciences research. It is expected that a graduate from this program will be qualified to work at any university in the United States or abroad. Students enrolled concurrently in the predoctoral dental program (D.M.D.) or an advanced dental education certificate program (PG) with the Master of Science (M.S.) Program must not allow requirements of the master’s degree program to interfere with their responsibilities and requirements in the predoctoral or advanced dental education programs. It is expected that students’ activities related to the Master of Science Program will complement their dental education programs, and they will exercise sound judgment in time management to excel in both programs. Predoctoral students are encouraged to initiate their master’s degree research early in the third year of their predoctoral program. Advanced dental education certificate students are also encouraged to initiate their master’s degree research study early in their certificate program. Typically, completion of the Master of Science Program is expected to coincide with completion of the student’s clinical program. However, conditioned upon the sophistication of the research activities, both predoctoral and advanced certificate students may extend enrollment in the Master of Science Program when needed. It should be noted, though, that students do have a limit of up to five years from the date of matriculation into their respective clinical programs to fulfill all of the requirements of the Master of Science Program. Students enrolled in the predoctoral (D.M.D.) program must seek the approval of the associate dean for academic affairs prior to application to the Master of Science program and receive a Letter of Good Standing. Students currently enrolled in the Department of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics Certificate Program are required to complete the requirements of the Master of Science Program in partial fulfillment of the graduation requirements of their certificate program. Additionally, students enrolled in other CDM advanced dental education certificate programs must seek the approval of their respective advanced dental education program directors to participate in this program. All students seeking to enroll in the M.S. program must submit the NSU Master of Science application to the program. Predoctoral students must submit the application at the end of the second year of the D.M.D. program. Advanced dental education certificate students must submit the NSU Master of Science application to the program as soon as possible after matriculation into their respective certificate programs. While the associate dean for academic affairs and advanced dental education program directors must monitor students’ activities in their respective predoctoral or advanced dental education certificate programs, the master’s degree program executive director must approve and monitor students’ activities in their M.S. program. The associate dean for academic affairs, the advanced dental education program directors, and the Master of Science program executive director will work together to monitor students’ overall educational activities in these concurrent programs. Admissions Requirements Those applying for entry into the Master of Science Program as full, degree-seeking candidates must meet the following eligibility requirements: 1. Applicants must have successfully completed a bachelor’s degree and matriculated into a CDM clinical training program. 2. A pplicants are required to submit a 250- to 300-word letter of interest in this program articulating their career plan, capabilities, and area(s) of scientific interest, along with two letters of reference from individuals familiar
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