Fellowship has its roots in companionship, spiritual connections and equality among a group of equal friends. Being a Dental Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh is a high accolade, and one that is either awarded through examination or through one of the non-examination routes.

Before delving further into this topic, I would like to pay tribute to one of our distinguished Fellows in Dental Surgery, Dr Geoffrey Howard Moody, who sadly passed away in April after a short illness. Howard was a Dental Fellow from early on in his career, becoming Honorary Secretary (1994-1999) and Vice Dean (2004-2007) to the Faculty of Dental Surgery. Howard espoused enthusiasm for fellowship in all senses throughout his career as an academic pathologist and forensic odontologist. Regarding the latter activities, Howard was involved in identification of human remains from the Lockerbie disaster and identifying a human bite mark as a key piece of evidence in the World’s End murders. Not only did Howard work tirelessly for the Faculty of Dental Surgery but, in retirement, he invested considerable energy in supporting the College and, in his private life, Howard was exceptionally charitable. Howard is one of the few dentists to have been awarded FRCS Ad Hominem and such ‘double’ fellowship speaks volumes about his commitment to RCSEd throughout his life.

Of the many literary references to fellowship, The Fellowship of the Ring is perhaps the best known. In it, JRR Tolkien sets out the ultimate benefit of fellowship over the desire for individual power and greed. The nine members of the Free Peoples, formed during the War of the Ring, demonstrate the transformation of innocence to enlightenment in the aged conflict of good over evil. In the book, Tolkien regularly refers to the group as the Company which, in turn, comes from the Latin companio, a person who shares bread, indicating a shared purpose such as co-travelling.

In the academic environment of yesteryear, fellowship was the recognition of achieving distinguished status as a high-ranked and learned teacher or researcher. Historically, holding an academic fellowship often resulted in a stipend for the period of study. Times have moved on, and ‘fellowship’ is now used for a range of roles in academia of varying levels of prestige. I would argue for the better.

The Fellowship in Dental Surgery (FDS RCSEd) examination started in 1949 when, for the first time, people could become an RCSEd Dental Fellow through examination. The first person to become a Dental Fellow was Frederick Akel on 19 July 1950, who was awarded Dental Roll Number 1. Dental Fellows continued to be awarded a unique Dental Roll Number until 9 July 1993, when Nirmala Ramwaroop Tasgaonkar was elected to the Dental Fellowship. Her Dental Roll Number, 1019, was the last to be awarded and, since then, Dental Roll Numbers have been integrated into a single consecutive collection with surgical Fellows. This means dental and surgical Fellows alike are “… entitled to share all of the honours and privileges enjoyed by the Fellows of the said College” as is stated on my Fellowship certificate, which hangs proudly in my study.

The 1950s must have been an exciting time for dental surgery in our College, with Dental Council being formed in 1954. The pass rate for the fledgling FDS RCSEd examination was, however, woefully low. Whilst all generations talk of their examinations being harder than those of today, the rigorous standards and processes of the current exams are welcome in relation to validity and overall fairness. I sat my FDS examination in the 1990s and, whilst this was at a sister College, it was not an easier examination than the RCSEd examination of the time. It was, however, fair. Part 1 was a series of essays and vivas on basic sciences, with Part 2 being equally terrifying in relation to the breadth and depth of the questions during the vivas. Whilst I remember from my studies that CREST syndrome has a prevalence of 0.02%, I would contest that it is much rarer as I have never seen such a diagnosis in the intervening three decades!

With the advent of the Dental Specialty Lists in the UK during the late 1990s, the decision was taken that the FDS examination would become the Membership of the Faculty of Dental Surgery (MFDS) examination. The new ‘Consultant’ examination became the Intercollegiate Specialty Fellowship Examinations (ISFE) for six of the dental specialties at Fellowship level within the four surgical Colleges. Unfortunately, the ISFE examinations have never been available internationally, or across all of the dental specialties. This will be addressed in 2026 with the new Dental Specialty Fellowship Examinations being at Fellowship level and, for the first time, open to all across the world. This will mean the career journey within RCSEd (and the other surgical Colleges) will be logical with all membership exams preceding fellowship. With fellowship by examination being available to everyone, I’m sure Tolkien would approve of this enlightened position.

Going back in time, the RCSEd FDS by Assessment was introduced in 2000 as a route to fellowship for those precluded from achieving fellowship through examination, and the FDS Without Examination system was subsequently introduced in 2015. Achieving fellowship either through examination or non-examination is equal within RCSEd. Fellowship Without Examination remains in place today and I would encourage everyone eligible to apply (more of this later). More recently, Membership Without Examination was added to the membership routes.

The recent programme to offer conversion for holders of Dental Specialty Membership examinations from January 2020 onwards as a component of the Specialty Membership to Specialty Fellowship programme has proven very successful – over half of the members eligible have already elected to convert to Specialty Fellowship. More will follow. The Membership Department has processed hundreds of applications in a very short time and my thanks go to the team, led by Verity Williams, Head of Membership and Ceremonial, and Neil Hamilton, Membership Manager. The first cohort has already attended recent Diploma Ceremonies.

Whilst this is a very positive move for our College, Dental Council has heard the voices of those who are not eligible for the automatic conversion to Fellowship. As the Membership in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, the Membership in Implant Dentistry and the Membership in Advanced General Dental Surgery examinations are not dental specialty examinations in the UK, these are not able to be converted to Specialty Fellowships. Furthermore, those who passed a specialty membership examination more than five years ago have the existing opportunity to convert to Fellowship trough the Fellowship Without Examination system, which continues in the background. This is overseen by the Dental Honorary Secretary, Professor Ivor Chestnutt, and holders of these examinations are encouraged to apply for Fellowship through the non-examination route. As the Faculty governance review progresses, the Fellowship Without Examination process will inevitably be reviewed.

The Fellowship Without Examination (Fellowship and Membership in Dental Surgery without Examination | RCSEd) procedures are currently included in College Law 108 (which will become Dental Regulation 22 following the conclusion of the governance review). There are three routes for people to become Fellows in Dental Surgery (and Members in Dental Surgery) without the need for a further examination. Within the system, route 1 is designed for Fellows in Dental Surgery of sister Royal Colleges. All that is required is a copy of the Fellowship diploma to be submitted. Route 2 is for registered dental practitioners, whose professional status is of high order and who are deemed to have rendered special service to Dental Surgery or to the College in particular. Route 3 is for registered dental practitioners, who have passed a recognised specialty examination/assessment. 

For routes 2 and 3, applicants are required to complete a form that includes demographic details, professional details, current employment, qualifications, evidence in support of the application, details of CPD over the previous five years, the name, email address and College reference number for five RCSEd Fellows in Dental Surgery in good standing, and a personal probity declaration. (The form is available at rcsed-fds-without-examination-application-form-1.docx.) The process is similar for Membership Without Examination. The specific evidence categories that require some thought are: a description of clinical practice over the previous five years; current research activities relating to dentistry; current involvement with undergraduate and/or postgraduate teaching and training in dentistry; evidence of management/leadership roles; evidence of previous engagement with and contributions to RCSEd; a statement of planned future contributions to RCSEd.

The scoring panel of Dental Council members meets quarterly to assess applications and the panel is advised that candidates need not score in every domain. Successful applications are then ratified at Dental Council, double-checked at the Awards Committee and a final step involves confirmation at College Council, often within a very short time. I would encourage all holders of the Membership in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, the Membership in Implant Dentistry and the Membership in Advanced General Dental Surgery examinations, as well as those who sat a Specialty Membership examination prior to January 2020, to apply for Fellowship Without Examination. 

As a modern academic institution, the College also awards Fellowships in relation to research, travel and education (the Maurice Wohl Research Fellowship in Surgery and Dental Surgery, and the Fellowship in Dental Education and Clinical Experience) as well as grants and scholarships (the Tom Bereznicki Dental Educational Grant, RCSEd-British Orthodontic Society Research Grant, Small Pump Priming Grants in Cancer Research, Jane Goodman Memorial Scholarship in Paediatric Dentistry) as well as the King James IV Professorship. I would encourage all who are eligible to apply for these awards.

Tolkien clearly saw community and fellowship as the right way. He intentionally scripted the Company in The Fellowship of the Ring as diverse in culture and personal qualities, and – more importantly – bound by friendship. Tolkien would have approved of the RCSEd Fellowship in Dental Surgery. For holders of non-specialty membership examinations and for those with a specialty membership for more than five years, there is a specific Fellowship Without Examination route designed for you.

I am always delighted to hear from Members and Fellows, so please feel free to contact me at dental@rcsed.ac.uk.