Take science and math courses during high school and college to fulfill dental school prerequisites. Preform your best in these classes and get tutoring or extra help for your weak areas. Take practice tests and adequately prepare for the Dental Admissions Test (DAT), which is the standard test required to apply for dental school, equivalent to the LSAT for law school and MCAT for medical school. Students should take the DAT about a year before they want to begin dental school. The DAT assesses abilities such as in biology, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, basic math, algebra, geometry, and trigonometry.
Research accredited dental programs and understand application requirements, which usually evaluate DAT results, GPAs, and recommendations. Register for application services to dental schools (AADSAS) through adea.org. Typically, students complete an undergraduate education before entering dental school. Dental programs last four years, but dentists who want to specialize in an area might take more time. The cost of attending four years of dental school can range from about $120,000 to $300,000. Students often take out loans to cover tuition and expenses but some scholarship and grant opportunities are available.
During dental school in the United States, students must pass national board exams. The American Dental Association provides information about the two part exams on ada.org. Study for the exams or else you will not become a dentist. Review past exams and explore other resources like Dental Decks (dentaldecks.com).