Еducational challenges in dental medicine during COVID-19 pandemic period.

The COVID - 19 pandemic imposed introduction of digitalization in the dental educational process, with important consequences in academic life. The main educational impact of the digitalization among the dental students of “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, was further assessed. An anonymous survey consisting of sociodemographic items and questions regarding perceptions of educational impact, was completed by 878 students. The level of acquiring the academic information through the online teaching system was regarded low by more than 1/3 of the respondents, whilst gain of practical skills was considered to be major affected by almost 50%. Overall, digitalization had an important impact on the educational aspects for our students. Students’ perceptions regarding the online distribution of the curricular theoretical content may contribute to further improvement of eteaching skills and strategies among university lecturers.