Raising quality in postgraduate skills training
CGDent will set out its perspective and its intention to help guide the professional community
An event will be held in the new year to discuss key questions about the future of the postgraduate clinical dental skills market, and to set out the College of General Dentistry’s plans to support practitioners in making their choice of courses and their wider career development.
The UK market for postgraduate clinical dental skills has changed dramatically over the past two decades and, said a spokesperson for the College, the relationship between professional title and competence in dentistry is now much more obscure than it once was.
In 2006, most structured postgraduate clinical development was concentrated in a relatively small number of university programmes and Royal College diplomas. By 2026, the market has become larger, more commercialised, more modular and increasingly driven by private-sector providers and practitioner demand. There has been a clear shift away from qualification acquisition aligned to structured career pathways, toward a prioritisation of business enhancement, with skills for advanced and high-value treatment options.
While the commercial opportunity for training through this era of rapid change has ushered in real innovation and vastly improved access for practitioners, it has brought with it a good measure of confusion and sometimes questionable quality, said the spokesperson.
These shortcomings are particularly faced by today’s early career practitioners, who feel much greater pressure to invest substantial sums in upskilling than their predecessors ever did. Delivering high value treatments risks becoming a measure of intrinsic value as a professional, yet the General Dental Council’s statutory authority does not reach far into the oversight of the training market.
The College of General Dentistry has engaged with this challenge since its independent establishment in 2021, and is clear on its own direction, working in the interests of patients and the profession.
At the event, which will take place in London on Thursday 28 January 2027 and is titled Raising quality in postgraduate dental skills training, the College will set out its perspectives on these changes and its intentions to help guide patients and the professional community in navigating this confusion. Discussion will be invited on the evolution of the training market and on the College’s plans.
Everyone with an interest in this subject is welcome to attend the event: training providers, mentors and coaches, and practitioners with experience navigating the market for clinical skills training. Tickets cost £30, with a 50% discount for Members & Fellows of the College.
To book your place, here.