dental · Oklahoma City, Oklahoma · public
University of Oklahoma College of Dentistry prerequisites
What Oklahoma 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 labrequireddiffers
4 semesters · 16 credits · lab
Most dental schools ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
"16 hours | Biology, 2 labs minimum." Four semesters' worth of biology, twice the two-semester sequence most dental schools stop at, with at least two of those courses carrying laboratory. AP credit does not count toward it.
- 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
Two semesters of English or writing-intensive coursework at most schools that name it.
- Psychologyrequiredextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"3 hours | Psychology." A required prerequisite here, not a recommendation, and one most dental schools do not name.
- 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
"A minimum of 100 hours of dental shadowing." Oklahoma also shapes where the hours come from: they should reflect shadowing in at least 3 different offices, 2 of them general dental environments, and a variety of specialties outside settings where you were employed. Shadowing here means observation without responsibility, so working hours are not the same thing.
- Non-clinical volunteeringrequireddiffers
100+ hours
Most dental schools ask for 100+ hours and list it as recommended.
"A minimum of 100 hours of community service," required rather than recommended, with the hours expected to reflect a variety of opportunities and engagement in different types of communities.
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
Oklahoma publishes its prerequisites as a plain hours table: 16 hours of biology with a minimum of 2 labs, 8 of chemistry with labs required, 8 of organic chemistry with labs required, 3 of biochemistry, 8 of physics with labs required, 3 of psychology, and 6 of English. The biology figure is double the usual dental ask and the psychology line is one many schools skip, so both are worth planning around early. The school also states that "Advanced Placement (AP) credits will NOT be accepted for any science prerequisite," while online labs are accepted. Applicants need a minimum of 90 semester hours of coursework from any accredited college or university, with 75 hours completed prior to application, a minimum 2.5 GPA for all college level work attempted, and a minimum 2.5 math and science GPA on the same basis; the school separately encourages applicants to aim for about a 3.5. On the DAT, the highest score is accepted and a score is valid for 3 years from the date of the exam. The suggested minimums are printed as paired numbers, AA 16 / 350, SNS 16 / 360, BIO 16 / 360, GCH 16 / 360, OCH 16 / 370, PAT 16 / 340, QR 16 / 360, RC 16 / 320, which sets the retired 1 to 30 figure beside the current 200 to 600 scale in force since March 2025. Read the second number in each pair as the live one rather than converting anything yourself. The page names no letter writers at all, so the letters lines fall back to the baseline and you should confirm them in ADEA AADSAS before deciding who writes.
School
dentistry.ouhsc.eduCheck your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Oklahoma still needs from you.
See it for dental school