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I’ve earned an MDS (Master of Dental Surgery) in public-health dentistry in India. My thesis and other research projects focused on developing a module for dental students on tobacco cessation counselling.

Now I am in Australia, currently with an Australian spouse visa.

  1. What qualifications are required to work as a research assistant in Australia?

  2. Is it possible for me to work in research field as a research assistant or as a public-health professional without clearing the Australian Dental Council exam?

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  • So it sounds like you're basically asking if someone with an academic background from India would be competitive for a research assistantship in Australia, right? Are you specifically interested in doing research in academia or the private sector? What degree(s) have you obtained? Editing this information into the question could help improve it. – Nat Jan 17 '18 at 2:41
  • You got exactly what iam trying to ask... I have done MDS in Public health dentistry from India... I have no degrees from Australia... – H.Joes Jan 17 '18 at 2:48
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    It is probably also in your interests to investigate the current situation of 457 visas in Australia. – Eppicurt Jan 17 '18 at 3:16
  • You could also consider applying for a PhD program at an Australian university. If you have a permanent residency, you should be able to apply as a domestic student, though you’d need to check the policies of the particular university you’re applying for to be sure. – nick012000 Nov 17 at 2:15
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Generally, research assistant is not a regulatory job in Australia (I work with many!). I've seen RA coming from all different background. As long as your boss is happy, there's nothing stopping you working as an RA. However, I have never seen an RA without a university degree, it's hard to convince anyone for your research potential if you don't even have a degree.

Of course, you won't be able to work as a dentist in Australia as dentist is regulatory job.

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  • My Indian degree would not be sufficient for me to work as a research assistant? – H.Joes Jan 17 '18 at 2:33
  • Iam aware that I won't be able to work as a dentist... – H.Joes Jan 17 '18 at 2:36
  • What all are the non regulatory jobs as a public health professional in Australia? – H.Joes Jan 17 '18 at 2:50
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    @H.Joes Your original question statement didn't mention a degree, so this answer was likely written up under the assumption that you didn't have one. As this answer points out, there tend to be few regulatory constraints on research assistantships; most of the regulatory constraints tend to be on jobs that involve directly working on patients. – Nat Jan 17 '18 at 3:18
  • OK... So for a non clinical research... May be iam eligible... – H.Joes Jan 17 '18 at 3:27
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You are better off clearing the Australian Dental Council exam anyways.

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    Welcome to Academia.SE. Would you mind expanding on your answer? OP specifically asked for options that avoided having to pass this exam. It's totally fine if you think the premise of the question is flawed and they should plan to pass the exam, but explaining your reasoning would help OP and future readers to make better decisions. – cag51♦ Nov 17 at 3:19

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