Dental Residency Programs for Foreign Trained Dentists
Last Updated on July 31, 2023 by Oluwajuwon Alvina
If you are a foreign-trained dentist seeking acceptance into an accredited dental residency program in the U.S., the Dental Residency Program for Foreign Trained Dentists can help assess your qualifications and tailor your application for all programs to which you may be applying.
There have been many dental residency programs created to help foreign trained healthcare professionals obtain employment after completing their education in their country of origin. These programs allow individuals to follow the educational requirements needed for practicing dentistry in America and earn a license from the board of dentistry. However, there are some challenges individuals face who pursue this career path. There are often several great options available to help you decide where you should begin your journey to becoming a foreign trained dentist.
On Collegelearners, you will also find related articles on foreign trained dentist specialty program, AEGD programs for international dentists in Florida & general practice residency for international dentists. Ever wondered if there are available dental residency programs for foreign-trained dentists in the US? Are you curious as to how dental schools accept international students? Be rest assured that answers to the aforementioned questions can readily easily be found when you surf through our catalog right here on Collegelearners.
Dental Residency Programs for Foreign Trained Dentists
If you are a dentist who has graduated from a dental program outside of the United States or Canada you can obtain specialty training in the United States. The residency programs provided by the American Dental Association (ADA), the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA), and individual dental practices are for foreign trained dentists who already have a dental degree.
International dentists who plan to move to the US are curious to know different pathways for foreign-trained dentists to pursue their dental education or practice dentistry in the USA. We aim to bring clarity to the roadmap to US dental school for foreign trained dentists by providing a list of the different D.D.S. and residency programs available for international dentists. In this article, we will also share some information regarding the visa status required to pursue dental residency programs for foreign trained dentists which usually varies according to the program and the state.
An international dentist could join an accredited post-graduate program and apply a license thereafter instead of going back to school. This is not an option for most states however, as most of the states require international dentists to graduate from an accredited US dental school.
Different Pathways for Foreign-Trained Dentists
Dental schools accepting international students in two main types of program. The programs which an international dentist can take are the DDS program and residency program.
To earn a DDS/DMD degree in the US, international dentists must join an advanced standing program or join a traditional DDS program (the latter means they will have to start at year 1 with the rest of incoming dental students and complete the entire program (usually 4 years).
The advanced standing program for foreign trained dentists does not focus on a specialization but rather all subjects taught in a dental school. It is basically a bridge course making an international dentist equivalent to any US-trained dentist in. With this program, you will repeat two years of dental training to be eligible for dental licensure in the US.
A dental residency programs for foreign trained dentists on the other hand, provides education and training in a specific subject. This is similar to how a post-graduation program would be in your home country. Admissions to a residency program are facilitated via the National Matching Service which makes it more competitive.
Pathways for foreign-trained dentists: Listed below are the states to which an internationally-trained dentist may apply for licensure after completion of an ADA accredited residency program, as per specific requirements of each state:
- Connecticut
- Illinois
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Oregon
- Texas
- Wisconsin
- Massachusetts
dental residency programs for foreign trained dentists in canada
There are several types of residency programs that participate in the Postdoctoral Dental Matching Program administered by National Matching Services, Inc. for selecting students. These are as follows:
- Advanced Education in General Dentistry (AEGD)
- Dental Anesthesiology
- General Practice Residency
- Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
- Orthodontics
- Pediatric Dentistry
- Dental Public Health
- Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology
- Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology
- Endodontics
- Oral Medicine
- Periodontics
- Prosthodontics
According to the program’s website, for the matriculating year of 2014, the number of spots for “dental residency program for international students” available through the matching program varied from a low of twenty-seven for dental anesthesiology to a high of 619 for GPR programs (https://natmatch.com/dentres/statistics.html). AEGD programs had the highest proportion of foreign-trained dentists (18.9 percent) followed by orthodontics (16.1 percent).
Disadvantages of Dental Residency Programs for Foreign Trained Dentists
- License to practice dentistry is limited to only a few states
- It is difficult to get accustomed to the US ways of practicing dentistry since you weren’t educated here
- There is no salary for internationally-trained residents in most universities.
Advantages of a dental residency program
- Continuation of a bachelor’s program acquired in your home country.
- Direct specialization of a subject, hence saving time.
- More financially viable than D.D.S.
dental residency programs list
AEGD dental programs list
AEGD programs for international dentists
- University of Connecticut
- Nova Southeastern University
- University of Maryland
- Boston University
- Temple University, Kornberg School of Dentistry
Dental Public Health
- A.T. Still Univ.- Arizona School of Dentistry
- Harvard School of Dental Medicine
- Boston University
Endodontics
- USC Ostrow School of Dentistry
- Loma Linda University
- Georgia Health Sciences University
- University of Illinois at Chicago
- Indiana University
- University of Louisville
- Louisiana State University School of Dentistry
- University of Maryland
- Boston University
- Harvard School of Dental Medicine
- Tufts University
- New York University College of Dentistry
- University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
- Temple University, Kornberg School of Dentistry
- University of Pennsylvania
- University of Texas School of Dentistry at Houston
- Baylor College of Dentistry/Texas A&M Health Science Center
- West Virginia University
Loma Linda University Bench Test Course
- Howard University
- Tufts University
- MetroHealth Medical Center
- Abington Memorial Hospital
Geriatric Dentistry
- USC Ostrow School of Dentistry
- Harvard School of Dental Medicine
Implantology
- Harvard School of Dental Medicine
Operative Dentistry
- USC Ostrow School of Dentistry
- Boston University
- University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
Oral Medicine
- Harvard School of Dental Medicine
- University of Pennsylvania
Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology
- University of Florida
- Harvard School of Dental Medicine
Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology
- University of Connecticut
- University of Iowa
- University of Northern Carolina
- University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
- University of Washington
Graduate from accredited dental school preferred
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
- University of Florida, Jacksonville
- University of Maryland, Baltimore
- University of Maryland, MD – Integrated OMS Residency
- Tufts University
- Boston University
- University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
- University of Puerto Rico
Orthodontics
- University of Alabama at Birmingham
- University of California, San Francisco
- University of the Pacific, San Francisco
- University of Connecticut
- Washington Hospital Center
- Nova Southeastern University
- Indiana University
- University of Louisville
- University of Kentucky
- Louisiana State University School of Dentistry
- University of Maryland
- Harvard School of Dental Medicine
Pediatric Dentistry
- University of Alabama at Birmingham
- USC Ostrow School of Dentistry
- University of California, San Francisco
- Loma Linda University
- University of Connecitcut
- Nova Southeastern University
- Louisiana State University School of Dentistry
- University of Maryland
- Boston University
- Children’s Hospital, Boston
- Tufts University
- Rutgers School of Dental Medicine
- University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
- University of Puerto Rico
- University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
- University of Washington
Periodontics
- University of Alabama at Birmingham
- Loma Linda University
- USC Ostrow School of Dentistry
- University of California, San Francisco
- Nova Southeastern University
- University of Louisville
- Louisiana State University School of Dentistry
- Tufts University
- Boston University
- Stony Brook University – School of Dental Medicine
- University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
- Temple University, Kornberg School of Dentistry
- University of Pennsylvania
Periodontics Prosthesis
- University of Pennsylvania
Prosthodontics
- University of Alabama at Birmingham
- University of California, San Francisco
- University of Connecticut
- Nova Southeastern University
- University of Illinois at Chicago
- Indiana University
- University of Louisville
- Louisiana State University School of Dentistry
- University of Maryland
- Harvard School of Dental Medicine
- Tufts University