The student exchange agreement applies to both practice in the clinic and in the laboratory for dental students. In the future this will be a new student-exchange opportunity for the dental students at the Faculty of Dentistry.
A milestone for the RESISPART-project
RESISPART is a project with a focus on antimicrobial resistance. The project is financed through the INTPART-program, International Partnerships for Excellent Education, Research and Innovation, the Norwegian Research Council and Diku. The overall goal of the program is to develop world-class research groups in Norway through long-term international institutional cooperation.
Since the start of the RESISPART project in 2018, the goal has been to establish an exchange agreement between UNICAMP, Piracicaba Dental School (FoP), and the Faculty of Dentistry at UiO. Project manager Fernanda Petersen with project staff and students visited Piracicaba Dental School Brazil in December 2019 together with project partners from the USA: J. Craig Venter Institute, University of Chicago at Illinois and Forsyth Institute.
The former Pro- Dean for studies, Amer Sehic, and the former Head of Department, Institute for Oral Biology, Hans-Christian Åsheim, visited UNICAMP Central and Piracicaba Dental School. They met both the central administration and Deans from FoP and also participated in a symposium and several seminars. After several rounds with various committees at UNICAMP during 2020/21, the agreement was finally signed just before Easter.
Exciting opportunity
This is an exciting opportunity for students who want to travel to Brazil and gain laboratory experience and/or clinic experience. The clinic has both a pediatric clinic and an adult clinic.
- What brought the RESISPART group together was our common research interest in one of the major health threats to humanity: antimicrobial resistance, says Project leader, Professor Fernanda Petersen. This global problem knows no borders! With INTPART support, we have been able to bring together students and scientific staff from different countries to explore the problem from different perspectives. We hope now that this alliance will further contribute to educating students that are globally competent, not only in the field of antimicrobial resistance but also in many other areas prioritized by our faculty and with relevance to society.
The exchange agreement is also well supported by Professor Amer Sehic, who visited Brazil and UNICAMP together with the project group in 2019.
- The faculty is very pleased about Fernanda Petersen being a driving force for this collaboration since the project started. It is great to see that long-term collaboration between UNICAMP and UiO has borne fruit. Exchange to UNICAMP can provide an excellent opportunity for students to experience and use their skills from a different perspective.
- I have personally visited the clinics at UNICAMP and I am convinced that our students will thrive there, that they will have a different approach to clinical choice, and that they will learn and experience a lot. In addition, I have great faith that lab exchanges for our students over a period of 4-6 weeks can also be very fruitful - the opportunities are enormous!
This collaboration agreement also strongly supports the faculty's strategy of ensuring high-quality education close to research through, among other things, internationalization and research proximity, which this project constitutes in practice. We look forward to further cooperation with UNICAMP!
The main partner at FoP, Assistant Professor Pedro Ricomini, is also very happy about the new exchange agreement: - The exchange agreement will allow dental students from Unicamp to take courses at UiO, enabling not only effective participation in the academic environment but also the opportunity to live in another country and expand their cultural knowledge. The agreement further strengthens our collaboration that has started in 2011, and it will certainly provide fruitful opportunities for education developments and research collaborations.
Expectations
He further talks about what students can expect when arriving at the dental school: - Piracicaba Dental School is one of the best dental schools not only in Brazil, but also in Latin America. The visiting student will find a pleasant and welcoming place at the Dental School. During the exchange, the student will be able to take courses, observe and monitor clinical treatments, and develop research activities.
Clinical and laboratory experience
- The clinical treatment is integrated, so the dental student performs the whole treatment of
each patient, being supervised by professors of the different dental specialities. Therefore, the student has the opportunity to treat different clinical cases, being able to plan and make decisions for the best treatment, having an integral vision for the patient's needs.
The clinical area is currently under renovation, and a new area will be ready soon. The visiting student will be able to observe the dental treatment, being able to follow other clinical activities that may be available during the exchange period. In addition, the Dental School has laboratory facilities for pre-clinical practice, where the student performs procedures before starting the clinical activities. The visiting student will be also able to perform practice activities, joining classes of the different dental specialities during the exchange period.
We are recognized for high-quality researchers in basic and clinical science that will certainly provide great learning possibilities. Furthermore, our students are from different states of Brazil, and from other countries as well, that will also contribute to being in touch with diverse and rich culture. In addition, the city of Piracicaba, where the School is located, is also a great place to live. With its warm weather, you definitely do not need heavy winter clothes. Be welcome!
