Dentistry in Australia

What you can expect from postgraduate study in Dentistry

What you're in for
If you are looking at programs in this field you probably already know a great deal about it. Dentistry is one of the few fields in which most coursework students are already in the profession and are enrolled in upgrade rather than conversion programs. There is a relatively high proportion of research students too. Choosing a program should not be too hard. Like undergraduate courses, most postgraduate options in dentistry are only offered at a small number of universities (maybe only one!) in each state or city, so unless you are prepared to change location or study externally, you will have only a limited selection to choose from. This is assuming that your sights are now firmly set on the dentistry career track; but now that you have the book open, why not browse? You may be surprised at the number of other options there are for a change of direction.
Who does postgraduate courses in Dentistry?
Number of students: 310
Percent of students over 25 years: 40%
Percent of students with a prior degree: 92%
Percent of students with Non-English speaking backgrounds: 41%
Number of international students: 64
Percent studying part-time: 25%
Percent studying externally: 7%
Percent women: 46%
Graduates view of the course experience
Teaching quality: 2 stars
Development of generic skills: 1 star
Overall satisfaction: 1 star
Your prospects
Despite being unable to find fault with their postgraduate programs in the past, graduates filling in the latest Course Experience Questionnaire survey give their experience the thumbs down. Excellent salaries generally make studying in this field more attractive.
What salary can I expect?
Graduate starting salary: $117,938
Will I get a job?
Percentage of people looking for job who did not find full-time work four months after graduation: 13%
Where graduates go when they get jobs
Public sector: 20%
Private sector: 55%
Private practice: 0%
Overseas: 25%
Do institutions differ in how they teach Dentistry?

Yes. The following 6 institutions all provide Dentistry courses. Click on the University name to see how their Dentistry courses rate and compare.
Griffith University
University of Adelaide
University of Melbourne
University of Queensland
University of Sydney
University of Western Australia