Let's Meet Anthea Senior

Growing up, Anthea always knew she wanted to work in medicine, and she watched both her sisters become physicians. However, she wanted something different and chose to complete a bachelor of dentistry degree from the University of Newcastle (UK). Her journey began in community dental practice, and also included some part-time teaching at her alma mater.

Then in 2003, Anthea and her family came to Edmonton for a one-year research project her husband was working on; and she reached out to the School to see if they had any part-time teaching positions available. Fast forward 21 years later, and the ‘one year gig’ turned into a life-changing event. In July, Anthea accepted the acting chair role and she is now leading the Mike Petryk School of Dentistry.

Why did she stay all these years?  “The people,” says Anthea. “Meeting people from various backgrounds within the university and surrounding communities, and listening to their stories and journeys keeps me motivated.”  Anthea does her best to listen and learn, to think about ways to improve and change engagement levels at work. 

Oral health care has so many facets, and because of this, she says there is never a dull moment. Whether this be helping students take their first images, to completing research on minimizing the radiation doses to patients, to watching students grow from their first day in clinic to graduation, these are all impactful moments. 

The mountains also drew her family in, and she loves spending time there with her family. 

When asked what she would do if she knew she couldn’t fail at something, she chose skiing moguls. “I am a bad skier and it frightens me a bit,” she claims. “If I knew I wasn't going to hurt myself, I would definitely give moguls a go!”

Instead, her secret skill that most people don’t know is her musical skills with a recorder. During COVID she was in high demand for name-that-tune quizzes, as she can play most songs by ear (except when a laugh squeak comes through).

When asked, would you do things differently knowing what you know today?  “Not one thing…oh, except maybe if a genie showed up I would wish to be a few inches taller so I could be seen from behind a podium without heels.”