“Dentistry is the branch of the healing arts and sciences devoted to maintaining the health of the teeth, gums, and other hard and soft tissues of the oral cavity.  A dentist is a scientist dedicated to the highest standards of health through prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of oral diseases and conditions. …The care that dentists give contributes enormously to the quality of their patients’ day-to-day lives by preventing tooth decay, periodontal disease, malocclusion, and oral-facial anomalies. …Furthermore, dentists are instrumental in early detection of oral cancer and systemic infectious conditions of the body that manifest themselves in the mouth. …The dental profession includes providers of patient care, research, and public and international health, which are vital links in the health care delivery system necessary to promote broadly based social and economic changes as well as individual well-being.”

(Official Guide to Dental Schools:  American Dental Education Association, Washington DC).

Dentistry is an exciting field with a large variety of opportunities for an individual to influence and affect the life of the patient and society on a whole.  There are currently fifty-four U.S. and ten Canadian dental schools which will be accepting applications for the upcoming year.  The schools are competitive, but it is a great profession to pursue.

Requirements

Courses required for admission to dental schools are quite similar, although each dental school sets its own requirements.  It is very important that you check the individual schools requirements as you near the application time (http://www.adea.org/).  The dental schools belong to a centralized dental association called the American Dental Education Association (ADEA).  This group was formally called AADS.  Dental schools require applicants to have completed the pre-dental curriculum prior to application.  The minimum science preparation courses for admission into dental school, with a few exceptions, include the following:

• Principles of Biology I and II (lectures and laboratory)
• Upper division biology course
• Introduction to Chemistry I and II (lectures and laboratory)
• Principles of Organic Chemistry I and II (lectures and laboratory)
• Physics I and II (lectures and laboratory)
• Calculus I

  In addition to these courses stated, many dental schools also recommend a course in Biochemistry, a Behavior Science course (such as Psychology) and a manual skills type of course.

For the student who expects to complete a degree in four years and go directly into dental school, the pre-dental curriculum through Organic Chemistry must be completed by the end of the junior year of college.  The Dental Admission Test Program (DAT) requires the completion of one year of biology, one year of general chemistry and one year of organic.  The physics and advanced biology are necessary for entrance into dental school, but will not be tested on the DAT.  The typical four-year curriculum for a pre-dental student mirrors the curriculum of a premedical student (LINK: typical PREDENTAL four year curriculum).  These courses serve as a common denominator between applicants and are also the foundation upon which students build once in a professional school.  As noted above, the pre-dental curriculum given above should be considered the minimum science preparation for a health professions school.  You may decide to take additional upper division biology and chemistry courses to strengthen your background in the sciences, especially if you elect a major in the humanities or social sciences.  Excellent courses to consider as supplements include:  Cellular Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Cellular Structure and Function, General Physiology, Comparative Anatomy, and Quantitative Analysis.

Dental schools are stressing a broad, general training at the undergraduate level.  The CORE requirements of the College of Arts & Sciences at Saint Louis University include courses which satisfy non-science requirements.  These courses include General Psychology, Composition and other courses which develop communication skills.  Take more than the minimum CORE requirements in humanities and social sciences.

General Academic Preparation

Dental school admissions committees recognize the importance of a liberal arts education which includes a strong foundation in the natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, and development of excellent communication skills.

Although the completion of a college degree may not be specifically required by a dental school, there is an expectation that the applicant has pursued some discipline in depth.  The successful applicant typically has a four-year degree, thereby studying a discipline in depth.  Skills are developed through many avenues of study, such as in the natural sciences, in the humanities, and in the social and behavioral sciences.  Development of effective written and oral communication skills are especially important for dental school applicants.

Selection of a Major:  Professional schools do not select students based on the undergraduate major.

The process of selecting a major should include consideration of interest and your individual strengths and weaknesses.  The most important aspect of major selection is a consideration of what careers, other than a dental career, the major prepares you to enter.  Think of the major as a “Plan B”.

Successful Saint Louis University pre-dental students have completed majors in many disciplines, both in the sciences and the non-sciences.  However, it is necessary for the pre-dental students to do well in their science courses to be adequately prepared and viewed favorably by theadmission committees of dental schools for entrance into dental school.

Click here to see sample curricula of majors.

The Successful Applicant

Any applicant to dental school will need to complete an application to that school.  Fifty-one of the fifty-four dental schools belong to the American Association of Dental Schools Application Service (AADSAS).  The three schools that do not belong to this service are Medical College of Georgia, Louisiana State University and the University of Mississippi.  For those schools you will need to contact the schools directly.  For the schools utilizing AADSAS, you can obtain information about the application through the Internet at http://www.adea.org/AADSAS/default.htm

Diversity within an entering class is considered highly desirable by dental schools.  Avoid the common misperception that admissions committees seek some ideal combination of characteristics in the applicants they select for admission.  What is important in the admission process includes:

• High level of scholastic and intellectual potential.  These are measured by academic averages, both overall cumulative average and overall math/science grade average, the Dental Admissions Test (DAT) scores, and an evaluation from the Pre-health Committee on Evaluations.

• Personal Qualities.  Does the applicant have the leadership skills, motivation, perseverance, social maturity, curiosity, and sense of commitment deemed important in a dentist?

• Knowledge of the profession.  Has the applicant demonstrated an interest in the dental profession and developed a knowledge of the profession?  Experience in a health care setting, such as a COVE Internship, awareness of current events related to the dental profession, and interaction with health care professionals provides evidence for this interest and knowledge.

• Demonstration of a commitment to helping people.  Participation in community and social service programs such as, Morro House and SLUCAP or working at a shelter for the homeless demonstrates the applicant’s degree of commitment to being of service to others.