Puerto Rico Dental and Other Health Professions Student Orientation and Recruitment Program. Executive Summary and Final Report.

A report on the Puerto Rico Dental and Other Health Professions Student Orientation and Recruitment program is presented. Project objectives were to: (1) plan, develop, implement, and assess a formal recruitment program designed to enroll and train a higher proportion of highly qualified Puerto Rican high school and baccalaureate students for the D.D.S. degree; and (2) design and implement an orientation program to complement the formal recruitment program. The orientation program was designed to interest students in choosing a career in the health professions in general, including dental and dental auxiliary careers. Project activities included: (1) the reorganization and integration of all recruitment and orientation services of the Medical Sciences Campus; (2) eliciting the participation of faculty and students from the five schools of the Medical Sciences Campus; (3) developing promotional materials; (4) undertaking recruitment efforts in programs with a recruitment problem; (5) conducting orientation programs in the six regions; (6) coordination with health centers for orientation purposes; (7) establishing an information and counseling service within the Deanship of Student Affairs. Information on assessment goals and level of achievement are presented, and problem areas are listed. Overall benefits of the project are also outlined. (SW)