What are the courses of the BDS programme?

How will I be taught?

Faculty of Dental Sciences conducts the teaching programme through lectures, practicals, in class assignments, clinical work, research, outreach programmes and seminars. Each semester consists of 16 weeks, with a midsemeter break of one week. You are expected to be engaged in independent and self-directed learning to a greater extent in the University compared to what you are used to at present.

It will take some time for you to get adjusted to this new system, in your own way and time. Your lecturers, mentors, student counselors as well as you senior students can offer advice and support while you get settled to this new system

Teaching methods

Lectures

Lectures at the Faculty last around 55 minutes and the entire batch of students (80 students) will participate. Since a majority of lecturers are experts in the field of study both in academic and research, you will have a great opportunity to gather latest information during lectures

In class Assignments

These are usually small group activities (20 students), and last for one to two hours, and provide a better opportunity for students to actively participate in discussions, have a more close interaction with the academic staff and discuss particular topics/clinical scenarios in more detail.

Practical classes

These are usually small group activities (6-8 students) and last for 2-3 hours. You can acquire certain skills during practical classes while reinforcing what you have learned during lectures. You will have the practical classes in anatomy (dissections), physiology, biochemistry, microbiology, pathology, prosthetic and skills laboratories (tooth carving).

Clinical Training

You will undergo extensive in-house clinical training in our dental teaching hospital. In 4th semester, there will be compulsory skills-training in a simulated clinical environment before you carry out clinical procedures on patients. From 5th semester, you will gradually learn to carry out simple to complex clinical procedures on patients. Since our state of the art diagnostic and treatment facilities and highly qualified consultant dental surgeons attract many patients from all over the country, you will get ample opportunities to master dental procedures on patients. In the final year, you will undergo an extra clinical training in the Department of Comprehensive Oral Health Care, which will closely resemble general dental practice. This training will make you more competent for independent dental practice upon graduation.

Research Project

You will have an opportunity to conduct a research project in the 9th semester of the study programme. Generally 4-5 students will be engaged in the same project. Conducting the research project will provide you an opportunity to gain experience in scanning world scientific literature, writing project proposals, data analysis and presenting your research findings in scientific forums. Your work might even get published while you’re still an undergraduate.

Who are the course coordinators and the semester coordinators of the BDS programme?

How will I be assessed?

How is my GPA for a course calculated?

• The Grades and the Grade Point Values (GPV) shall be based on the University Grants Commission circular number 901 dated 25th November 2008 and are given below.
  

Grade	A+	A	A-	B+	B	B-	C+	C	C-	D+	D	E
GPV	4.00	4.00	3.70	3.30	3.00	2.70	2.30	2.00	1.70	1.30	1.00	0.00

* A grade higher than C shall not be awarded at the second or subsequent attempts.

The Grade Point Average (GPA) shall be calculated based on the grades obtained for all courses using the formula:

GPA=∑C_ig_i/∑C_i
Where
C_i = the number of credits for the i^thcourse
g_i = the grade point earned for the i^thcourse

How can I get a class in the BDS programme?

The award of classes shall be determined according to the cumulative GPA, which shall be based on the cut-off values prescribed by the University Grants Commission circular number 901 dated 25th November 2008 and given below.

First	Second Upper	Second Lower	Pass
3.70	3.30	3.00	2.00

However, a student shall not be eligible for a class if he/she takes more than 5- academic years to complete the study program unless excused due a valid reason.

A valid excuse shall be:

Illness or injury

In case of an illness or injury the student or his/her parent/guardian should contact the Dean of the Faculty within 7 days by telemail/fax/e-mail/text message followed by a letter within a period of 2 weeks indicating the nature of illness and the name of the attending doctor. A medical certificate supporting the illness of the student should also be sent to the Dean of the Faculty. Medical certificates should be obtained from the following persons: University Medical Officer, District Medical Officer, Consultant in the particular specialty, Head of a Government Base Hospital, Medical Superintendent of a Provincial Ayurvedic Government Hospital, Ayurvedic Physician registered with the Ayurvedic Medical Council. Under exceptional circumstances, a medical certificate issued by a private hospital or a registered private practitioner could be considered by the University Medical Board. The University Chief Medical Officer shall certify the acceptance of the medical certificate. Procedures approved by the University of Peradeniya governing the acceptance of medical certificates submitted by students for work and examinations shall apply in all such events.

Personal problem involving an immediate family member.
In case of a personal problem involving an immediate family member, the student should contact the Dean of the Faculty within 7 days by telemail/fax/e-mail/text message followed by a letter within a period of 2 weeks indicating the circumstances leading to his/her absence from the examination. His/her excuse shall be considered by the Faculty Board. Grounds for favourable consideration shall be: -

a. death of an immediate family member.
b. serious illness of an immediate family member requiring personal attention by the student, and certified by a medical practitioner specified in the university rules governing medical certificates

A student participating in a university or national level event or for any   other legitimate cause for which prior permission has been obtained from the Faculty Board.

A student affected by a serious natural disaster where evidence is available about such a disaster.