This is a unique program because we are a bachelor's degree program within a dental school. So our students get to work with dental students and residents and all the different specialties.
We have 30 students in each class. So that gives us the opportunity to get to know each of them on a personal level, which I really think helps in furthering their educational goals.
Having a bachelor's degree really kind of opens up a lot of avenues for you. They can go into clinical practice, working for a general practice office or periodontist. But in addition to that, many have gone on to get master's degrees, some in public health or other areas.
Where you get real life experience interacting with people that are unlike yourself, and you get that because we live in a major metropolitan area.
We have geriatric patients, pediatric patients, patients with special needs. The students are able to go on different rotations to different clinics around the community.
Our training is multifaceted. We have a lot of didactic courses. So the students are meeting with faculty and getting your traditional lectures and active learning. In addition to that they have a very rigorous clinical schedule.
We are one of the few schools that get to experience up most of 15 to 20 rotations as hygiene students, those could range from being in a clinic with the dental students. That could mean going in with the graduate students and working in periodontics, or orthodontics, or just different areas of dentistry.
A lot of our patients are very long term patients, where we see them every six months. So we also develop relationships with them, they actually give feedback to our students to which is great to have that patient perspective on your clinical training.
We have faculty from all different backgrounds, educational backgrounds, as well as cultural backgrounds. And I think that's really important to make the students feel welcomed and safe within the environment here.
You become really good friends with your classmates and you kind of become a family and they have the slogan 30 in, 30 out. It's like you're walking into a family that's already been created for years and every faculty member, every staff member, every classmate that you meet, everybody's very accepting.
They get to do projects together, travel together to different rotation sites, you develop close friendships, and you have a lot of fun together learning together.
All of the teachers and I really kind of interact with everybody because administration is very hands on.
My relationship with the school faculty and staff is much more like a professional friendship. Almost like their second parents.
There's at least four faculty members all the time on the floor to help you and assist you in whatever you need.
Louisville is the little big city. It is a big city, but everybody pretty much knows everybody.
One thing that I can say for sure about this city is that their food culture is amazing.
We're located in the heart of downtown, so you're surrounded by many restaurants and entertainment, and just about anything you want to do family-friendly, there's nightlife.
You'll feel very prepared when you leave here and your employers will be very proud of your abilities and trust your ability.
A lot of employers want them. They love hygiene students from ULSD, because they know where we come from, and they know that you came from a unique family that's prepared for the real world. Louisville was my first and only choice. I was bound and determined to get into this program and I wasn't going to look at any other options because I wouldn't set my standards any lower.
