Vineet Dhar, BDS, MDS, PhD
Dr. Dhar is a clinical professor and chair of Orthodontics and Pediatric Dentistry, as well as the assistant dean of postgraduate and professional studies in dentistry at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry. A board-certified pediatric dentist, he possesses a distinctive background characterized by significant accomplishments in professional education, a successful private dental practice, administrative roles, teaching in a dental school environment, leadership, service, and scholarship.
Dr. Dhar completed his undergraduate dental training at Bharati Vidyapeeth Dental College in Pune, India, in 1995. He subsequently pursued several advanced degrees, including a Master of Science in Pediatric and Preventive Dentistry from Manipal College of Dental Surgery in 1999. His thesis was titled “Comparative Evaluation of Pit and Fissure Sealants Using Invasive and Non-Invasive Techniques: An In Vitro Study.” Dr. Dhar also earned a postgraduate diploma in Hospital and Health Care Management. In 2009, he received a PhD from MLS University in India, with a thesis entitled “Cariology and Its Prevention in Pediatric Dentistry.” In 2013, Dr. Dhar obtained his certificate in Pediatric Dentistry from the University of Maryland School of Dentistry in Baltimore, USA.
He currently serves as a Director of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry (ABPD). Additionally, he is a member of the Editorial Board of Pediatric Dentistry, a consultant for the Council on Scientific Affairs, and a member of the Evidence-Based Committee at the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD). Dr. Dhar also holds the position of Chair of the Science Committee for the International Association of Pediatric Dentistry (IAPD) and serves as the Chair of the Guideline Development Advisory Panel for the American Dental Association (ADA).
Dr. Dhar is the recipient of multiple national awards, including the 2024 Dr. Ronald A. Bell Mentor of the Year Award and the 2022 AAPD Lewis A. Kay Excellence in Education Award for outstanding teaching. He has been honored with the 2025 USM Regents Faculty Award for Excellence in Public Service, 2022 Beverly Largent Access to Care Innovator Award, and the 2017 AAPD Jerome B. Miller/Crest-Oral-B/For The Kids Award for exceptional service. Additionally, he has received the 2024 and 2022 Suzi Seale College Evidence-Based Dentistry Service Awards, as well as the 2018 ADA/AADR Evidence-Based Dentistry Mid-Career Faculty Award for excellence in research. Dr. Dhar is also a co-recipient of the 2016 Paul P. Taylor Best Manuscript Award for his systematic review evaluating the effectiveness of current therapies for early childhood caries (ECC). He has served as a co-author on manuscripts regarding fissure sealants, non-vital pulp therapies in primary teeth, and vital pulp therapies in primary teeth, which received the Paul P. Taylor Awards in 2017, 2020, and 2024, respectively.
Dr. Dhar received the 2017 ADEA Leadership Phase V Development Tuition Scholarship for the ADEA/AAL Chairs and Academic Administrators Management Program, as well as the AAPD-HSHC Master Clinician Scholarship to attend the 2016 ADEA/AAL Institute for Teaching and Learning. He completed his fellowship at the ADEA Leadership Institute in 2016. Additionally, Dr. Dhar participated in the AAPD Leadership Institute at Kellogg School of Management and the Advanced Leadership Institute at Wharton Business School. He graduated from the Leadership Maryland Class in 2024.
Dr. Dhar focuses on integrating evidence-based dentistry into both education and patient care. He serves on expert panels for the AAPD, IAPD, and ADA to develop evidence-based clinical recommendations. Dr. Dhar has participated in numerous research grants and projects and has directed thesis work for master's students as an advisor or co-advisor. He has authored several publications and delivered presentations primarily in the fields of evidence-based dentistry, chronic disease management, restorative care, non-pharmacological behavior guidance, pediatric dental pain, preventive dentistry, fissure sealants, dental trauma, and pulp therapies. Dr. Dhar advocates for the belief that every child deserves a dental home and collaborates with his team to implement a grant-supported access-to-care program for underserved, uninsured children in Maryland.
