Table 5.

Representative examples of categorized free text responses from students

Categories and codes	Praise (n = 42)	Criticism (n = 32)	Suggestions (n = 37)
Idea of the course
Nursing home visits	“The visit to the nursing home was very good.”
Concept of the course	“I think the idea of the project is very good and important.”
Good supplement to common dentistry studies	“A good complement to the everyday university life.”
Organization and structure
Multi-semester approach	“Working for more than one semester was very exciting.”	“It’s difficult to combine the fourth, sixth and eighth semester in one course.”
eLearning resource	“The group at Moodle is well structured.”
Timeframe		“Unfortunately, it’s not possible to combine it with all timetables because of the time.”	“The weekly lectures should rather be bi- or tri-weekly, and can then also be longer”
Nursing home visits		“Unfortunately, the implementation (medical treatment, etc.) in the nursing homes is very limited.”	“More practical training!”
Courses	“Good organization!”	“Fewer lectures - instead teach more regarding oral health in old age!”	“Fewer lectures, more seminars for preparation for the nursing home visits!”
Supervision
Faculty motivation	“The lecturers were motivated; they also explained many things in the nursing home.”
Faculty support and supervising	“I always felt very well supervised.”
Accessibility	“The tutors were always accessible.”
Learning experience
Theoretical knowledge	“The training course of the foundation was great!”	“Too little new knowledge gained from the lectures.”	“Fewer lectures, more seminars!”
Practical training	“Good handling with the patients; you gain experience how difficult it can be to treat patients.”	“Because of being six persons per patient, it wasn’t possible to learn much, to question the patient, nor to establish a relationship.”	“More preparation for the nursing home visits, e.g. a role-playing game.”
Experience with older patients	“The project itself is great - and the patients were mostly very pleased.”
Psychosocial skills	“A good complement to the everyday university life, especially supporting the social and communicative characteristics as well as working with more than one semester, melded together.”