How to Apply

The following courses (semester hours or equivalent quarter hours) are required to apply to the School of Dental Medicine. All coursework must be completed with a grade of C or better from an accredited U.S. college or university at the conclusion of the spring term of the year accepted. Grades of C- or lower and courses taken pass/fail or credit/no credit will not be accepted. No more than 60 semester hours are allowed from a community/junior college. Online coursework is accepted with pre-approval. High school advanced placement (AP) courses can be accepted for prerequisite course work, and will be evaluated on a case by case basis. Official documentation will be required to include AP scores. If you are an international student, please contact the admissions office directly.

• General Biology or General Zoology with Lab (8 semester hours)
• General Chemistry with Lab (8 semester hours)
• Organic Chemistry with Lab (8 semester hours)
• General Physics with Lab, Algebra or Calculus based (8 semester hours)
• Microbiology, Lab not required (3 semester hours)
• General Biochemistry, Lab not required (3 semester hours)
• English Composition (3 semester hours)
• 90 semester hours with at least 30 hours of upper division credit
  

The minimum requirement for admission is 90 semester hours (or approximately 135 quarter hours) of academic coursework, but completing a bachelor's degree is strongly encouraged. Most applicants will have completed at least a bachelor's degree before matriculation to dental school.

Suggested Electives: Courses to consider include anatomy, cell biology, histology, immunology, physiology, business management/finance, psychology and communications. Courses may be in a single area with a general background in many areas, or may group together several related areas in the sciences or humanities. 

• Completed AADSAS application - available online at American Dental Education Association (ADEA)
• ​Official transcripts from all colleges, universities and professional schools you attended
• ​Letters of recommendation:
  • Two letters from science instructors AND one letter from a non-science instructor, dentist you shadowed or employer, OR
  • Pre-Dental Committee letter (must include two science instructors)                                                  

Applicants are required to complete the Dental Admissions Test (DAT), which is administered by the American Dental Association (ADA). Official DAT scores must be sent to AADSAS (see instructions for sending DAT scores under Standardized Tests). 

While there is no minimum or cutoff, DAT scores close to the averages of the most recent entering class are considered competitive. See Class Profile for the most current scores.

The DAT should either be taken before application or in June/July of the application year. Scores must be received before the application deadline of October 15th. In order to meet this deadline, tests should not be taken after August 31st of the application year. 

Retake tests: If planning to retake the DAT during the application cycle, an applicant should report future test dates on the AADSAS application. 

Canadian DAT: Please note that the Canadian Dental Admissions Test (CDAT) is not accepted. The US DAT is required of all applicants.

Applicants should demonstrate a confirmed interest in dentistry by participating in dental-related activities, including direct shadowing of a dentist in a patient-care setting. Shadowing hours should be reported directly on the AADSAS application. No further documentation is required.

50 hours of dental shadowing is required and must be completed at the time of application submission. Applicants without this minimum number of hours will not be reviewed or considered for interview.

Applicants should report any extracurricular activities in which they are involved, dental-related or otherwise, on the AADSAS application. Such activities could include (but are not limited to) academic enrichment programs, athletics, clubs and organizations, research, volunteering, and work experience.

For each extracurricular, applicants must provide the frequency and duration of the experience, a description of the key responsibilities, and the name and address of the organization or supervisor.

The University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine requires a total of three letters of recommendation, although AADSAS allows up to four. Letters must be uploaded directly to the application by the evaluators. Letters sent directly to the Office of Admissions are no longer accepted. Of the four allotted AADSAS uploads, applicants must have:

• Two science letters - Two letters must be written by science professors who have taught and graded the applicant at the university level. Letters should be from basic science instructors (biology, chemistry, physics, biochemistry, microbiology). Science letters should include the course name and number.
  
• One letter of choice - One letter by an evaluator of the applicant’s choice is also required. This evaluator could be a dentist, another professor (science or non-science), an employer, a mentor, or another individual who can write in support of the applicant.

A fourth letter of recommendation will also be accepted but is not required. This optional fourth letter can be written by another evaluator of the applicant’s choice.

• Committee letter option: If the applicant’s undergraduate institution has a pre-health committee, a letter or letter packet composed by the committee members can be submitted in place of the above three letters. AADSAS also allows one individual letter to be uploaded in addition to the committee letter, which is accepted but not required.
  

Once the completed application has been reviewed by the Office of Admissions, the applicant may be invited to campus for a formal interview and tour of our school.

Applicants are required to pay an $85 supplemental application fee directly to the University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine. This fee is separate from any payments made to AADSAS and can only be made online via credit or debit card. 

Checks, money orders, and payments over the phone are not accepted. This payment should be made either just before or at the time of application submission.

AADSAS Fee Assistance Program: The $85 nonrefundable application fee can be waived for applicants who qualify for the AADSAS Fee Assistance Program. Such applicants should forward their approval email from AADSAS to our office at DDSadmissioninquiries@ucdenver.edu.