dental · Farmington, Connecticut · public
University of Connecticut School of Dental Medicine prerequisites
What UConn asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 4 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
UConn names no credit count and no course. It asks for "facility in English" alongside the science sequences, which is a competency statement rather than the baseline's two semesters. Two semesters of composition still answers it; fewer may, and the school does not say.
- Geneticsrecommendedextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"Courses in cell and molecular biology and genetics are strongly recommended." Recommended, not required, but named specifically.
- Advanced biologyrecommendedextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
The cell and molecular biology half of "Courses in cell and molecular biology and genetics are strongly recommended."
- 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 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 letterrecommendeddiffers
2 letters
Most dental schools ask for 2 letters and list it as required.
Science letters are a preference here, not a rule: "A composite letter from a pre-health advisory committee or three letters of recommendation are required. The Admissions Committee prefers that two letter are from science faculty while one may from another source (employers, dentist, etc)." Three letters total are required; which two come from science faculty is the preferred shape.
- Dentist letternot required here
UConn does not require a dentist letter. A dentist appears only as an example of the non-science third writer: "one may from another source (employers, dentist, etc)."
Also on the school’s page
UConn states its prerequisites in semesters rather than credits: "one year (two semesters) each of general chemistry, organic chemistry, biology, and physics, as well as one semester of Biochemistry and facility in English." The page does not spell out laboratory requirements for the four science sequences, so the baseline's with-lab reading of a full year stands. "Courses in cell and molecular biology and genetics are strongly recommended." Applicants are "expected to have completed the equivalent of four years of college and have a baccalaureate degree by the time he or she enters the School," with an exception possible at three years, and it is permitted to apply before finishing prerequisites or the DAT. "All applicants are required to take the Dental Admission Test," and the Canadian DAT is accepted. The published screen is "For initial review you should have a science GPA of 3.2 and a DAT total science score of 19," with matriculants averaging a science GPA of 3.5 to 3.6 and a DAT total science score of 21 to 22. Those DAT figures are on the old 1 to 30 scale, not the 200 to 600 scale in use since March 2025, so read them as the page's own numbers rather than converting them. Applications "may initiated as early as May of the year prior to intended registration, but no later than December 1," with the school advising completion before November 1. The page names no shadowing or dental experience minimum at all, so the baseline's number is a planning figure here, not UConn's.
School
dentalmedicine.uconn.eduCheck your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what UConn still needs from you.
See it for dental school