Dr Farnaz Akbarian-Tefaghi, BDS (University College London)

Profile

I graduated from King’s College London in 2008. I completed my Vocational Training within the London scheme and subsequently worked as a Senior House Officer at King’s College Hospital in the Paediatric, Maxillofacial, Acute Dental Care, and Oral Medicine departments. After this, I joined Aachen University Hospital in Germany, where I spent two years in the Orthodontic Department, followed by one year in the Oral Surgery Department, during which I gained experience teaching undergraduate students. I then moved to a private referral practice and worked as a General Dental Practitioner for several years.

I have also achieved Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) by successfully completing a two-year fellowship programme at QMUL (PgCert), graduating with Distinction.

Centre: Oral Bioengineering

Teaching

I am involved in the teaching of all BDS undergraduate students (Years 1–5), Dental Hygiene and Therapy students (Years 1–3), as well as several postgraduate programmes, including:
•    DClinDent Oral Surgery
•    DClinDent Oral Medicine
•    DClinDent Paediatrics
•    DClinDent Orthodontics
•    DClinDent MID
•    MSc in Dental Science

My teaching responsibilities include delivering seminars, lectures, radiology teaching sessions, and small-group tutorials for both undergraduate and postgraduate students. I support learners in developing their diagnostic skills, radiographic interpretation, and understanding of evidence-based radiology principles. I also contribute to curriculum development by creating structured teaching materials and learning resources.

I am responsible for designing, delivering, and coordinating all dental radiology summative and formative assessments across the BDS, BSc, and postgraduate programmes. This includes the development and standardisation of OSCEs (Objective Structured Clinical Examinations), SCRs (Structured Clinical Reasoning assessments), SAQs (Short Answer Questions), and Radiology Gateway assessments. My role also involves ensuring alignment with learning outcomes, overseeing quality assurance processes, and supporting academic colleagues involved in radiology assessment.

Additionally, I serve as the Radiology Audit Lead for the MSc postgraduate programme. In this capacity, I oversee radiology-focused audit projects, ensuring they meet academic and clinical quality improvement standards. I guide postgraduate students throughout the audit process from planning and methodology to data analysis, interpretation, and final presentation.

I also act as a BDS academic adviser, providing pastoral and academic support through regular small-group sessions and individual consultations. This includes assisting students with academic challenges, study strategies, professionalism, and overall wellbeing.

Research

Publications

1. Utilising previous radiographs: the principle of dose optimisation (British Journal of Radiology BJR,2020) Farnaz Akbarian Tefaghi, Ashok Adams, Jimmy Makdissi
2. Anatomy in panoramic imaging. B. Pritchard, F. Akbarian Tefaghi & J. Makdissi, British Dental Journal Volume 228, page 229(2020)
3. Dens evaginatus B. Pritchard, F. Akbarian Tefaghi & J. Makdissi, British Dental Journal Volume 228, page 397(2020)