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Examine The Curriculum

WesternU’s College of Dental Medicine curriculum and facilities are designed to incorporate innovative ideas and state-of-the-art  equipment in a student-centered learning environment.

First-year CDM student Lauren Berard uses the pipette in the CDM Research Lab at WesternU Tuesday, March 1, 2022. Fellow Student Alex Graeve and Assistant Dean for Biomedical Curriculu

Biomedical Sciences Education

The College of Dental Medicine Biomedical Sciences (BMS) curriculum is designed to prepare dental students in their first and second year to understand and address medical issues in their future dental practices. Our BMS faculty includes PhDs in physiology, biochemistry, anatomy, and neuroscience, as well as MDs, dual degree general dentists, and specialists. The more than fifteen BMS courses include over 100 cases with directed questions reviewed by students and faculty in small and large group settings. BMS faculty also participate later in the curriculum by providing students with medical history reviews for their virtual patients.
CDM Assistant Professor Grant Burdick

Clinical Education

The College of Dental Medicine Clinical Education strives to provide a clinical learning environment which enables students to demonstrate acquired knowledge, skills, and behavioral attributes necessary to enter the profession as culturally sensitive, competent, caring dentists while providing patient access to care. The Clinical Education is a pedagogically sound learning experience that supports and reinforces professional, ethical behavior. Students participate through a mixture of experiences at the following clinical sites: 1) WesternU Health sites in Pomona and Rancho Mirage, 2) School-Based Oral Health Centers, and 3) affiliated externship sites across the west coast.
Dental student and faculty working on child patient in dental care clinic

Community-Based Dental Education

Community-Based Dental Education (CBDE) at WUCDM is a comprehensive curriculum spanning all four years of the DMD program. CBDE offers students in-depth and hands-on instruction as students build foundational knowledge in public health, and actively address health inequities within the context of local, regional, and national communities. Students gain confidence and competence through didactic, pre-clinical, and clinical activities, culminating in two seven-week comprehensive externship rotations at Federally Qualified Health Centers, non-profit community clinics, and Indian Health Service sites in the D3 and D4 years, respectively, as the capstone of the student’s experience in CBDE.
College of Dental Medicine Assistant Professsor Steven Gold, DDS, provides hand-on training to students Emmie Ho and Sean Zendedel in the Dental Sim Lab

Preclinical Education

The Preclinical program focuses on delivering a hybrid curriculum consisting of didactic dental sciences as well as clinical, technical, and soft skills. The program’s vision is to deliver an integrated multidisciplinary curriculum that is both patient and student centered with cutting-edge technology. This is executed with the following mission: develop dental practitioners who can discriminately acquire, critically appraise and synthesize information, accurately assess, and meaningfully reflect while developing their professional identity and full personal potential. Our guiding mission in developing the preclinical curriculum has consistently aligned with improving the student learning experience, critical thinking skills, independence, and readiness for clinical practice.