Nebraska is fortunate to have dental two schools within our state. The University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) is a public school based in Lincoln and Creighton School of Dentistry is a private school located in Omaha. Having two dental colleges Nebraska is ahead of most states in training a professional health care workforce to meet needs, but there is always concern if enough providers will remain in state to provide services to Nebraskans. Training programs and incentive opportunities (see below) are in place within the state to encourage Nebraska dental graduates to remain and practice in the state, particularly in rural communities.

Extramural Rotations: Both UNMC and Creighton offer extramural and elective programs that match upper class dental students to public and private locations across the state for 4-6 week periods. These experiences allow the students to gain valuable insight into professional life after school and exposes them to urban and rural parts of the state where they can provide comprehensive under the guidance of approved preceptors. Through this program students are often encouraged to return to these communities to practice.

Student Loan and Loan Repayment: The Office of Rural Health Advisory Commision currently offers two tax free incentive programs- the Nebraska Rural Health Student Loan Program and the Nebraska Loan Repayment Program are available to UNMC and Creighton students. The first is offered to Nebraska medical, dental, physician assistant, and graduate-level mental health students. Students can receive up to $20,000 per year for up to four years. The second can be obtained by licensed graduates and also pays up to $20,000 a year (with a 20K local community matching fund) over a 3 year period to repay student loans. This program encourages graduates in these fields to practice in underserved areas while receiving payment for their student loans.

3RNet Recruitment: National Rural Recruitment and Retention Network (3RNet) is a national non-profit organization that connects rural and underserved communities with health care professionals. It networks with numerous resources around Nebraska to provide background information about current practice opportunites. It also creates a data base of available dental practices in rural and urban settings and currently lists about 35 sites. It is coordinated through the UNMC College of Dentistry Rural Opportunities Program.

UNMC College of Public Health: In 2010 Nebraska opened this center in Omaha that focuses on issues such as urban/rural health, global health, environmental health and biostatistics. The Office of Oral Health will seek opportunities to partner with this professional resource for assistance in dental epidemiology and evaluation.