dental · Washington, District of Columbia · private
Howard University College of Dentistry prerequisites
What Howard asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 2 lines differ from the standard dental school set, marked below.
Coursework
- Biology with labrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
Two semesters with lab. As universal for dental school as it is for medical.
- General chemistry with labrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
Two semesters with lab. The DAT's general chemistry section assumes the full sequence.
- Organic chemistry with labrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
Two semesters with lab at most schools. A small number accept one semester plus biochemistry; confirm on the school's page before planning around it.
- Biochemistryrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
Roughly half of schools require a semester and the share grows every cycle. The DAT does not test it, but first-year dental biochemistry assumes you have seen it.
- Physics with labrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
Two semesters, algebra-based accepted essentially everywhere. A handful of schools want only one semester; the two-semester plan covers them all.
- English or writing-intensiverequired
2 semesters · 6 credits
Same two semesters as the baseline, but Howard names the content: "English Composition and Literature," 6 semester hours or 9 quarter hours. The page does not offer the writing-intensive substitution some schools allow.
- Physiologyrecommendedextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
Listed among the recommended courses as "Physiology (unless taken with Human Anatomy)," so a combined A and P sequence that covers physiology answers it.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequireddiffers
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
Most dental schools ask for 3 credits and list it as recommended.
"Human Anatomy with lab," 4 semester hours or 6 quarter hours. The dental baseline only recommends anatomy and physiology; Howard requires the anatomy half outright and names the laboratory.
- Microbiologyrecommended
3 credits
Required at a meaningful minority and recommended widely; a strong pick for the spare science slot.
Experience hours
- Dentist shadowingrequired
100+ hours
Shadowing dentists. Schools that publish a number most often say 100 hours, and admissions committees read breadth across general and specialty practice. Hours shadowing physicians do not answer this; log dental chairside time here. Across the 77 school overlays, 36 require shadowing, 22 recommend it and 19 publish nothing; the numbers those schools name range from 30 hours to 100, so this baseline figure is a planning floor rather than a common standard.
- Non-clinical volunteeringrecommended
100+ hours
Few schools publish a number; committees still read for a service habit held over time.
Letters
- Committee letterrecommended
1 letter
Accepted nearly everywhere in place of individual faculty letters where your college offers one.
- Science faculty letterrequired
2 letters
Two science professors, or a committee letter where your school offers one.
- Dentist letterrequired
1 letter
One letter from a dentist, usually one you shadowed. The count is now from primary sources rather than an estimate: across all 77 schools, each read from its own published page, 17 require a dentist letter, 14 recommend one, 38 state a letter set that does not include one, and 8 name no writers at all. The first estimate here said 70 percent; the real figure is 22. The line stays required as the fallback for the 8 silent schools, because a letter obtained needlessly costs effort while one missing at a school that wanted it can cost a cycle, and every school that does require it says so in its own overlay. Awaiting the human pass like the rest of this set.
Also on the school’s page
Howard publishes a seven row prerequisite table in semester hours: English Composition and Literature 6, Inorganic Chemistry with Lab 8, Organic Chemistry with Lab 8, Biochemistry 3, Human Anatomy with lab 4, Physics 8, and Electives 22. Two things about that table are worth reading carefully. First, it carries no general biology line at all, which is unusual; the anatomy line and the 22 elective hours are where biology sits on the page. This overlay therefore leaves the baseline's two semesters of biology with lab standing rather than declaring Howard does not want it, because the school does not say that. Second, the table writes "with Lab" explicitly on the two chemistry rows and "with lab" on Human Anatomy, but lists physics as simply "Physics," 8 semester hours, without saying whether the laboratory is required, so plan on the full sequence with lab. Physiology, "unless taken with Human Anatomy," and Microbiology are listed as recommended rather than required. On grades and credit: "Online courses are not acceptable for the required course work," "Advanced placement and/or college level entrance program credits are not acceptable for required courses," and "CR", "S", and/or "P" grades are unacceptable for required courses. A bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited US or Canadian institution is required before enrollment. "Applicants should meet a minimum Science GPA of at least 2.8 to be considered eligible." All applicants must take the DAT, "DAT scores may not be more than two years old," only the most recent score is considered, and the Canadian test is accepted; the page's competitive figures, 18 Total Science, 20 Reading Comprehension and 18 Academic Average, are on the old 1 to 30 scale rather than the 200 to 600 scale in use since March 2025, so read them as published rather than converting. Letters are described only as "significant credentials in the selection process" with no number or writer named, so the baseline's letter lines are a planning shape here, not Howard's stated rule. Applications run through ADEA AADSAS, open in May, and close February 1 of the intended entry year; interviews begin in August, and the entering class is 75 to 80 students.
School
dentistry.howard.eduCheck your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Howard still needs from you.
See it for dental school