IntroductionAlong with the recent trend of globalization and increasing cultural exchanges among countries, Asian countries are also becoming multicultural [1].Iran has also historically been a multiethnic, multi-religious, and multilingual society in which people from diverse cultures live together with their distinct sets of values [2].

Background & Objective: Clinical education is a fundamental part of nursing education.Management's role in nursing is vital and is closely related to the quality of care in medical centers.The present study was conducted to explain the experiences of final-year nursing students from the nursing management internship course. Materials & Methods:The present study is a conventional content analysis study conducted with the participation of 18 final-year nursing students.Data collection was done through semistructured interviews.The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using MAXQDA software version 2020, from which themes were inductively extracted.Data analysis led to the extraction of two themes and seven categories. Results:The first theme was guiding experiences, which included five categories of professional communication practice: strengthening teamwork skills, understanding multiple roles, understanding legal aspects, and enhancing personal development.The second theme was obstacles and experiences, which included two categories: understanding work stress and an inappropriate organizational atmosphere. Conclusion:According to the findings of the present study, passing the nursing management internship course can lead to the formation of a real perception of the tasks and responsibilities of the nursing profession in students.These perceptions can either strengthen or weaken students' professional outlooks.Therefore, the findings of this study can be valuable in designing nursing internships.

Background & Objective: It is essential to cultivate dentists who are not only technically proficient but also socially sensitive in order to reduce oral health disparities.Assessing attitudes has been emphasized in dental education within this context.This study aimed to assess dental students' attitudes toward less privileged populations.Material & Methods: This cross-sectional study utilized the valid Persian version of the "Dental Student Attitude Toward Underserved Population" (DSATU) questionnaire to evaluate the attitudes of first and final year dental students at Mashhad dental school toward deprived populations.The questionnaire consists of 21 Likert scale questions across four domains addressing social expectations, student responsibility, personal efficacy, and access to care.The outcome variables were the overall and domain-specific scores of the DSATU questionnaire.Independent variables included students' gender and academic year.Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 22. Results:The questionnaire was administered to 52 first-year and 58 final-year students, yielding a response rate of 90%.The majority of participants were final-year students (55.7%) and female (59.6%).First-year students generally exhibited a more positive perspective, scoring 8 points higher than final-year students in the total survey: 85.53 (81%) versus 76.66 (73%) out of a maximum of 105 points.The decline in attitudes among final-year students was statistically significant in total and all domain scores (p < 0.05).There was no statistically significant gender difference in total DSATU and subdomain scores, except for access to care (p = 0.037). Conclusion:This study suggests less favorable attitudes toward underserved populations among final-year students.Longitudinal rigorous evaluation of students' attitudes provides better insights into the effectiveness of dental education.

Letter to the Editor The idea of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) or educational scholarship, is a complex and interconnected concept that needs more exploration and understanding. Imagine educational scholarship as a river that should flow continuously; this river has its origin, route, and destination. The similarity is that if their movement and continuity are interrupted, which can lead to turmoil, this is not surprising. To understand the process conditions and success factors, knowing about the beginning and end of the path is necessary. Details of this pathway are provided. SoTL involves meeting specific requirements at individual and activity levels. Therefore, it requires prerequisites and agreements. Evidence indicates that this concept needs more explanation and attention, especially in Iran. Educational scholarship brings individual, institutional, and professional benefits. However, one major challenge it encounters, especially in the field of educational research, is the mistaken belief that the two concepts are similar, despite certain similarities. Here, we will explore the fundamental characteristics of SoTL, namely those that distinguish it from educational research, with the intention of providing guidance to those who work in this field.

Background & Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of male medical sciences students at Yazd University regarding the positive aspects of dormitory life and its impact on academic quality during the 2022-2023 academic year.Material & Methods: Using a qualitative and phenomenological method, 11 Yazd University dormitory students were chosen for the study using a criterion-based purposive sample technique.Semi-structured in-depth interviews were used to gather data, and they were conducted until data saturation was achieved.The Smith method was used for data analysis, and triangulation was used to ensure the accuracy of the results.Results: Three primary topics and seventeen supporting themes on students' experiences living in dorms and how it affected the quality of their education were found in the study.These themes, which were acknowledged as beneficial aspects of living in a dorm, included: Having a supportive atmosphere; Developing personal and professional capacities; and Ease of education and life. Conclusion:Research indicates that policymakers and planners can improve the quality of education and create more capable graduates for society by capitalizing on the advantages of living in dorms for medical students.

Background & Objective: Mentorship is essential for medical undergraduates' professional and personal development to enhance soft skills, knowledge, and academic performance. The present study analyzed the mentee's feedback about the program. The present cross-sectional (retrospective) study, approved by the ethics committee, was conducted between January and March 2022. One hundred fifty feedback forms (open and closed-ended questions) of 2016-2019 MBBS students (at the end of one and a half years of implementation) were analyzed. Data were represented as mean ± SD and median. Qualitative data was coded and analyzed descriptively. Results: 58% and 50.66% of mentees agreed on easy approachability and communication with mentors. 52.67 % agreed strongly, and 52% agreed that mentors listened actively to their problems and provided constructive feedback. 68.67% agreed and 56.67% agreed strongly that important lessons about personal, college, and career life were learned. 78.66% agreed that research motivation was provided. 71, 33%, and 60% agreed that mentoring helped improve academics and develop a conceptual learning style. 70% and 51.33% agreed that mentors helped them solve medical life problems and develop skills (communication, interpersonal, and humane values). 46.66% agreed that mentors encouraged them to participate in sports or extracurricular activities. 52% agreed strongly that their mentors had a professional attitude, 47.33% agreed mentors were beneficial to them, and 46.67% agreed strongly to recommend their mentors for future professional and personal development activities. Open-ended analysis showed that, in decreasing order, the most beneficial developmental activities performed with their mentors were problem-solving (40.56%), guidance, counseling (34.26%), and soft skill development (13.85%). Menttes considered time constraints a hurdle and suggested scheduled, regular meetings and the use of social media for the program's effectiveness. Regular feedback, evaluation, and perceptions of mentees are vital for the mentorship program.

Sill et al.

IntroductionA variety of English examinations are administered to screen out university applicants in healthcare majors across the world.For instance, the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) is regarded as one of the toughest exams in the world; it measures candidates' clinical abilities, medical knowledge, and English language ability (1).Also, the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) is a multiple-choice examination for admission to medical schools in the USA (2).Another well-known test is the Occupational English Test (OET), which evaluates the language communication abilities of healthcare professionals seeking to register and practice in an English-speaking workplace (3).In India, the Foreign Pre-Medical Entrance Test is administered (4, 5).In Iran, similar tests are designed by the Center for the Measurement of Medical Education in order to assess the language abilities of applicants in the healthcare majors.National university entrance exams, publicly known as Konkour in Iran, are administered at undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate levels.While hundreds of thousands of high school graduates participate in the undergraduate nationwide exam (6), participants in the graduate and postgraduate exams just amount to tens of

Background & Objective: In the field language, teaching written corrective feedback (WCF) has attracted considerable attention as a beneficial pedagogical technique. The present study aimed to determine the short-term and long-term effectiveness of WCF strategies for ameliorating English for specific purposes (ESP) nursing students' writing ability in English nursing reports . In this quasi-experimental study, the researcher employed convenience sampling to select 93 intermediate-level learners from three intact classes at a university of medical sciences in Iran as participants based on their results on the Oxford Placement Test. The researcher then assigned these classes to three experimental groups, including direct WCF, indirect WCF, and meta-linguistic WCF groups. He administered a writing pre-test to all groups. Subsequently, each of these groups received their pertinent WCF treatment in 10 sessions. Following the completion of the treatment, a post-test was administered to all of the groups. The researcher conducted a follow-up test one month after the post-test. Finally, SPSS 24 was used to analyze the data. The results highlighted the fact that the meta-linguistic WCF proved more effective than the direct and indirect WCF strategies (p < 0.05. Furthermore, the direct WCF strategy had a more positive effect on the ESP nursing students' writing ability in comparison with the indirect WCF strategy (p < 0.05). These results may provide the ESP teacher educators, syllabus designers, and instructors guiding principles regarding the use of WCF in ESP nursing students' writing courses.

Background & Objective: In dental education, understanding optimal assessment methods and factors like stress and confidence is essential.This research assessed second-year dental students' performance in fixed prosthodontics using multiple-choice questions (MCQs) and preclinical practical exams, examining impacts of gender, stress, and confidence.Materials & Methods: Using a quasi-experimental design, 495 students from a single faculty underwent assessment.Selected via convenience sampling, they were exposed to MCQs and practical exams in fixed prosthodontics.An expert-reviewed questionnaire gauged their stress and confidence.Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests, and Pearson's correlation.Additionally, a balanced sub-set of 176 students (88 males and 88 females) was chosen for gender-based analysis.Results: Findings indicate statistical parity between MCQ and practical exam performances (p>0.001).Females slightly outperformed in MCQs, while males excelled in practicals, without reaching statistical significance (p>0.05).Stress correlated with practical exam outcomes (r=0.34,p=0.001), and confidence with MCQ scores (r=0.41,p<0.0001). Conclusion:The research underscores near-equivalence of MCQs and practical exams for student assessments in fixed prosthodontics.Recognizing the roles of stress and confidence in assessments offers insights for balanced evaluations.Dental faculties should integrate these findings, and future work should pivot towards tool validations for enriched learning.