The Bachelor of Oral Hygiene (BOH) is is a three-year degree programme during which students receive training in basic medical and dental subjects. Theory and practice are integrated from the first year of study. The second half of the first year is dedicated to training in the pre-clinical training ward. Thereafter, from the second year, students treat patients in the well-equipped Oral and Dental Hospital. The work includes the education of patients, oral hygiene instruction, polishing and scaling of teeth, fluoride application and the application of fissure-sealing agents to teeth. It furthermore includes, among other functions, placement of certain restorations and administering of local anaesthesia.
Oral hygiene entails the maintenance and care of the teeth and gums. The oral hygienist plays an important role in the evaluation, planning, prevention and treatment of diseases of the oral cavity and renders a preventative, educational and therapeutic service to each patient and to the community. In addition to their role as students, aspirant oral hygienists have a variety of other tasks to perform. These include participation in community projects, visits to nursery schools and special need schools for oral care maintenance. Community service includes visits to the Steve Biko Academic Hospital’s children’s oncology ward and the Phelophepa Health Train from which a dental service is rendered to the community.
Oral hygiene is an excellent career choice, especially for those who wish to organise their working days according to their own needs. It is a challenging occupation with a high degree of job satisfaction, security and a good income. Oral hygienists play a very important role in modern society. They are trained to inform people about maintaining good oral hygiene. A large part of their daily activities is dedicated to carrying out preventative treatment procedures.
Since oral hygienists deal with people all the time, they must have good interpersonal relationship skills, a spontaneous nature and lots of patience. Above all, they should have excellent communication skills, a sense of responsibility and the ability to tackle challenges.
For more information, please consult the Faculty webpage.
Oral hygienists
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Important information for all prospective students for 2022
Transferring students
A transferring student is a student who, at the time of application for a degree programme at the University of Pretoria (UP) –
A transferring student will be considered for admission based on
Note: Students who have been dismissed at the previous institution due to poor academic performance, will not be considered for admission to UP.
Returning students
A returning student is a student who, at the time of application for a degree programme –
A returning student will be considered for admission based on
Note: Students who have been excluded/dismissed from a faculty due to poor academic performance may be considered for admission to another programme at UP. The Admissions Committee may consider such students if they were not dismissed more than twice. Only ONE transfer between UP faculties will be allowed, and a maximum of two (2) transfers within a faculty.
Important faculty-specific information on undergraduate programmes for 2022
University of Pretoria website click here
Minimum requirements | |||
Achievement level | |||
English Home Language or English First Additional Language | Mathematics | Physical Sciences | APS |
NSC/IEB | NSC/IEB | NSC/IEB | |
4 | 4 | 4 | 25 |
Selection criteria are available on the faculty's webpage at: click here.
3 years, full-time.
The Faculty of Health Sciences continues to exemplify and build on the University of Pretoria’s vision of being a leading research-intensive university in Africa: it is recognised internationally for its quality, relevance and impact, as well as for creating knowledge, developing people and making a difference locally and globally.
The Faculty is home to 5 500 undergraduate and 1 500 postgraduate students, including medical and dental fellowship training in more than 40 disciplines.
The Faculty’s research output has grown, in response to the need for research that is relevant to the improvement of health and health care and advancing medicine in South Africa, Africa and globally.
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