GLENDALE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
DENTISTRY

Any major is appropriate for dental school preparation. While a science major requires many of the same basic prerequisites, selecting a science major is not required for admission to any dental school. Students are advised to select major they find interesting and to work at developing a broad-based, interdisciplinary foundation of knowledge and skills from which they can build upon.

Admission Requirements: Most schools require a minimum of 2 years of undergraduate education (also called "predental education"). However, most dental students have at least a bachelor's degree. According to ADEA: Official Guide to Dental Schools, of all the United States students entering dental schools in 2001, more than 90% had completed 4 or more years of college. When selecting students, schools consider scores earned on the Dental Admission Test (DAT), the applicants' grade point average, and information gathered through recommendations and interviews. Aside from your pre-perquisite courses, it is recommended that you engage in extracurricular activities such as volunteering in a dental setting and community service. Pre-dental students should be able to demonstrate their potential for independent critical thought, leadership, concern for others, and an understanding of the Dental profession.

For the year 2000, about 57% of applicants were accepted to dental school (7,412 applicants and 4,267 enrollees). The average grade point average for accepted students to US dental schools is around a 3.4, with ranges of 3.1 to 3.7 depending on the program.

Prerequisite Requirements: Prerequisite admission requirements vary from school to school. please refer to ADEA: Official Guide to Dental Schools available for viewing at the HPAO resources library or the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) website: http://www.adea.org , for the specific requirements of the individual schools. Listed below are the prerequisite admission requirements for most U.S. Dental schools. This is NOT a comprehensive list of prerequisite for all dentistry programs. Students maintain responsibilities for verifying course selection with individual dental programs.

Other courses for consideration include: anatomy, histology, physiology, microbiology, social sciences. communications, business, technical writing, fine arts, drafting, sculpting, engineering, speech, and foreign language. Refer to the ADEA: Official Guide to Dental Schools for specific course recommendations for the individual dental schools.