The Student Room Group
Reply 1
yeah whenever people ask me 'why didnt you apply to oxford, cambridge, ucl or imperial' im always saying 'because they dont do dentistry'. I sort of understand why oxbridge dont - they're more traditional unis, and i always got the impression that dentistry is a relatively modern science to medicine. Which explains why they dont do dentistry. What bothers me more is why imperial or ucl dont do it, i just dont get it. There arent enough london unis that do dentistry...
Reply 2
TBh I don't really know the answer to this. It would have more to do with the fact that the degrees offered at both universities are traditional courses whereas dentistry is viewed as a modern course as pointed out. In the past I think you'd have studied Medicine first before doing Dentistry (going back centuries) and in an odd way I think both institutions may slightly view Dentistry in a lower profile to Medicine. Don't ask why but that might be a case.

Maybe you should write to the dons of the colleges and ask them for an answer? I'd love to know the answer to this aswell.
Reply 3
Doesn't UCL Eastman Dental Institute offer courses in dentistry?
Reply 4
postgrad only! regarding ucl...
Reply 5
The first dentists were basically barbers probably around the time of Sweeney Todd!lol who would pull out rotten teeth after you got a fresh trim! So really dentistry has its origins in other places and only relatively recently became mainstream healthcare.
Its shame about the lack of london unis, if we applied a few years ago there were like loads, Kings was 3 different dental schools in itself and UCL had an undergraduate BDS!!!! Unfair.
Reply 6
British Bulldog
TBh I don't really know the answer to this. It would have more to do with the fact that the degrees offered at both universities are traditional courses whereas dentistry is viewed as a modern course as pointed out. In the past I think you'd have studied Medicine first before doing Dentistry (going back centuries) and in an odd way I think both institutions may slightly view Dentistry in a lower profile to Medicine. Don't ask why but that might be a case.


You mean, like SPS and PPE?
Reply 7
PPE and SPS are combination of traditional disciplines.
Reply 8
hitenhalai
The first dentists were basically barbers probably around the time of Sweeney Todd!lol who would pull out rotten teeth after you got a fresh trim! So really dentistry has its origins in other places and only relatively recently became mainstream healthcare.
Its shame about the lack of london unis, if we applied a few years ago there were like loads, Kings was 3 different dental schools in itself and UCL had an undergraduate BDS!!!! Unfair.


Haha yeah thats so true. Some Oxbridge graduates came to my school and I put forward a question asking why 'Oxbridge' does not do Dentistry. They basically said the Dentist role as we know it today was carried out by barbers like Sweeney Todd lol.

I remember watching a programme about this and back then barbers were more skilled and had techniques and tools to deal with teeth. They did basic extractions of teeth and stuff. On the show it said usually hygiene was appalling and many who had this kind of 'treatment' died. When i saw that I thought maybe the tools might have hair on them and the barber would stick that in your mouth or something.... :eek: