I hope to be remembered after completing your distinguished Fellowship Program in Implant Prosthodontics at the XXXX University School of Dentistry (XXUSD) as a dentist from the former USSR who thinks of Implant Dentistry in global terms. I could not be more excited about my application to your program because, as a dentist who has practiced for decades, I see the rise of Implant Dentistry as one of the most crucial advancements in oral health rehabilitation. I have already had some informal training in the past and received excellent basic training in this area here in my DMD Program at XXXX, which I will be completed before entry into your program at XXUSD – this will help me to excel. XXUSD is my first choice for various reasons, in addition to its location. I appreciate the interdisciplinary nature and academic excellence of your program, in addition to the state-of-the-art care provided to patients.
I am a practicing dentistry professional originally from Moldova who has immigrated permanently to America. I want to thank you for considering the application of an older, non-traditional student for acceptance into your program. I ask for special consideration based on the fact that I have an extensive understanding of the challenges confronting the advancement of dentistry on a global level, especially in Asia, and I am confident that this will enable me to make valuable contributions to discussions about challenges in our field, Implant Prosthodontics, in different areas of the world.
I want very much to be the older man in the class, which I think is healthy for academic diversity, and I feel strongly that the presence of a more senior, non-traditional student with vast experience in a critical part of the world is good for the academic community. Furthermore, I plan to work as hard as my body allows for another 2 to 3 decades. Based on the world-class education that I hope to receive by completing your world-class program in Implant Prosthodontics, I am most confident that I will have much to contribute to our profession over the long term. I feel strongly that my unique life experiences will propel me forward to significant contributions to dentistry that I am still destined to fulfill.
I was born in Russia’s Siberia and have visited and lived in numerous countries, consistently exercising my profession as a dentist in one way or another: participating in scientific conferences, observerships, hands-on seminars, and trade shows. The list of countries in which I have engaged on some professional level includes Germany, the Czech Republic, Israel, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Russia, and Ukraine. I have studied German and Hebrew; English is my second language after Russian. I learned German because I wanted to communicate with my colleagues in Germany.
Working as a general dentist, providing patients, especially elderly ones, with removable appliances, and restoring edentulous or partially edentulous arches, I have always striven for perfection. The first time that I heard about implants, I was overjoyed. I immediately saw the potential for my patients and the way that this creative technology would help me to solve complex clinical challenges, so I was anxious to perform implants myself.
My family and I immigrated to the USA several years ago, and in 2015 I began my DMD studies at XXXX School of Dental Medicine. Even though implant dentistry is incorporated into our program here at Rutgers, I feel like I need additional training to be completely confident in providing my patients with the most acceptable treatment option and perhaps teaching in this area in the future. Most of all, I want to make sure that I provide all my own patients with absolutely state-of-the-art implants.
I am most keenly looking forward to intensive clinical training in both fixed and removable Implant Prosthodontics, combined with the complete possible immersion in the literature concerning Dental Implantology – preparing me for research engagement in this area. The experience of completing your program will result in new, incredibly creative energy that I will to devote to the cause of dental missions to the Developing World, in my case, Central Asia in particular – as well as here in the USA. I want to begin or become part of a multidisciplinary dental institute, perhaps a "Head and Neck Center," where together with other colleagues and specialists, we could not only implement the most recent and advanced technology available in the rehabilitation of the health status of our patients, but this would also be an excellent platform for valuable research in new and advanced treatment methods.
I ask to be considered for admission based on my well-established passion for dentistry. Dentistry is my life, and I have now devoted 25 years to it, a lot of postdoctoral education, abundant experience. Your program will bring my international education to fruition in America where I can now blossom as a dentist like never before.
I thank you for considering my application.