Global Engagement

The WVU School of Dentistry provides students with the opportunity to engage in global health initiatives, providing graduates with the skills necessary to practice as well-rounded, culturally competent dental professionals in a multicultural and dynamic healthcare workforce.

Humanitarian Mission

Through a partnership with a West Virginia-based organization, students and faculty in the School of Dentistry travel to Guatemala each spring to provide free care to the country’s rural population through Hands and Hearts Surgical Missions. The annual humanitarian trip is an opportunity for students to work in hospitals, clinics and rural villages providing services to patients of all ages including extractions, restorations, fluoride applications, x-rays and more.

In 2025, students and faculty traveled to Hermano Pedro Hospital in Antigua, Guatemala, to provide basic dental care to underserved local Guatemalan and Mayan patients.

The mission is open to eight third- and fourth-year DDS students and usually takes place during Spring Recess in March. Funding opportunities are available to students to participate in international missions, including the Overman Scholarship, Nancy Sanders Scholarship and Fogerty Scholarship, and all participating students receive adequate pre-travel preparation and training before departure.

ERASMUS+

As one of only two dental schools in the U.S. to participate in the European Community Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students (ERASMUS+) program, the WVU School of Dentistry is able to provide students and faculty with unique opportunities to collaborate with partners in Eastern Europe. Focusing on academics, research and community service, the evidence-based, cross-national clerkship program aims to help students build knowledge and communication skills to function successfully in a multicultural environment. This program is open to four DDS students in the fourth year of the program with an interest in global dentistry and who are up to date on clinical and academic requirements.

Through an exchange with the Medical University of Sofia Faculty of Dental Medicine or Medical University of Plovdiv Faculty of Dental Medicine, students will participate in a monthlong experience performing outreach activities in underserved communities to address issues of dental practice, education and science, as well as world dental development and health promotion. Participating students from both institutions will follow a structured schedule that shadows the host institution’s academic routine, including patient care under the supervision of a preceptor, allowing for a hands-on, well-rounded and balanced service-learning experience in global dentistry. For WVU students in Bulgaria, community clinical rotations involve patient experiences with indigent Roma citizens and local orphans. They will also participate in training seminars focused on dental implants and head and neck surgeries.

The objective of this international student exchange program is to share knowledge and experiences among dental students of the global community to provide insight into oral health within and beyond national boundaries. The training will also provide students with necessary knowledge and skills to deal with diverse populations. Exposing the students to different cultures furthers students’ understanding of cultural attitudes towards oral health and the doctor-patient relationship that they can carry into their practice back home.

Interprofessional Initiatives

WVU Health Sciences is a member of the Consortium of Universities for Global Health (CUGH), a group of over 190 academic institutions and other partners around the world engaged in addressing global health challenges. The CUGH mission is to support its members to improve the well-being of people and the planet through education, research, service and advocacy.

Global Engagement programs at WVU Health Sciences welcome the active participation of all health professions students including dentistry, medicine, nursing, pharmacy and public health as well as faculty and staff in the promotion of global health services. To support these activities, travel awards are offered to students who participate in globally focused field placements or community-based research projects.

WVU Global Medical and Dental Brigades travel to rural Nicaragua, Panama, Honduras and Ghana each spring to facilitate medical, dental and public health tasks. Over the course of the brigades, participants work with medical and dental professionals to provide care to patients and tackled several public health initiatives.

Contact

To learn more about opportunities provided by the WVU School of Dentistry, contact Director of Global Engagement Dr. Chris Ivanoff.