BDS, MDS, PhD (Sydney); MA (Theol) (CSU); FRACDS, FPFA, FICD After graduating in Dentistry in early 1966, Roland began an academic career in the Dept Operative Dentistry, Univ Sydney. In 1969, he moved to UK where, after several years in general dental practice, he was appointed Lecturer in Conservative Dentistry, Univ Birmingham, UK. Roland returned to Univ Sydney in 1974 and subsequently held full-time positions of Senior Lecturer and A/Professor before being appointed (1993) full-time Professor Conservative Dentistry, a position he held until 2009, then transferring to part-time until his retirement from Univ Sydney in early 2020. Prof Bryant’s principal teaching field and area of responsibility has been in Restorative Dentistry (also sometimes referred to as Tooth Conservation and as Operative Dentistry). This field includes a wide range of clinical activities centred on general practice dentistry from placement of simple restorations to complex tooth-coloured and metallic restorations, from management of dental caries (incl its prevention) to conservative management of the dental pulp. Over the years, he has led many courses (in the clinical and simulation clinic environments) in all years (1 to 5) of Dentistry courses. Shortly before retiring from full-time academic work in 2009, Prof Bryant concluded his direct involvement in research a period spanning more than 35 years, carried out in the field of clinical restorative dentistry and restorative dental materials using clinical, laboratory and electron microprobe techniques, resulting in research papers and reports presented in numerous journals and at many conferences.
Professoriate
Professor Roland Bryant
In 2020, he was awarded the title of Emeritus Professor, University of Sydney.
During his time in Faculty of Dentistry, Univ Sydney, his responsibilities included: Head, Dept of Operative Dentistry; Head, Discipline of Tooth Conservation; Sub-Dean and A/Dean Postgraduate Studies and Research; and Acting Head, Discipline of Endodontics and Acting Head Discipline of Fixed Prosthodontics (each for periods of 3-4 years).
Roland’s research activity was in the field of restorative dentistry and restorative dental materials with clinical, electron microprobe and laboratory research, resulting in numerous publications in many journals and reports at many conferences over a 35-year period, concluding in the early 2000's.
In 2009, Prof Bryant was appointed Professor of Dentistry, CSU, in Orange, in the field of Restorative Dentistry a part-time (0.4FTE) position he continues to hold.
Prof Bryant has been awarded many teaching accolades and several professional honorary life memberships/fellowships. He continues in occasional part-time general dental practice in Sydney.
He currently leads many courses at CSU in simple Restorative Dentistry and in more advanced areas of tooth-coloured restorations for posterior and anterior teeth.
Since retiring from full-time academic work in 2009, Prof Bryant has focused his teaching in the foundational areas of restorative dentistry that are learnt first in the “simulation clinic” environment.
He currently continues to present approximately 70 hours of lectures each year to Dentistry students in this field of Restorative Dentistry.
To assist his teaching, Roland has, over the years, developed new hand-held instruments (now produced commercially) and plastic tooth models for use in the hundreds of hours spent by students in “simulation learning”. He has also previously supervised the establishment of simulation clinics.
For many years, he was active in the teaching (and, for several years, in leading the teaching) in both preclinical Endodontics and preclinical Fixed Prosthodontics.
Until recently, Prof Bryant presented lectures to dentists in many parts of Australia.