dental · El Paso, Texas · public
Woody L. Hunt School of Dental Medicine prerequisites
What Hunt El Paso asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 5 lines differ from the standard dental school set, marked below.
Coursework
- Biology with labrequireddiffers
14 credits · lab
Most dental schools ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
"Biological Sciences: 14 semester hours (12 semester hours of lecture and 2 semester hours of formal lab)." Nearly double the baseline's 8, and the lab portion is specified as formal lab hours rather than left implicit.
- 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.
- Statisticsrequiredextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"Statistics: 3 semester hours or 5 quarter hours." A required line the dental baseline does not carry, and standard across the TMDSAS dental schools.
- Anatomy and physiologyrecommended
3 credits
Named by a minority of schools and useful preparation for the first year regardless.
- Microbiologyrequireddiffers
3 credits
Most dental schools ask for 3 credits and list it as recommended.
"Microbiology: 3 semester hours (or 5 quarter hours)." Required outright here, where the baseline only recommends it. The page lists it as its own line and does not state whether it counts inside the 14 hour biological science block, so ask admissions if your schedule is tight.
Experience hours
- Dentist shadowingrequired
100+ hours
The application requirements page lists "Patient Exposure" as required but attaches no number: "There is not a minimum number of hours required for admission. However, the admissions committee prefers evidence of depth and breadth of patient exposure." The school encourages observing multiple practitioners and clinics to see different healthcare delivery philosophies, so breadth counts for more here than a single long placement.
- 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
"2 Letters of Evaluation or Health Advisor Packet Evaluation." A health advisor packet replaces both individual letters rather than counting as one of them.
- Science faculty letternot required here
Hunt asks only for "2 Letters of Evaluation or Health Advisor Packet Evaluation" and names no writer for either letter, so nothing here requires a science professor. Two letters total is also one fewer than most dental schools ask for.
- Dentist letternot required here
No dentist letter is named anywhere in the application requirements. Both evaluation slots are left open as to who writes them, so a dentist you observed is a reasonable choice but not a requirement.
Also on the school’s page
Texas Tech Health El Paso applies through TMDSAS, not AADSAS: the FAQ says to apply at tmdsas.com and that "HSDM follows the TMDSAS timeline" for deadlines. The prerequisite table is the Texas pattern: 14 semester hours of biological sciences with a formal lab, 3 of microbiology, 3 of biochemistry, 8 each of general chemistry, organic chemistry and physics, 3 of statistics, and 6 of English. "Each required course must be completed with a grade of C or better. Courses taken Pass/Fail or Credit/No Credit will not count toward meeting the requirement." You may apply with prerequisites still in progress, but "you will need to provide official documentation that you have completed all required courses prior to attending orientation." The FAQ frames the list as a floor: "The prescribed course requirements are the minimum requirements for admission to the Hunt School of Dental Medicine." On scores the FAQ publishes hard minimums, "Minimum GPA is a 3.0" and "Minimum DAT is a 17," with scores older than three years not considered. That DAT figure is on the retired 1 to 30 scale rather than the 200 to 600 scale the test has used since March 2025, so it is not directly comparable to a score you would earn today and should not be converted; treat it as a signal that the school publishes a floor rather than as a live target, and confirm with admissions. Residency matters more here than almost anywhere: "Texas law prescribes that no more than 10% of the class can be classified as non-resident. Since each cohort consists of 60 students, a maximum of 6 students can be classified as non-resident." The school "will only review and consider for admission...applicants who are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents." Second source read: https://ttuhscep.edu/sdm/admissions/faq.aspx
School
elpaso.ttuhsc.eduCheck your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Hunt El Paso still needs from you.
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