Future looking brighter for dentistry graduates as profession is removed from the Skilled Occupations List
In a win for Australian dentists, The Federal Government has removed the professions of “dentist” and “dental specialists” from the Skilled Occupations List from today, 1st July 2015.
Dr Rick Olive AM RFD, President of the ADA said, “It is immensely satisfying to get word of a decision that will help secure the future of Australian dental students and new graduates, but the issue is not yet at a close.
“The reality is there is an oversupply of dentists in Australia, and while applications from overseas practitioners seeking to occupy positions available to Australian graduates will reduce as of today, the exponentially increasing number of students entering Australian dental schools is still a major factor.
This is where our energies must now be focused. This is about the future of Australian graduates.”
The Australian Dental Association and the Australian Dental Students Association made announcements of the Government’s decisions via Facebook on 30th June.
Dental Professionals,
It is with immense satisfaction I can announce that through vigorous campaigning by the ADA over a number of years, the Federal Government has removed dentists and dental specialists from the Skilled Occupations List.
This is a major step towards addressing the current workforce oversupply and giving Australian graduates better opportunities after graduation.
Rick Olive
President
Australian Dental Association
The Australian Dental Students Association posted:
** BREAKING NEWS from ADA **
“After campaigning relentlessly, the ADA has been successful in getting dentists and dental specialists removed from the Skilled Occupations List!
This is a major step towards addressing the current workforce oversupply and giving Australian graduates better opportunities after graduation.”
Happy days!!
The Australian Dental Students Association have also taken to Facebook to share a message for international students. They said that:
International students studying in Australia are still eligible to work after graduation but they just have to apply through the Post-Study Work Stream and for other work visas. Students are encouraged to speak with the Department of Immigration and Border Protection for further information regarding this.
The fact that Australian dental graduates will no longer have over 200 overseas dentists per year to compete with for jobs should lead to an increased full time employment rate at the end of their course.
More articles about the Australian dental workforce on My Health Career:
- Over 20% of 2014 dental graduates missed out on a full time job
- Despair for dental graduates as dentistry remains on the Skilled Occupations List (2014-2015)
- Australian Dental Association calls on government to review dental workforce
- 1 in 6 dental graduates seeking full time employment (2013 grads)
Image: stockimages – freedigitalphotos.net