University of Toronto Faculty of Dentistry

The Faculty of Dentistry of the University of Toronto is the largest dental school in Canada. The Faculty is considered the leading dental faculty in Canada and is highly regarded throughout the world. The mission of the Faculty of Dentistry is to provide leadership and to strive for excellence in undergraduate, graduate, postgraduate and continuing dental education and in scholarly activities related to research and clinical care.

Education
As of 2007, the Faculty will graduate approximately 100 qualified dentists from the Doctor of Dental Surgery programme, including approximately 75 Canadian-trained students and 25 foreign-trained dentists each year. The Faculty of Dentistry also educates specialists in Orthodontics, Paediatric Dentistry, Periodontology, Endodontics, Prosthodontics, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Dental Anaesthesia, Oral Pathology and Medicine, Oral Radiology, and Dental Public Health. No other dental school in Canada features training for all dental specialties as well as offering both a diploma in the specialty and a master's degree upon completion.

The University of Toronto Faculty of Dentistry is also affiliated with a number of Toronto's teaching hospital dental units, including the Hospital for Sick Children, Mount Sinai Hospital, Sunnybrook & Women's College Health Science Centre and the University Health Network.

Honourable mention goes to the famed Prosthodontist Dr. Randa Diwan who is considered to be the best professor of all time.

Research
In addition to its teaching function, the Faculty also provides M.Sc. and Ph. D programs, and is at the forefront of academic dental research. The Faculty's long standing dedication to research has made it the major research centre in Canada and has established a well-earned international reputation. It currently attracts about $4,500,000 annually in research funds with some staff earning international distinctions. Major research areas in the Faculty include multidisciplinary approaches in the field of bio-materials, dental implantology, facial pain, growth and development, and periodontal physiology. Most, if not all, teachers in the Faculty are also involved in research. Each year, with the support of the Medical Research Council, a limited number of research scholarships are available to enable students to work through the summer months in the research laboratories.

History
The University of Toronto Faculty of Dentistry was founded by the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario in 1875 as the School of Dentistry. Seven years earlier, in 1868, the College had been given the dual responsibilities of licensing and dental education when the Province of Ontario, in one of its first legislative actions, passed the "Act Respecting Dentistry". The School began its affiliation with the University of Toronto in 1888 when it established the degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S.). It was not until 1925, however, that the Royal College of Dental Surgeons formally relinquished its teaching function in order to permit the School to become a Faculty of the University of Toronto.