Background: The COVID-19 pandemic caused all universities in Malaysia to switch to online learning, including for dental education. The effect of this switch has yet to be assessed. Thus, this study aimed to assess International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) dental students’ perspectives on the implementation of online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on academic performance. Methods: Cross-sectional and retrospective methods were used. The handling, didactic benefits, motivation, and challenges of online learning were assessed via an online questionnaire, and academic performance was assessed by comparing professional exam scores pre- and post-online learning. Results: Among the 249 IIUM dental student respondents, a positive response was recorded for the management of online learning, despite a few challenges in the area of didactic benefits and motivation. A significant improvement (p-value < 0.05) was observed in examination scores in oral biology, microbiology, and pharmacology, while dental material and GMGS showed declines in performance. Other subjects showed no significant difference (p-value > 0.05) in mean scores before and after online learning. Conclusion: Generally, students had a positive response towards online learning management, despite facing some challenges. Based on the analysis of examination results, only two subjects in Year 2 and Year 3 were negatively affected by online learning during the pandemic.
Keywords: COVID-19; academic performance; online learning; students’ perspective.