Dentistry Schools

The profession of dentistry can be an exciting and fulfilling one, especially if you have an inclination towards serving people. Once you have made the decision of taking up dentistry as your career, you need to spend a lot of time researching the various aspects involved in becoming a dentist. A few of the things that you need to know and learn about are the criteria to study dentistry, costs involved and of course, information on dentistry schools.

Prerequisites to Joining Dentistry Schools

As with any other field of study, becoming a dentist also involves certain prerequisites. Once you have fulfilled all these criteria, you become eligible to apply to various dentistry schools. Although these criteria vary from school to school, broadly they remain the same. Some of the important criteria could include:

A Bachelor's Degree: Completion of a four year bachelor's degree is a must before a student can hope to apply to dentistry schools. There are certain courses that need to be taken during these four years as a mandate. The list of mandatory courses varies between different schools. So choosing the right courses during your college years is important. Some of the common course requirements could include biology, human anatomy, physiology, chemistry, etc.

Grades and Grade Point Average: Most dentistry schools, especially the prestigious ones, would require a minimum grade point average for your Bachelor's degree. In addition to this, they could also ask for a minimum grade for certain courses that are essential to the study of dentistry.

Standardized Test Scores: As with any other type of Grad school, dentistry schools also require certain standardized tests to be taken. Apart from the GRE, the Dental Admissions Test (DAT) scores are also taken into consideration. These scores are a part of many other factors that are considered before a student can be admitted.

Applying to Dentistry Schools

In the United States and elsewhere in the world, it is common to find that each dentistry school has its own set of criteria and requirements to enroll into its program. However, if you plan to apply within the United States, your work may be made a little easier by the American Dental Association (ADA). They run the American Association of Dental Schools Application Service, which is available to students applying to dentistry schools that have chosen to be a part of this service. With the help of this service, a standard or common application form will suffice to apply to all the schools.

There are many factors to consider before choosing which dentistry schools to apply to. Some of these include the school's rating, geographical proximity to where you want to live, the type of program offered by the school, requirements for admission, etc. The best way to choose is to first understand what field of dentistry you are interested in. Once you are clear on that, you can make a list of schools offering programs matching your interests, and opt for the best schools.

Almost all dentistry schools have their own websites on which they provide a lot of information about course structure and admissions.