Ohio State dental students will have a few extra days to study for their national board examinations after nearly 300 test packets were discovered missing from a locked suite in Postle Hall Monday morning.
“The exams were kept in a very restricted area, and not many people knew about the location”, said university spokeswoman Elizabeth Conlisk.
“We are currently investigating the situation, but as of now have no real leads,” said Ron Mihalec, chief of university police. There were no reported signs of forced entry, he said.
The dental exam, which is administered nationally at the same time, has been rescheduled for Friday. The dental hygiene exam will be administered as planned, with new test forms arriving via overnight mail, according to a statement.
All students taking the dental exam must take it on Friday, Conlisk said.
“This is a very rare occurrence and has never happened before, in the five years that I’ve been here,” said Dr. Laura Neumann, associate executive director of Education for the American Dental Association.
Missing exams at the university is not a common occurrence, Mihalec said.
“The exams that were stolen will not be used again. We also periodically recirculate old tests in order to ensure the integrity of the exam,” Neumann said.
According to the ADA’s Web site, the National Board Dental Examinations are used to assist state boards in determining the qualifications of dentists who seek a license to practice dentistry.
One-hundred-nineteen OSU students were supposed to take the dental exam, while the dental hygiene exam was administered mainly to students from other schools around Ohio, Conlisk said.
