Doctor of Philosophy in Dental Sciences

Degree Overview

The Doctor of Philosophy in Dental Sciences program is an intensive, full-time program with a minimum duration of three years and maximum of 5 years. It comprises a series of compulsory and elective courses followed by a period of full-time research. The Doctor of Philosophy in Dental Sciences degree requires completion of at least 24 credit hours of advanced courses. The degree is awarded in recognition of a candidate's command of a broad field of knowledge and accomplishment in the chosen research project through an original contribution of meaningful knowledge and ideas.

The program plan contains cores courses equivalent to 12 credit hours in Dental Biomaterials (3 Cr.), Oral and Craniofacial Biology (3 Cr.), Oral Theranostics (3 Cr.), Literature Review (1 Cr.) and Innovation and Entrepreneurship (2 Cr.) that apply to all students in the Doctor of Philosophy in Dental Sciences program. The Dental Biomaterials (3 Cr.) course will provide the students with a thorough overview of the scientific foundations and applications of numerous types of materials used in dentistry. It also gives extensive understanding of the most recent advancements in dental biomaterials' biological and clinical effectiveness in healing, repairing, or regenerating tissues. The Oral and Craniofacial Biology (3 Cr.) course provides advanced education on the structure, development, and function of oral and craniofacial structures. The course covers topics related to embryology of head and neck, odontogenesis, hard tissue biogenesis and regeneration, periodontium biology, saliva secretion and metabolism, TMJ regeneration, and aging impact on different oral tissues. Emphasis is placed on gaining advanced understanding of oral and craniofacial structures and application of modern biological principles and research techniques in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of oral and craniofacial diseases. Oral Theranostics (3 Cr.) course is designed to provide an overview of the latest advancements in Oral Theranostics and its practical applications in the diagnosis, treatment planning and clinical management of oral diseases. The course will cover various topics including novel diagnostic tools, biomarkers, imaging techniques, treatment planning aids and therapeutic interventions. The program also offers all students a 1 credit hours course in Literature Review that will prepare the students to write the literature review of their research project and 2 credit hour course in Innovation and Entrepreneurship that critically reviews research in the field of entrepreneurship addressing the fundamental issues, and how to practically apply the theory/concepts towards creating innovative new ventures.

The program also offers elective courses. The students are required to cover a minimum of 12 credit hours of elective courses. These courses focus on basic science areas as Materials Science, Synthesis and Characterization (3 Cr.), Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Dentistry, Molecular Methods in Cell Biology (3 Cr.), Diagnostic Methods in Oral Pathology (3 Cr.), Oral Microbiology and Immunology (3 Cr.), and as well as on Ethics, Professionalism and Scientific Writing (3 Cr.), Applied Biostatistics (3 Cr.), Health Economics (3 Cr.), Mixed Methods Research Design (3 Cr.), and Contemporary Learning and Teaching in Health Professions Education (3 Cr.).

In addition to the 24 credit hours courses, the Doctor of Philosophy in Dental Sciences Program aims to train outstanding students and clinicians to embark on dental research in to generate new discoveries through cutting edge scientific methodologies and meet the challenges in solving tomorrow's oral health problems. Suitable candidates will be trained to embark on a career in academia or research. The thesis will pass through Research Proposal (3 Cr.), Research Thesis (27 Cr.).

The program also offers 6 credit hours remedial courses for the non-dental students who will join the program. These courses are Dental Health Science (3 Cr.) and Human Biology (3 Cr.). Detailed information about the remedial courses is provided in Section 2.7. Remedial Courses.

The major emphasis of the program will be on basic and translational research on preventive, curative and health maintenance aspects of diseases of the oral and maxillofacial region. The College Recruitment Committee will recruit highly experienced academics as mentors for the new Doctor of Philosophy program. Qualified post-docs are also available to support the students in the research laboratories.

The unique strength of this program will be its multidisciplinary nature that rests on other advanced, interfaculty programs including molecular medicine, engineering and natural sciences that are currently existing in the University of Sharjah.

Heavy emphasis in the program will be on basic sciences including cellular, biochemical, molecular, genetic and genomics sciences, as well as material and social sciences and their impact on the community. Apart from training researchers and scientists, the Doctor of Philosophy program will heighten the international visibility and the presence of UOS through the impactful research publications generated and published in quality venues.

Due to the multi-disciplinary nature of this program, several academics specialized in a variety of dental sub-disciplines, (e.g. Biomaterials, tissue engineering, biostatistics, and microbiology) as well as those with cross-disciplinary expertise (e.g. biotechnological sciences) need to be made available. These senior academics will add to the research culture and diversity of the College and synergize the research potential of not only the students and the staff of the College but also the wider university.