No Cover Image

Journal article 261 views 16 downloads

Widening Access: what do dental school websites signal to prospective students?

Michal M. Kawecki, Phil Newton Orcid Logo

British Dental Journal, Volume: 234, Issue: 2, Pages: 106 - 110

Swansea University Author: Phil Newton Orcid Logo

  • 62463_VoR.pdf

    PDF | Version of Record

    © The Author(s) 2023. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

    Download (345.59KB)

Abstract

Introduction Widening Access (WA) policies aim to ensure that a professional workforce reflects the community that it serves by facilitating the admission of applicants from under-represented demographics. WA has not been extensively studied in UK dental education. Website discourses are an importan...

Full description

Published in: British Dental Journal
ISSN: 0007-0610 1476-5373
Published: Springer Science and Business Media LLC 2023
Online Access: Check full text

URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa62463
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Abstract: Introduction Widening Access (WA) policies aim to ensure that a professional workforce reflects the community that it serves by facilitating the admission of applicants from under-represented demographics. WA has not been extensively studied in UK dental education. Website discourses are an important element in students' higher education choices and have the potential to engage those who might be under-represented.Methods Critical discourse analysis was used to investigate contents of the 16 UK dental school webpages in relation to WA, based on a previous study within medical education. Data were contextualised through identification of drivers and levers, as well as warrants of WA.Results Discourses emphasising social mobility, and the resultant advancement within social hierarchy of an individual, dominated the narrative rationalising WA as an initiative. WA was depicted as a mechanism to support applicants of high academic ability and exhibiting commitment to studying dentistry but who were unable to show their true potential due to their underprivileged backgrounds. This presentation portrayed dental schools as generous establishments, selectively granting career-advancement opportunities to disadvantaged students. Discourses on the benefits of WA for patient care and workforce diversification were largely absent.Conclusions Discourses representing WA on websites of UK dental schools are limited and do not portray applicants from deprived backgrounds or under-represented groups as individuals bringing unique positive benefits to dentistry and patient care. We encourage dental schools to consider alternate messages for attracting applicants from under-represented demographics.
College: Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
Issue: 2
Start Page: 106
End Page: 110