A shrinking oral health clinical academic workforce puts research, education and the NHS at risk

The latest annual census by the Dental Schools Council (DSC) exposes alarming trends in the UK’s dental clinical academic workforce, highlighting an urgent need for decisive action from the government, universities and the NHS.

The senior clinical academic workforce is ageing rapidly and national recognition through Clinical Excellence Awards and Clinical Impact Awards has reached its lowest level ever. Dental clinical academics work between education and research while also delivering specialist clinical care directly to patients. They underpin the UK’s capacity to produce high-quality clinical research and train the dental team and specialists that patients depend on.

Teaching and research under strain with a workforce in retreat

The total number of full-time equivalent clinical academics in dentistry has fallen to 550 in 2025, representing a loss of 40 FTE roles in just one year. Every major academic grade has experienced contraction.

Clinical academics now account for only 2.3% of the entire dental workforce.
The number of Clinical Teachers has reduced by 25%, Professors by 17.6%, and Lecturers by 13.3% from 2024.
More than a quarter of clinical academics are now aged over 55, indicating a growing risk of sudden gaps in senior expertise. This is most acute at Professor level, where nearly two-thirds are over 55.

This pattern reflects not only fewer new entrants into academic careers but also a weakening of senior capacity and the ability of institutions to succession plan. With fewer academic staff available to teach, dental schools face increasing challenges in maintaining high-quality training. Reduced senior capacity also constrains the ability to undertake major clinical research projects. Over time this threatens the UK’s position in global oral health research and risks a narrowing of the evidence base that informs NHS practice.

A workforce should reflect the communities it serves

While women now make up almost half of the dental clinical academic workforce (48.1%), only 33.3% are Professors. Appropriate representation of all ethnicities in clinical academia also remains a weakness.

Senior academic roles remain overwhelmingly White, with 78.6% of professors identifying as White.
One in four Clinical Teachers identify as being from an Asian background – notably the highest proportion ever recorded.
Most concerning is the absence of Black Lecturers or Senior Lecturers, signalling a significant lack of representation in the academic pipeline.

While there are some positive trajectories, stronger support structures are needed to ensure greater progress. Representation is not only important for diverse research perspectives and outputs, but also to encourage a diverse pool of applicants through role models.

Recognition awards at their lowest level

The proportion of dental clinical academics holding a Clinical Excellence Award or Clinical Impact Award has fallen to just 3.2% which is the lowest level ever recorded.

Among Professors, fewer than one-third (29.4%) now hold an award, a sharp decline from 45.6% a decade ago.
Senior Lecturers have seen an even greater fall in recognition, from 24.2% ten years ago to just 2.6% today.

Awards play a vital role in recognising clinical academics’ contributions across patient care, research and education. Without a robust system of recognition, the sector risks losing talent to clinical and international research roles.

DSC leading on sector-wide report to rebuild research capacity

In recognition of the challenges highlighted in this recent clinical academic survey, the Dental Schools Council is taking multiple actions to strengthen the future of clinical research in dentistry. DSC is leading a sector-wide effort to address the declining number of clinical academics, by preparing an oral health clinical research workforce retention and recruitment report for the Office for Strategic Coordination of Health Research (OSCHR). The report will propose a set of evidence-based, coordinated, deliverable actions to rebuild capacity across the discipline and reverse the long-term decline in dental clinical researchers.

As well as enabling sector wide action, dental schools are working closely together to support research aspiration for undergraduates and to support research active staff. DSC, with the Medical Schools Council (MSC), has commissioned research into the causes of lower uptake of undergraduate intercalation. The DSC Research Committee and the DSC Clinical Academic working group are exploring further potential actions including a shared equipment list. Academic dental staff are also engaging with the catch.ac.uk website to provide clearer information on career pathways and advice from role models for early career researchers.

Professor Chris Vernazza, Head of Newcastle University School of Dental Sciences, and Project Executive for the OSCHR oral health sub-report writing project, said:

“Clinical academia in oral health is in crisis. Without intervention, we risk a profound loss of capacity across research, education and clinical leadership. The anticipated cliff edge due to a growing proportion of academics nearing retirement and the sharp drop in national recognition are particularly concerning. At the same time persistent inequalities with regards to representation highlight the need for structural change.

“To ensure clinical academia is a sustainable, rewarding, supported and accessible career path for all, we must work collaboratively with government, the NHS and universities. Targeted investment in early career pathways, improved reward structures and strategic regional support are essential. The future of dental education, the sustainability of our research environment and the quality of NHS patient care depend on a strong and well-supported clinical academic workforce. It is imperative that we act before the decline becomes irreversible.”

View the 2025 Dental Clinical Academic Survey.

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Notes to editors:

The Dental Schools Council is the authoritative voice of the dental schools within universities across the United Kingdom and Ireland. For information about the work of the Dental Schools Council, please see www.dentalschoolscouncil.ac.uk. The data collected on dental clinical academic staffing levels includes data from UK dental schools only.