A CAREER AS A DENTIST?
A dentist is a doctor of oral health. They diagnose and treat oral diseases, promote oral health and disease prevention, interpret tests, and monitor growth and development of teeth and jaws. Some can person surgical procedures on the teeth, bone, and soft tissues of the oral cavity. Dentists can spot early warning signs of diseases elsewhere in the body. Dentists have the option of specializing by completing residency programs.
EDUCATION LEVEL: GRAD-Doctorate (D.D.S., D.M.D.)
_________________________________________________________________
COMPETITIVE PRE-DENTAL STUDENTS:
*NOTE: Each student's path is different! Holistic review takes several factors into account.
- GPA: 3.6-3.8 and/or positive trend
- DENTAL ADMISSIONS TEST(DAT): > 20 in both sections: Academic Ability (AA) and Perceptual Ability (PA)
- CLINCAL EXPERIENCES: 100+ hours shadowing, 100+ hours volunteering/community service
- Non-clinical experiences/community service,strong letters and essays
- Strong in areas such as: communication, interpersonal skills, professionalism, maturity, problem-solving, empathy, intrapersonal skills, and cultural competency
- TMDSAS Applicant Statistics
__________________________________________________________________________
THE PATH TO DENTISTRY
Below are some great resources to get you started on your journey to becoming a dentist!
- INTERNATIONAL Students:F-1 Doctors
- Foreign-Educated Dentists interested in practicing in the US:ADEA Foreign-Educated Dentists
- Visit theFAQandSpecial ProgramsPage for more resources!
_________________________________________________________________
CONNECT & STAY UPDATED
- PUBLIC TEXAS MEDICAL, DENTAL, and VET SCHOOLS - TMDSAS
- DENTAL SCHOOLS - ADEA
__________________________________________________________________________
NATIONAL ORGANIZATION
- American Dental Education Association (ADEA)
- Find helpful information for future dentists
UTA PRE-HEALTH ORGANIZATION
- PRE-DENTAL SOCIETY (PDS)
-
Bi-weekly on Monday at 12pm in SEIR 2nd floor
-
__________________________________________________________________________
DENTAL SCHOOLS
TEXAS:
- Texas A&M University - College of Dentistry
- UT Health Science Center at Houston - School of Dentistry
- UT Health Science Center at San Antonio – School of Dentistry
- Texas Tech El Paso - The Woody L. Hunt School of Dental Medicine
AllU.S. and Canadian Accredited Dental Schools
__________________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDED CLINICAL EXPERIENCES
Getting experience in the field of dentistry is essential to be a competitive dental school applicant. Networking with our student org, local dentists, and your own dentistcan beextremely helpful! Shadowing dentists isone of the best ways to be exposed to the field.However, addingadditional healthcare and dentistry experienceis valuable. Below is a list of recommended experiences for pre-dental students. Please visit ourSpecial Programs Pagefor additional resources.
- Shadowing dentists (2-4 general dentists and 1-2 specialties)
- Participating in dental internshipsand summer programs (offered by some dental schools)
- Volunteering or workingat dental clinics
- Registered dental assistant
- Dental X-Ray technician
- Dental hygienist
__________________________________________________________________________
SPECIAL PROGRAMS
TEXAS A&M COLLIGATEIIPROGRAM FOR DENTISTRY
- SPEP Collegiate II is a six-week program which provides college and post-college students an opportunity to strengthen their dental schools application and provide DAT preparation. Visit the website for additional information.
SUMMER HEALTH PROFESSIONS EDUCATION PROGRAM
- TheSUMMER HEALTH PROFESSIONS EDUCATION PROGRAM(SHPEP) is a free, six-week career-enrichment summer program for college freshman and sophom*ore students, interested in a career within the health professions. Visit the website for additional information. Applications for the summer typically open in November!
ADEA ENRICHMENT PROGRAMS CALENDAR
- Search for programs national wide!
Visit ourSpecial Programs pagefor a list of more opportunities.
__________________________________________________________________________
PREREQUISITES
The prerequisites below are the typical requirements for all Texas dental schools based on TMDSAS. Each dental school mayvary in theirrequirements but below are common requirements:
- Courses must be forSCIENCE majors(NOTnursing, kinesiology exercise science, or allied health fields)
- Courses must be at theundergraduate leveland completed at anaccredited US or Canadian institution
- Most dental schools require at least 90 credit hours of undergraduate coursework including prereqs to be completed at an accredited US or Canadian institution. Foreign-educated dentists should visit the ADEA Foreign-Educated Dentist Page.
- Prerequisite courses must be completed with a 'C' or better (AP/CLEP is accepted bymostdental programs in Texas, however, additional upper levels are recommended to show competency in the subject)
- Most dental programs have no expiration date; however, recentcourse work in the sciences is preferred and highly recommended.
- Accepted students typicallyexceed the minimum requirements,have a completed Bachelor's, take 14+ hours in upper-level sciences (3000-4000 level), and have science GPA's > 3.5
- For questions about major choice, read the first section of the FAQ Page.
- Non-Traditional/Post Bacc Students should alsovisit this page
- See TMDSAS Approved Course List(Note: This isnotan inclusive list)
COMMON PREREQUISITES*
(*It is the student's responsibility to verify requirements with each dental school's admissions website)
| REQUIRED HOURS | ACCEPTED UTA Course Codes | |
| minimum 14 semester hours (12 hours of lecture & 2 hours of formal lab) fortraditional science majors.(Nursing, Kinesiology, and any other allied health courseDOES NOT SATISFYrequirements) **Note: Competitive candidates typically take more than 14 hours in Biology See below for additional requirements for Texas A&M and UT Health Houston | BIOL 1441 - Cell and Molecular Biology BIOL 1442 - Evolution and Ecology BIOL 3315- Genetics BIOL 2444 - Microbiology BIOL 3442 - Human Physiology BIOL 3446 - Human Anatomy BIOL 3301 - Cell Physiology BIOL 3312 - Immunobiology BIOL 4312 - Intro to Virology BIOL 4311 - Histology ***Note: Other Biology courses may count towards this requirement | |
| 8 semester hours General Chemistry, including the corresponding lab(6 hours of lecture & 2 hours of lab) fortraditional science majors.(Nursing, Kinesiology, and any other allied health courseDOES NOT SATISFYprerequisite) | CHEM 1441 - General Chemistry I OR CHEM 1341/1181 - General Chemistry I(for CHEM majors) CHEM 1442 -General Chemistry II OR CHEM 1342/1182 - General Chemistry II(for CHEM majors) ***Note: CHEM 1465 (for ENG majors) can count towards 4 hours | |
| 8 semester hours of Organic Chemistry, including the corresponding laboratory experience. (6 hours of lecture & 2 hours of lab) | CHEM 2321 - Organic Chemistry I & CHEM 2181 - Organic Chemistry I Lab CHEM 2322 - Organic Chemistry II & CHEM 2182 - Organic Chemistry II Lab | |
| 3 semester hours of Biochemistry | CHEM 4311 - Biochemistry I | |
| 8 semester hours of Physics, including lab (6 hours of lecture & 2 hours of lab) | PHYS 1441 - General College Physics I OR PHYS 1443 - General Technical Physics II PHYS 1442 - General College Physics II OR PHYS 1444 - General Technical Physics II | |
| 6 semester hours of college English | ENGL 1301 - Rhetoric and Composition I ENGL 1302 - Rhetoric and Composition II | |
| STATISTICS | 3 semester hours of Statistics NOTE: Additional courses may satisfy this requirement | MATH 1308 - Elementary Statistics BIOL 2300 - Biostatistics PSYC 2300- Statistics in Psychology IE 3301 - Engineering Probability |
*Note: Texas A&M and UT Houston School of Dentistry have the following additional Biology requirements:
TEXAS A&M
Eighteensemester hours of Biology-- (minimum) 15 hours of lecture and3 hours of formal laboratory.
The Biology hours must include these courses forscience majors:
| Anatomy with Lab* | 4 semester hours |
| Physiology * | 3 semester hours |
| Microbiology | 3 semester hours |
*Note: The Anatomy and Physiology requirements can be satisfied byeitherindividual coursesorthe combined A&P 1 and A&P 2*** (with both labs)for science majors.***HOWEVER, at UTA, A&P I & II BIOL 2457 & 2458 are NOT for science majors;BIOL 3442 and 3446 are for science majors***
UT HOUSTON
Requires 3 semester hours (or 5 quarter hours) of Microbiology. This requirement will count toward fulfilling part of the 14 semester hour Biological Science requirement.
Courses for non-science majors or for health career majors (nursing, pharmacy, allied health sciences, etc.) willNOTsatisfy the required coursework. All required coursework must be applicable towards a traditional science degree.
__________________________________________________________________________
APPLYING & APPLICATION SERVICES
Students typically apply at the end of junior year but your application cycle may be different depending on your circ*mstances. This is a competitive, yearlong process, therefore it is important to apply when you are a competitive candidate. Student should become familiar with the application service(s) used to apply to dental schools early.HELPFUL VIDEO: Gap Year Before Medical School: How to Decide if its Right for You(Taking a gap year can apply to all professional schools)
GPA Calculators:
- Med School HQ
- CASPA Calculator- downloadable excel sheet for ALL pre-health students
Application Services & Cycle Dates:
- TMDSAS- Public Texas Dental Schools
- COST: $215 (All TMDSAS Schools)
- CYCLE DATES:5/1/2024-11/1/2024(5/15: Submissions start)
- TMDSAS Important Dates/Timeline
- AADSAS- Associated American Dental Schools Application Service
- COST: $264 (1 school; $115/each additional)
- CYCLE DATES: 5/14/24 - Deadlines vary (6/4: Submissions start)
- AADSAS Fee Assistance Program-limited waivers are offered at the beginning of each cycle
- AADSAS Applicant Help Center/Application Guide
- AADSAS Application Updates
- School Specific Deadlines
- ADEA CAAPID- Centralized Application for Advanced Placement for International Dentists
- For foreign-educated dentists interested in advanced standing US Program
- CYCLE DATES: 03/09/2023 - 02/16/2024
__________________________________________________________________________
ADDITIONAL APPLICATION COMPONENTS
___________________________________________________________________________
DENTAL ADMISSIONS TEST: DAT
- Scores: 0-30 in 2 categories, Academic Ability (AA)and Perceptual Ability (PA)
- Areas: Biology, General and Organic Chemistry, Reading Comprehension, Quantitative Reasoning, and Perceptual Ability.
- Competitive score: 21; Additionalstatisticscan be found atTMDSAS
- COST: $525
- WHEN to TAKE: May-July of application year when prepared!
- APPLY early to TAKE DAT:ADA DAT Website
DAT Guides/TEST Prep:
- DAT Guide& FAQ
- DAT- Kaplan
- DAT Boot Camp(Free Resources Available)
- DAT Destroyer
- DAT Princeton
- DAT - PAT Booster
______________________________________________________________________________
LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATIONS, PERSONAL STATEMENTS/ESSAYS, INTERVIEWING
For detail information & resournces on these topics, visit the .
