gms | German Medical Science

Introduction: ‘Bologna’ is characterized by stimulation of international mobility, international competitiveness, and international employability. Stimulation is supported within

• the European Higher Education Area by 2-cycles, modulated professional qualification. Cycle 1 for undergraduate qualified and employable Bachelors, cycle 2 for postgraduate specialization.
• the European Research Area by postgraduate doctorate qualifications, as third cycle according to the concept of life-long learning.

In Germany the ‘Bologna Process’ is irritating: Curricula are compressed from 5 into 3 years, mass summative assessment introduced, behaviorism instead of constructivism cared, study load unbearable, misleading packages as undergraduate consecutive Bachelor/Master curricula tied up.

German students in dentistry are not positioned well in EU-competition: On average 2-4 years older as their EU-fellow students. 2x14 weeks ‘Lecture Time’ per year and 24 weeks ‘Semester Holidays’ with seldom curricular scheduled activities, in contrast to internationally 40-46 curricular defined weeks. Outcome competences are inherently lower.

Given a 5-year curriculum and a half-value time of current medical knowledge of 4-6 year, students are in danger to qualify with obsolete knowledge. Beyond this, the question arises why a dentist should be a Master per se.

Method: An Aachen Think tank developed a concept in which the traditional 10-semester curriculum, without changes in content, is reorganized in trimester (3x14 weeks). This 3-year undergraduate qualification is honored with a Limited License (§13 ZHG), followed by a 2-year university supervised extramural practical training (according to the federal Academic Council’s advice) to fulfil EU Parliament’s Directive 2005/36 EG Art. 24, resulting in Full License (§ 2 ZHG) (see figure 1 [Fig. 1]).

Result: The intended reorganisation

• conserves the quality of the hitherto, unchanged curriculum and allows the intended curricular changes without any special hurdles.
• strengthens European competitiveness and reaches employability in a shorter as previous time.
• assures that the shorter length of study is related to the half-life time of actual medical knowledge.
• meets the Bachelor standard by delivery of an employable dentist after 3 years but without any need to install this degree.
• allows students to start specialization two years earlier as before.

Conclusion: The reorganisation has no influence on existing curricula; structures stay preserved. Graduates are younger as previously, more competitive – with an interim limited license – as a full employable and (as formerly) qualified dentist. If needed as Bachelor enabled to meet the Bologna Recommendations exemplary. Curriculum time is adapted to the half-value time of medical knowledge. These characteristics stay unchanged if the reorganisation principles are applied to a formerly 6 year curriculum with a four year result.