dental · New York, New York · private
NYU College of Dentistry prerequisites
What NYU asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 3 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.
- Biochemistrynot required here
NYU's prerequisite list names five subject areas, biology, inorganic or general chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, and English or writing-intensive coursework, and biochemistry is not among them. Worth taking anyway for the dental first year, but it is not a prerequisite here.
- 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
Two semesters of English or writing-intensive coursework at most schools that name it.
- Anatomy and physiologyrecommended
3 credits
Named by a minority of schools and useful preparation for the first year regardless.
- Microbiologyrecommended
3 credits
Required at a meaningful minority and recommended widely; a strong pick for the spare science slot.
Experience hours
- Dentist shadowingrecommendeddiffers
100+ hours
Most dental schools ask for 100+ hours and list it as required.
"A minimum of 100 hours of dental shadowing is recommended." The baseline's number, but recommended here rather than required.
- 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
"One committee evaluation letter" replaces the three individual letters outright, science faculty included, rather than sitting alongside them.
- Science faculty letterrequired
2 letters
The letters requirement is "one committee evaluation letter or three individual letters of evaluation, two of which must be from science faculty members." Two science faculty, as in the baseline, and NYU leaves the writer of the third individual letter entirely open.
- Dentist letternot required here
No dentist letter is named. Two of the three individual letters must come from science faculty and the third writer is unspecified, so a dentist may write it without being required to.
Also on the school’s page
NYU states the prerequisite list as "a minimum of two semesters or three quarters each of: Biology (with lab), Inorganic/General Chemistry (with lab), Organic Chemistry (with lab), Physics (with lab), English/Writing-Intensive." Those five match the dental baseline, so they carry no line here. Two conditions sit on every one of them: a minimum grade of "C" and completion "within the past ten years" at an institution accredited by a U.S. Department of Education-recognized institutional accreditor or a Canadian college or university. Prerequisites may be satisfied through postbaccalaureate study, and NYU "generally requires a letter grade for our prerequisite courses," with a standing exception for Pass/Fail grades earned in Spring or Summer 2020. A bachelor's degree is required; applicants without one are held to a GPA of 3.5. The DAT must be submitted by January 15 of the year admission is sought and "must have been taken within 3 years of the year in which admission is sought." NYU publishes admitted-student figures rather than minimums: "The mean Total GPA of admitted students is 3.61. The mean Science GPA is 3.51," with strong candidates in a band of 3.29 to 3.79, and on the DAT "The mean score for the Academic Average and Total Science sections are each 21. The mean score for Reading Comprehension is 22." Those DAT figures are numbers on the retired 1 to 30 scale, not the 200 to 600 scale in use since March 2025, so treat them as legacy context rather than converting them. Every applicant completes an asynchronous video interview through Kira Talent.
School
dental.nyu.eduCheck your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what NYU still needs from you.
See it for dental school