title: Recent admissions trends at UNLV-SDM: perspectives on recruitment of female and minority students at a new dental school.
abstract: As the U.S. population continues to become more diverse, there has been a movement toward the recruitment of more diverse students into the dental profession. The purpose of this study was to assess the current and historical trends in diversity among dental school applicants and enrollees at a new dental institution, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, School of Dental Medicine (UNLV-SDM). Applicant and enrollment data for the first four cohorts, sorted by gender and ethnicity, were retrieved and summarized by the Office of Admissions and Student Affairs at UNLV-SDM. The principal findings of this analysis revealed enrollment of females at UNLV-SDM was relatively consistent during this time interval, although significantly lower than the U.S. average of all dental schools. The enrollment of minorities at UNLV-SDM, however, was consistent and comparable to the U.S. average, although these percentages were disproportionately smaller than the percentage of minorities in the general population. Based upon these findings, a new model for outreach and recruitment of females and minorities was recently created, based in part upon evidence of successful strategies by dental educators at other institutions, in order to increase the enrollment of female and underrepresented minority students.
authors.affiliation: University of Nevada, Las Vegas, School of Dental Medicine, Las Vegas, NV 89106-4124, USA.
authors.forename: Jeremy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sewell
authors.forename: Nathan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hawley
authors.forename: Karl
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kingsley
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: O'Malley
authors.forename: Christine C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Ancajas
mesh_terms: D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000413:Alaska / Q000208:ethnology; D001213:Asian / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015331:Cohort Studies; D018864:Cultural Diversity; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007198:Indians, North American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004930:Inuit / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008913:Minority Groups / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D044468:Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009505:Nevada; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D010560:Personnel Selection / Q000639:trends*; D012570:School Admission Criteria / Q000639:trends*; D012575:Schools, Dental / Q000458:organization & administration*; D013335:Students, Dental / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States; D014930:Women