Oral and Craniofacial Sciences (MS)

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Degree Offered: MS
Program Leadership:
Nathan M. Young, PhD, Program Director
Admissions Inquiries:
nathan.young@ucsf.edu

Program Description

The Master of Science (MS) academic degree in Oral & Craniofacial Sciences (OCS) is a Plan I graduate program that complies with the guidelines of the Graduate Division of UCSF. The OCS MS is available only for individuals admitted to the School of Dentistry for postgraduate residency. The degree requires a minimum of the equivalent of one full year of research and didactic study. The academic/research requirements for the MS degree, usually completed over a minimum three-year period, are taken concurrently with clinical training leading to a postgraduate specialty certification.

Like the Oral and Craniofacial Sciences PhD program, the MS program is interdisciplinary in focus, and provides students with the knowledge and research tools needed to study oral and craniofacial tissue and organ systems. From a variety of approaches, students learn about the functions of these tissues and systems, and about the conditions and diseases to which these tissues and systems are susceptible. The OCS program emphasizes the importance of translating scientific discovery into advances in patient diagnosis, treatment, and clinical care.

Faculty

Fifty faculty members are associated with the OCS programs, representing several departments in the UCSF School of Dentistry as well as many departments in the UCSF School of Medicine. This ensures a program curriculum that spans a range of disciplines. See a list of faculty and their research areas.

Career Outcomes

The OCS/MS program is taken in conjunction with a professional program, thus most program alumni typically work in a clinical dental practice setting.

The Oral and Craniofacial Sciences program is offered by the UCSF Division of Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs, administered by the UCSF School of Dentistry, and delivered by faculty members in the UCSF schools of dentistry and medicine.

Admission Requirements

Only students accepted and enrolled in a UCSF School of Dentistry residency program may be admitted to the OCS MS program.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this program, students will have:

  1. Completed didactic coursework and learned best practices in dental-based research including ethical considerations.
  2. Obtained statistical skills to appropriately design and test a research hypothesis.
  3. Developed an independent and novel hypothesis-driven research project from background reading to data collection to analysis and write up.
  4. Performed independent research leading to a published master’s-level thesis.