Perceived Didactic Curricular Effectiveness of In-Person vs. Virtual Formats amongst Fourth-Year Dental Students.

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic altered the methodologies of dental education delivery, resulting in both immediate and more enduring changes. To assess student perceptions of learning effectiveness, graduating dental students from the class of 2020 were surveyed to identify student comfort with technology and content retention, individual motivation and mental focus, and access to resources pertaining to an abrupt transition to a virtual learning didactic seminar approach in March 2020.

Methods: a voluntary, 18-question electronic survey was distributed to fourth-year dental students prior to graduation to assess perceptions of learning outcomes and preferences of a virtual seminar format relative to previous in-person didactic seminars experienced.