Publication Requirements

Objectives of the AVDC® Publication Requirement

This requirement is designed to show that all AVDC® examination candidates can select a topic and write a manuscript on a veterinary dental or related topic that demonstrates their ability to write a scientific article clearly and coherently. The manuscript must include accurate citations of relevant published material, and the conclusions or summary provided by the author must be supported by the content of the article.

Specifics of the 2024 Publications Requirement

One First Article (also historically known as an Unsolicited Article) is required as one part of the Credentials approval process. 

First Article Definition

A paper on a veterinary dental or related topic containing original data (e.g. a research project or a clinical case series) or an in-depth review article, or an article that is a case report that includes an in-depth review of the literature because of the unique features of the case, or equivalent, submitted to a peer-reviewed journal. The trainee/resident is to be the first or only author. A Submission Approval form must be completed and submitted by the Residency Director/Supervisor, confirming that the trainee/resident conducted the research or case series follow up, conducted the literature search and wrote the first draft of the article, and that the Residency Director/Supervisor has read the article.

For consideration as a First Article, a Case Report article must normally include a minimum of 10 cases with an in-depth literature review, except that an article with fewer than 10 cases of a clinical entity can be approved as a First Article if there are unique features justified by the Supervisor in the Supervisor Report form and considered as an appropriate exception to the ’10 cases’ rule by the Credentials Committee.

2024 Publication Requirement Steps:

1. As part of documents submitted at the time of the annual report, a topic and brief description for a research First Article publication must be submitted by the end of the resident’s first year (based on residency start date) for review by the Credentials Committee by using form CRED 870 Publication Title – First Year Resident and uploading it to the DMS.
2. A summary of the project to date must be submitted by the end of the resident’s second year (based on residency start date) using form CRED 875 Publication Summary – Second Year Resident and uploaded to the DMS. The document is to be a one-page (200-250 words) Summary/Outline of the First Article status project. It should describe the study, indicating the methods, preliminary results (if available), and hypotheses/conclusions.

The credentials application will require either proof of submission or proof of publication of the first article with a hard deadline of October 15^th in order to take the Phase I examination. Form CRED 880 Publication Submission must be completed and uploaded to the DMS. A copy of the letter from the journal confirming submission for review must accompany this form as a separate attachment. If the Journal is not AVDC® pre-approved, then a statement explaining why a non-pre-approved journal was selected must be included. A provisional acceptance of a credentials package may be granted if proof of submission (not acceptance) of a manuscript is provided with a credentials package.

3. A submitted manuscript must be accepted for publication within three years of a credentials package submission to avoid having to re-credential Phase I and II results would stand pending acceptance of the new credentials package. Diplomate status will not be awarded until the first article is accepted for publication by an approved journal. Form CRED 885 Publication Acceptance must be completed and uploaded to the DMS. A copy of the letter from the journal confirming acceptance for publication must accompany this form as a separate attachment. If submission to a non-approved journal is anticipated, pre-approval of the journal by the credentials committee is required. A statement of reasons for the credentials committee to accept a non-approved journal submission should be included in the approval request.

Submission via DMS is Required

Click the Begin a New Document for Submission link on the DMS Welcome screen and use the drop-down menu to select the specific document type.

Pre-2024 Requirement:

Residents with a start date before January 1, 2024, may elect to use Pre-2024 requirements as detailed below and in the 2018 changes document.

A published or committee approved First article is required as one of the criteria for gaining credentials approval.  If the Article has not been submitted/accepted to a journal or approved through the credentials committee review process by the credentials application deadline then a “delayed submission request” may be uploaded to the DMS prior to the credentials application deadline as detailed below. 

Specifics of the Pre-2024 Publications Requirement

One First Article (also historically known as an Unsolicited Article) is required as one part of the Credentials approval process. 

Articles can be submitted to a journal before or at the same time as submission to the AVDC® credentials committee (using form CRED 835).  Ideally a manuscript will be submitted to a journal in a timely manner and then accepted for publication, avoiding the need for Credentials Committee review.   If the manuscript is submitted to the Credentials Committee, it will go through a rigorous review process which must be approved by a majority of the reviewers.  This process takes approximately 2 months.   If the manuscript is not approved, a list of reasons will be provided, but the resident is not able make corrections or edits for further review.  It is recommended that the manuscript be extensively edited and essentially ready for publication.  If the manuscript is not approved, the resident can petition for a formal Appeal (see form EXAM 970: Appeals Policy and Procedures).

Publications are to be submitted without author or location identification anywhere within the publication, to ensure that anonymity of the author is maintained during the blinded review process; the exception to this rule is that articles that have been accepted for publication in an AVDC®-approved journal (see below for a list of approved journals) should  be submitted to AVDC® as accepted by the journal, because AVDC® Credentials Committee review is not required.  Submission of the accepted publication (with accompanying approval letter) using form CRED 835 is required to gain formal approval through the Credentials Committee.

If proof that the article (as described above in “First Article Definition” – research paper, clinical case series, in-depth review article or case report with in-depth literature review) has been accepted by or published in an AVDC®-approved journal (see below for the list) is provided, the article is automatically approved as an AVDC® credentials publication whether or not Credentials Committee review has already occurred and the article was approved or not by a Credentials Committee review team. (See article review flow chart- end of document)

Determination of status as a ‘First Article,’ will be made by the Credentials Committee chair and Chair-designate after reading the article and the redacted Supervisor’s Report. If the article is submitted to but not yet accepted by an AVDC®-approved journal (see below for the list) or is submitted to or accepted for publication in a journal that is not on the AVDC® Approved-journal list, the article is reviewed by a Credentials Review team to determine whether it meets the ‘First article’ criteria.

Submission via DMS is Required

The resident is required to completely redact any identifying information from their paper prior to submission to DMS.  If this is not done the paper will be returned and this will delay the review process.   

Click the Begin a New Document for Submission link on the DMS Welcome screen and use the drop-down menu to select the specific document type. Items can be submitted at the same time as a credentials application is submitted in July; however, if it is not approved, submission of a replacement article will not be permitted during that Credentials Application cycle.

Publications can be submitted from September 15th to May 1st. Pre-approval remains open to all from May 1st through September 15th, but residents will experience a delayed response in review time during this period due to credential package reviews. During this time, review priority will be given to residents submitting a credentials package July 15th of that year. Please note that pre-approval notifications are NOT ensured for July 15th credential packages if the resident submits later than May 1st of that year.

The standard by which an item will be judged will be the same whether the item was submitted for Pre-Approval or at the same time as the Credentials Application package.

Supervisor Form: When an article is submitted via DMS, it is processed to the Supervisor, who completes and uploads the required Supervisor Form; the blank form is available in the Publication section of the Information for Registered Trainees web page. A submission will not be reviewed if a completed Supervisor form is not also present.

Delayed Submission of Articles

If a trainee has completed all other training program requirements, submission of an item to complete the Publication requirement after the credentials application deadline is permitted, with the following stipulations:

1. Delayed Submission is available only for a ‘First Article’, as defined in this Publications Requirement document. The purpose of Delayed Submission is to encourage AVDC® residents to undertake research or clinical investigation projects that may not be able to be completed during the residency program period, because of the nature of the project.
2. A completed Request for Delayed Submission of a Publication form must be submitted at the time that the Credentials Application is submitted. The form is available as a link in the Information for Registered Trainees web page. The Request for Delayed Submission of a Publication form will be redacted by the Executive Director, so as to permit anonymous review by the Credentials Committee chair.
3. The maximum time permitted for delayed submission of the article is two years from the July 15 Credentials Application deadline of the original credentials application, except that if a candidate has passed the certification examination, the candidate will be allowed an additional year for a total of 3 years to submit a paper on the same topic or an article on another topic.
4. The article must be submitted to the selected peer-reviewed journal before or at the same time as submission for AVDC® Credentials review.
5. Delayed submission articles will be reviewed as for any other Pre-Approval item – they will not be identified as a ‘delayed submission’ article.
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6. A trainee/resident whose credentials application, including an approved ‘First Article’ delayed submission request, is approved is a candidate for the AVDC® examination. However, if the candidate passes the examination, s/he will not be recognized as a diplomate and will not receive the diploma or be able to refer to her- or him-self as a veterinary dental specialist until the delayed submission article is approved by the normal Credentials Committee approval process. Acceptance for publication in an AVDC®- approved journal (see below) will result in AVDC® approval of the article without need for Credentials Committee review, subject to review by the Credentials Committee Chair to determine First Article status. Approval by an AVDC® Credentials Review team as a First Article does not have to await notification of acceptance for publication by the journal to which the article was submitted.

‘AVDC® Approved’ Journals

• American Journal of Veterinary Research
• Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association
• Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
• Journal of Small Animal Practice
• Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery
• Journal of Veterinary Dentistry
• Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine
• Veterinary Comparative Orthopedics and Traumatology
• Veterinary Pathology
• Veterinary Radiology & Ultrasound
• Veterinary & Comparative Oncology
• Veterinary Surgery
• Frontiersin.org, particularly the Veterinary Dentistry and Oromaxillofacial Surgery section
• Equine Veterinary Journal
• Equine Veterinary Education (EQ specialty)
• The Veterinary Journal

Review Forms

The forms used during the review process by the Credentials Committee are available in the Publications section of the Information for Registered Trainees web page.

Pre-2024 Steps in Article Submission to Credentials Committee: