Students wishing to enroll in the College of Dentistry must enroll in both the DDS program and the oral biology PhD program. The application for these programs is separate and a student must be accepted to both programs in order to attend the College of Dentistry. It is preferred that students have a bachelor's degree before attending the program. Students have the ability to apply as early as their third year of undergraduate studies.
Students must have an overall grade point average of 3.65 or higher before applying to the dentistry program. Applicants should have a Dental Admission Test or DAT score of 19 or higher. As of 2011 the DAT fee is $285 and the test should be taken the spring of the year before your autumn application.
Students must complete at least nine of the 13 required semester courses prior to applying to the dentistry program. Prerequisite classes must be completed with a grade of C or better before applying. The program rarely admits students who have not completed 96 semester hours and preference is given to students who have the most prerequisites completed prior to submitting their application.
The prerequisite classes for the dentistry program include a human anatomy course. Anatomy classes can include gross anatomy or comparative anatomy. Biochemistry, inorganic chemistry and organic chemistry along with their lab courses are required. Biology can be taken as either general biology or zoology. English and advanced composition must both be taken. Physics I is required and Physics II is optional. Physiology can be taken in combination with anatomy but they must be taken in two semesters. Microbiology is also required during the course of studies. It is not required that these courses be taken at OSU in order to qualify for the dental program.
Students wishing to apply to the program must submit two letters of recommendation electronically as a part of their application. These letters can be from employers, dentists whom you've observed or your college science professor(s). The letter must be submitted to the American Dental Schools Application Service or the AADSAS along with your electronic application.
Students are required to complete 20 hours of direct observation with a licensed dentist in their office. The school requires this observation time to give the student an opportunity to see the ins and outs of being a dentist and if the program is right for them. This observation can be done with a general dentist in the United States or Canada. There is no maximum number of observation hours but at least 20 hours should be completed.