Faculty of Odontology

Education programmes

At the Faculty of Odontology (often called "Tandvårdshögskolan"), you can study to become a dentist, dental hygienist or dental technician. Each professional role contributes with unique competence to the dental care team and the interaction between the professional groups is emphasised in the training courses.

Challenge-based learning and the Malmö model

In our courses, a pedagogical model called challenge-based learning (utmaningsbaserat lärande – UBL) is used. It means that the student themselves, to a large extent, takes responsibility for finding knowledge to be able to solve problems that may arise in professional life.

This also means that the students in the dental training and dental hygienist training early on in the training treat patients in the University Dental Clinic. The dental technicians participate in the corresponding way in work-based practical studies at external laboratories.

Postgraduate education

Every year, about 50 students are registered for post-graduate research training, and a handful of theses are published and defended for the doctoral degree. The faculty publishes around 150 scientific papers yearly, mainly in international journals.

Research

Research at the faculty spans a broad spectrum: from molecular biological studies of oral tissues to wide-ranging studies of oral health among different generations, social classes and cultures. International collaboration is a common theme, and there is frequent research co-operation across disciplinary boundaries.

Researchers at the Faculty of Odontology collaborate across subject and faculty boundaries. Together with surface chemists, for example, they study the properties of surfaces, in order to better understand reactions in the oral cavity.

To solve problems, they also rely on research findings in disciplines such as molecular biology, microbiology, radiology, implant technology, and mechanics; subjects to which they can also contribute specialist knowledge of their own.

Collaboration with psychologists, educators, and sociologists gives substance to research dealing with oral health problems associated with people's behaviour and with social and economic factors.