How To Become A Dentist

Songs have been sung about them, marriages have happened because of them…a winning smile is one of the first things someone will notice about you, and behind every pearly white tooth there is a dentist keeping them that way. But aside from keeping the world smiling, dentistry is an extremely attractive job. With most dentists owning their own practices, the job affords security and flexibility, as well as being more lucrative than most other medical fields, with people willing to pay thousands for a perfect set of teeth.

In the UK, dentists must be registered with the General Dental Council (GDC) and hold an approved dentistry degree to practise, and most complete additional structured training after graduation before working independently in NHS or private practice.

Before you start dreaming of running your own premium cosmetic procedures clinic and start reeling in the veneer money, there is a lot of hard work and years of study required, both at undergraduate and postgraduate level. In this guide, we will take you through these years of work, showing you what to study when and how important studying after dental school can be for the future of your dentistry career. On top of this, we will briefly discuss the work experience required, as well as offering a case study from a dentist-in-waiting currently studying at postgraduate level so you can get the information straight from the dentist’s mouth.

How to become a dentist

What undergraduate qualifications are needed?

To qualify as a dentist, students must study for an approved dentistry degree in one of the UK’s 16 accredited dental schools (including those in dental teaching hospitals and centres), graduating with either a BDS (Bachelor of Dental Surgery), BDent (Bachelor of Dentistry), BDSc (Bachelor of Dental Science) or BChD (the rather fancier sounding Baccalaureus Chirurgiae Dental). Broadly speaking, there is little difference between the four, with different universities simply preferring different titles, but for the small differences there are between them it is worth contacting the university you wish to apply to.

Whichever you choose, expect a five-year course, with a pre-dental foundation year if you are coming to dentistry without straight ‘A’s. Some universities offer six-year courses that incorporate a foundation or gateway year for students who need to build their science background or who meet specific widening participation criteria. Institutions including University of Bristol and the University of Plymouth offer a six-year BDS option.

Typical entry requirements are high A-level grades (often including chemistry and biology), strong performance in admissions tests such as the UCAT or BMAT (being phased out and replaced by other tests at some institutions), and evidence of work experience in dental settings.

What postgraduate qualification are needed?

How to become a dentist

After those years of undergraduate dental work, you hopefully have some idea of what you would like to specialise in, because what you choose will change the postgraduate education you have to undertake. Whatever speciality you choose, however, you will first have to do at least one year of Dental Foundation Training (DFT) within primary care for the NHS, with certain amounts of vocational training also to be completed. It can also be completed over two years if you want to combine primary and secondary work (known as Dental Foundation and Dental Core Training routes). Whichever you choose, it has to be completed within three years of graduation in most cases, to keep your clinical skills current for NHS training contracts.

After this, anyone wishing to work in hospital dentistry has to undertake further specialist training within a hospital over a number of years. This applies to those with an interest in any of the following: orthodontics, oral medicine, restorative dentistry, paediatric dentistry and oral pathology. As well as these fields, anyone wanting to work within oral or maxillofacial surgery needs to also return to university to study medicine alongside their dental training, usually completing both medical and dental degrees plus specialty training before obtaining consultant status.

For those looking to go into specialist private practice, for example orthodontics, further university study is advisable, leading up to a Doctorate in Dental Surgery in your chosen speciality. These are three-year degrees taken after your foundation training year, and these are usually split between taught modules, closely supervised treatment of patients and a research project, teaching you everything you might need to know in your speciality. Specialty training posts are approved by the GDC and normally combine academic study (often at masters or doctorate level) with formal clinical training, assessed through membership and fellowship examinations such as the Membership in Orthodontics (MOrth). There are 16 UK dental schools and teaching hospitals that offer specialist postgraduate dentistry training, including two graduate entry dental schools and two postgraduate entry dental schools. Entry at postgraduate level is fiercely competitive, so work experience and other postgraduate qualifications at masters level are heavily recommended.

For people who have taken other degrees, whatever they are, and are now looking to convert to a degree in dentistry as a postgraduate, many dental schools offer fast-track degrees in dentistry, lasting four rather than the traditional five years. Although these are open to all graduates, as with regular dentistry they are competitive, with science degrees given preference. However, other elements are taken into consideration, so anyone who can show a commitment to dentistry should definitely consider applying to one of these places. Examples include four-year graduate-entry dentistry programs at King’s College London and the University of Lancashire, which typically require a prior degree in a biomedical or health-related subject and relevant work experience.

What work experience should you do?

As we have already seen, dentistry places both at undergraduate and postgraduate level are fiercely fought over, so anything you can do to set yourself above your competitors is advisable. Of these, gaining work experience seems like the best way to demonstrate a supreme commitment to the field. Most dental schools, and certainly the most competitive ones, will ask for a minimum of two weeks' work experience in general dental practice, with applications from those who have also worked in other areas like hospital dentistry or private dentistry naturally considered above those who have done only a fortnight.

Work experience does not have to be limited to shadowing a dentist in the surgery. Many schools also value time spent in related settings such as community dental services, dental laboratories, care homes or other healthcare environments, provided you can reflect on what you learned and how it strengthened your commitment to dentistry. Since the pandemic, some universities have accepted a combination of in-person and virtual work experience or structured online insights into dentistry, as long as applicants can show genuine engagement and understanding.

In addition to this, work experience is a mandatory part of most dentistry degrees, and postgraduate applications will not be accepted from those who have not done their year in general dental practice. And for those doing fast-track or conversion courses after other degrees, work experience becomes an essential way of showing an interest in a field that will drive you through the faster pace of the four-year program, especially when so many people are applying to those programs. Keeping a reflective log or portfolio of clinical and shadowing experiences is now strongly recommended, as it can help with personal statements, interviews and later professional development reviews.

Dentist career prospects and salary outlook

Dentistry continues to offer strong employment and earnings prospects for new graduates, although local job markets and contract structures vary across the UK. Most newly qualified dentists begin their careers in Dental Foundation Training posts with the NHS. After this, they may choose to:

Work as an associate dentist in an NHS, mixed or private practice.
Take up Dental Core Training posts in hospital and community settings.
Move into salaried roles in community dental services, the armed forces or academic posts.

According to NHS pay scales and professional surveys, dentists in foundation or salaried training posts are paid on national scales, while experienced associates and practice owners in mixed or private practices can earn significantly more, depending on patient base, location and business model. Specialising in high-demand areas such as orthodontics, endodontics, periodontics or implant dentistry can further increase earning potential, especially in private practice.

Dentists can also progress into non-clinical or portfolio careers, for example:

Teaching and research in universities or dental schools.
Public health dentistry and policy roles.
Clinical leadership, practice management and corporate dentistry roles.
Work with dental product companies, insurers or regulators.

Demand for dentists is influenced by NHS contract arrangements, public health funding and population oral health needs, so it is important for today’s students to stay informed about workforce and policy developments during their training.

Student case study

Dentist student case study Roma, currently studying for her DDS in orthodontics at the University of Bristol, found herself going into postgraduate study after three years working in general practice. “Although I did enjoy general dentistry,” she says, “I did find having to be a ‘jack of all trades’ really exhausting, and I found myself really wanting to specialise further, until I was a real expert in a certain field.” Two years in to a three-year program, she eventually wants to set up her own practice in London, offering adult orthodontics, a hugely growing business that Roma cannot wait to tap into.