Dear Colleagues and Friends,

the IADS was founded in the year 1951 in Kopenhagen/Denmark – thus since more than 53 years it is known to dental students from all over the world, serving as a platform for exchange of knowledge and experiences about dentistry at an international level.

The main goal of IADS always has been to unite the world’s dental students, to give them the opportunity to meet and discuss about their education, their profession and their future as a dentist. And a side effect of this were and are livelong friendships between people who would never have met without the Association.

As the only worlwide association for dental students, the main goal of IADS is the representation of the coming members of the dental profession.

Like in every student organization this has not always been very easy. Thanks to several eager students who gave big efforts to run this association it is still alive and well known to lots of colleagues as the IADS Family.

Nowadays the IADS Family is counting 25 country and school members and is glad about its close contact to the FDI (World Dental Federation – the Central Office of IADS is at FDI Headquarters in Ferney-Voltaire in France), to YDW (Young Dentists Worldwide) and to other organizations like the EDSA (European Dental Students Association) or the IFMSA (International Federation of Medical Students’ Association) and more.

A six-person Executive Committee is responsible for the management of the Association’s affairs. It is their job to realize the ideas and decisions which were made together with the national representatives of the IADS member countries during the IADS meetings.

  • President: Mr Taskin Tuna, Germany
  • General Secretary: Dr Ahmed Hawas, Egypt
  • Editor: Dr Marc Antal, Hungary
  • Treasurer: Mr Jörn Wittig, Germany
  • International Exchange Officer: Mrs Ivana Boras, Slovenia
  • Immediate Past President: Dr Iwona Olszewska


Current Activities

  • With its International Students’ Exchange Programme (ISEP) IADS made it possible for more than 85 dental students to realize an exchange to a dental faculty of another member country in the period of 2002/2003

  • With its Annual World Congress it still provides the unique opportunity to all colleagues to meet at one place on the globe (recent congresses were held in Cape Town/South Africa in 1994, Sao Paulo/Brasil in 1995, Gutenberg/Sweden in 1996, San Juan/Puerto Rico in 1997, Istanbul 1999, Buggiba/Malta in 2000, Kuala Lumpur/Malaysia in 2001, Sharm El-Sheikh/Egypt in 2002 and in Istanbul/Turkey 2003)

  • The IADS E-mail group is used by more than 400 students and dentists, where dental cases and news about dentistry are being discussed

  • Through the SCORE (Standing Committee on Research and Education – created during the IADS Congress in Egypt in 2002) dental science and education shall become more important in the future of IADS – several programmes have been started, e.g. the collection of a database of all postgraduate courses at dental faculties in the whole world in order to present them on the IADS website

  • The IADS Newsletter (the Winter Edition 2004 is going to be distributed by beginning of March by FDI) which shall inform about what happened in the dental world


Future Goals

Since the last congress in Istanbul 2003 the current Executive Committee is working hard in order to settle a structure which shall provide a safer continuity of IADS engagement for the future.

By this, following Executive Committees shall be relieved of lots of basic work after their election. And by this their service and the representation of their colleagues shall become even more the midpoint of their work.

Dental students of the whole world shall be able to identify with IADS as an institution that represents their needs and interests and which is their speaking-tube.

But never forget, the Association is your Association, it depends on everybodie’s contribution!

After 25 years IADS again in Germany...

That is why for Berlin 2004 the congress programme has been modified and divided into 3 main parts just in order to involve every participant into the action:

Students’ Meeting
Scientific Programme
Social Programme

For the first time after years, there will be a students meeting again, which will be your platform for discussion and exchange in any field you want. It is your congress!

We are also looking forward to having the Young Dentists Worldwide with us and so both the Congress Committee and the IADS Executive Committee hope to make it an unforgettable week in Berlin for all our participants.

Our wish is to let you go back home with lots of new ideas, perceptions, nice memories and experiences, and lots to tell your colleagues and friends in your country.

“Don’t miss it, be part of it!”

Yours,
Taskin Tuna
President IADS
Congress Committee Member Berlin 2004

For more information about IADS please visit www.iads-web.org.