MSt in Dental Education

Who is the course designed for? 

• The programme is only open to those who have successfully completed the Postgraduate Diploma in Dental Education at University of Cambridge Professional and Continuing Education (PACE).  
• Dentists and dental care professionals who are seeking career pathways that allow them to develop a portfolio of work in dental education.  
• Applicants will be dentists or dental care professionals who are engaged in education and training activities commensurate with their level of experience and as is relevant to their professional roles and responsibilities. The MSt is suitable for ‘early career’ educators as well as those with more experience. 

Aims of the programme 

The programme aims to develop individuals who are able to recognise and respond to opportunities to develop their own and others’ educational practice through the considered design and implementation of a small-scale educational research or development project.  

This will include:  

• exploration of project design principles, including methodological choices 
• familiarisation with a range of educational research, development and evaluation methods 
• purposeful and in-depth engagement with their chosen project design methodology and linked methods 
• purposeful engagement with approaches to data selection, data generation and data analysis methods (linked to their chosen design) 
• rehearsing different ways of communicating complex ideas in written/verbal/graphic form for different audiences (for example academic audience, professional audience, members of the public etc) 

Learning outcomes 

By the end of the MSt in Dental Education, students should be able to demonstrate:  

• a capacity to purposefully design, implement and critically appraise an educational project that has the potential to inform or change practice 
• an ability to position their project in relevant policy/practice contexts and to provide a coherent account of the conceptual and methodological choices they have made in design and implementation 
• the ability to communicate complex and novel ideas in accessible ways, for a range of audiences and purposes 
• awareness of personal responsibility and professional codes of conduct throughout all stages of the project, working in transparent and ethical ways. 

We welcome applications from students with a variety of backgrounds and experiences. As part of our admissions process, you’ll need to meet certain requirements and make sure you’re able to attend teaching sessions in the UK.  

Standard entry requirements  

Typically, we expect a good UK undergraduate degree, such as a 2.1, or international equivalent.  

If your degree is not from the UK, check international qualifications on the University’s postgraduate site to find the equivalent in your country.   

If you wish to apply to join the programme you must have successfully completed the Postgraduate Diploma in Dental Education at PACE. 

English language requirements 

Our courses are taught in English and require a good level of fluency. If English is not your first language, you'll need to prove you have sufficient fluency before admission. If we offer you a place, it will be subject to you meeting this requirement. For more information, visit Postgraduate and Master's admissions and the University’s English language requirements. 

Visa information 

We welcome applications from international students. If you’re coming from overseas, you would attend the in-person teaching sessions for this course with visitor immigration permission. 

It's important to be aware that entering the UK as a visitor for study purposes comes with certain expectations and restrictions. To make sure you understand the requirements, we advise you to read the in-depth information on the University’s International Students website. 

The course is delivered through in-person and online teaching sessions requiring attendance in Cambridge, self-directed and peer learning, and synchronous and asynchronous approaches provided via the course Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).     

During the MSt, teaching is provided in conjunction with learners undertaking the MSt in Medical Education, to foster a shared learning environment. There are separate breakout sessions for the dental and the medical learners, to focus on the specifics of their own profession. Small group, task and project-based work is an important element of course design that links teaching, learning and assessment activity. Teaching and learning are jointly facilitated and moderated by the dental and medical education course directors and tutors.  

This part-time course has been designed to fit in with the demands of full-time employment. Each module has been designed to link firmly to the next, supporting the design, implementation and write-up stages of the project. For each module, there is shared learning in one or two day in-person teaching blocks. All dates are full days, 9.30am to 4.30pm, unless otherwise stated:    

• October 2027 (2 days in person)  
• October 2027 (online session, 7pm to 9pm UK time)  
• December 2027 (2 days in person)  
• February 2028 (1 day in person)  
• March 2028 (conference day)  
• June 2027 (2 days in person)   

The contact days are designed to be interactive, recognising the rich resources students offer to the learning process. There will be opportunities to rehearse aspects of project design, including data collection and analysis methods; these will be explicitly linked to student project choices. Teaching methods include formal input (micro-lectures), case-study work, small-group work and peer presentations.    

In addition, each student has a named supervisor and will work with them to identify preferred ways of working and patterns of supervision over the year.   

Assessment   

There are 3 linked assessment points, designed to support student development and progression:   

• a project proposal of between 3,000 to 4,000 words  
• a creative submission related to an aspect of the student’s project accompanied by a short reflective piece (1,500 to 2,500 words) focused on their learning from the task  
• a dissertation is the final submission and should ‘tell the story’ of the student's project work in an appropriate form that allows them to evidence achievement of the programme learning outcomes. The project report and any adjuncts should be the equivalent of 8,000 to 10,000 words  

Dissertation   

• All students will undertake an educational project, either research or development. The project report and any adjuncts should be the equivalent of 8,000 to 10,000 words.   
• With both types of projects, students are required to produce work that meets all programme outcomes at master’s level. This includes working ethically, even if formal ethical permissions are not required. If students elect to undertake an Educational Research Project (ERP) (using either primary or secondary data) they would be required to seek formal ethical permissions. 

Other assessment   

Attendance at all of the units in Cambridge and full and active participation in all elements of the course is compulsory.   

Supervision  

Each student is allocated a named supervisor and should expect to access up to 12 hours of supervisor time, which includes supervisor time to read and respond to draft work but does not include time to mark summative assessment submissions. 

Post-nominals 

Upon completing your award, the permitted post-nominals are: MSt (Dent Ed) and MSt (Cantab). 

Fees

The total fees for this course are shown above in 'Course details'.

To understand which fee status applies to you, whether as a home or overseas student, visit the University’s fee status page.  

To help you manage your finances more comfortably, you can pay the fee in instalments. See how to pay for more.  

There are also some additional costs you’ll need to cover as part of this course. These are usually: 

• an application fee of £85, unless you're eligible for a fee waiver, payable online
• any travel, accommodation and subsistence costs for the residential teaching sessions held in Cambridge

Funding

We're dedicated to reducing and removing financial barriers to learning. Visit financial support ahead of the application deadline to find out what options may be available to help you in your studies. You can explore external funding and stay up to date on our concessions and bursaries.

Please note that places on the MSt in Dental Education are offered on merit rather than funding. We recommend that you explore any potential funding well in advance of the application deadline. 

Considering applying? We look forward to receiving your application. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis. Interviews will be held as part of the selection process if required.  Should the course become full, we reserve the right to close applications early. We encourage applicants to apply as soon as possible.   

Key timings for your application  

• The application deadline is 27 May 2027. 
• Applications will be considered on a rolling basis. 
• Shortlisted applicants may be required to interview, in which case we’ll contact you to arrange a time and format for yours.  

How to apply and what you'll need 

The ‘Apply now’ button will take you to the Applicant Portal. There, you can:  

• create, save, and submit your application 
• upload your supporting documents   
• submit and manage your references 
• pay your application fee 
• track your application 

Supporting documents 

When you submit your application, you’ll need to provide supporting information: 

Qualifications and transcripts    

Upload details of degree-level courses you have completed or are studying.   

Employer letter of support  

If you are an employee, upload a letter from your employer confirming release of time to study.  

Evidence of funding  

Upload details for any funding you have secured for this course, if applicable.   

References   

Submit contact details for 2 academic referees, who we will contact on your behalf.   

For more information on applying and admissions, see Postgraduate and Master's admissions. 

As an MSt student, you'll become a member of a Cambridge College. For the MSt in Dental Education 2027-28, we partner with Wolfson College. 

If you have a pre-existing membership at a Cambridge College other than Wolfson, you can ask them to consider you as a member for this course. However, we cannot arrange this for you. If you do not have a pre-existing College membership, you can only become a member of Wolfson. 

To find out more about Colleges, watch our video on 'How to choose a Cambridge College'.

We're committed to supporting you in your learning journey, and we offer a variety of support opportunities to meet individual needs. Visit student support to find out more about how we can help.