Dentistry: AADSAS
Dentistry is a branch of medicine that is dedicated to helping patients enhance and maintain their oral health. Dentists diagnose, treat, and help prevent diseases, injuries, and malformations of the teeth and gum. Graduates of dental school may hold either a Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S.) degree, or a Doctor of Medical Dentistry (D.M.D.) degree –both equally recognized.
Dental programs are four-years long, with the first two years spent learning basic sciences, and last two years diagnosing oral disease, surgery, and clinical study; additionally, in the last year, students usually must complete a dental rotation externship. Beyond general dentistry, there are specialized postgraduate programs, such as orthodontics and pediatric dentistry, which can take two to six more years to complete. Some dental schools also offer joint degree programs that can include the study of Dental Medicine with a dual degree in JD, MPH, or MBA.
DISCLAIMER: Cal State Fullerton does not have a Dental Program. This page serves as a resource for students.
Before You Begin
- The AADSAS application will be available for viewing on or around May 15.
- The ADEA AADSAS application will launch around June 4th.
- Do not submit materials to ADDSAS prior to the launch date, because they will not be received.
- Deadlines vary, so please consult individual schools to obtain specific deadlines.
- The first step in submitting an application is to create a User Name and Password by registering for a DENTPIN®.
Pre-requisite Courses
| Major | Pre-Reqs | Courses |
|---|---|---|
| Biology | One Year of Coursework with Lab (dependent on your major) | BIOL 151 & BIOL 152 |
| Chemistry | One Year of Coursework with Lab | CHEM 120A & CHEM 120B |
| Organic Chemistry | One Year of Coursework with Lab | CHEM 301A & CHEM 301B (LAB: 302) |
| Physics | One Year of Coursework with Lab |
PHYS 211 (LAB : 211L) & PHYS 212 (LAB: 212L) |
| Mathematics | One semester is recommended yet required by other dental schools. Some schools prefer one semester of calculus, while others prefer statistics. Please check with each dental school for more information. |
#1) MATH 150A & MATH 150B (Calculus 1 & 2) #2) MATH 130 & MATH 338 (short course Calc & Stats) **for stats: OR stats courses offered by your department for your major |
| Molecular Biology | One semester is recommended yet required by other dental schools. | BIOL 309 |
| Biochemistry | One semester is recommended yet required by other dental schools. |
Biology majors: CHEM 421 (LAB: CHEM 422) Biochem majors: CHEM 423A & 423B (LAB: CHEM 422) |
| English | One year is required for some dental schools in the country. Please note: this can be integrated in upper-division science courses that fulfill writing requirements for major. | ENGL 101 & ENGL 301 |
| 3-Dimensional Art | Many Dental schools strongly recommend at least one course in sculpture to develop manual dexterity and spatial orientation skills. | ART 104 |
| Major | Pre-Reqs | Courses |
|---|---|---|
| Anatomy, Physiology, Microbiology | Basic or advanced level sciences courses are recommended yet required by some dental schools. Please refer to ADEA Official Guide to Dental Schools for more information. |
Human Anatomy: BIOL 361 Physiology: BIOL 310 (LAB: 310L) Integrated Anat/Physio: BIOL 191A, BIOL 191B, BIOL 210 Microbio: BIOL 302 |
| Humanities/Social Science | Many Dental Schools strongly recommend a course in Psychology, Sociology, Philosophy, History, Communications, Business/Economics | PSYC 101, SOCI 101, PHIL 100, HIST 110A/110B/170A/170B, HCOM 100/102, ECON 201/202 |
Transcripts and Coursework
List all undergraduate, graduate and professional institutions you have attended, or plan to attend. Enter all colleges and universities you attended even if the courses are not required for admission to dental school, or if they transferred to another institution. Include non-degree programs.
ADEA AADSAS requires a separate official transcript from each U.S. and Canadian institution attended, including branch campuses if they issue transcripts separately from the parent university. All transcripts must arrive at the ADEA AADSAS Transcript Processing Department by the application deadline dates of your designated schools.
Report ALL coursework completed at U.S., U.S. overseas, and Canadian institutions exactly as it appears on your transcript(s). This includes, but is not limited to:
- Courses that have been repeated. Original and repeated grades from repeated courses are used in calculating the ADEA AADSAS GPA, even if this is not the policy of your college/university.
- Courses that you failed, regardless of whether they have been repeated.
- Courses you took in high school for college credit that appear on a college transcript. Do not send high school transcripts to ADEA AADSAS.
- Courses taken for credit at American colleges overseas (i.e. Study Abroad)
You will not be able to revise this section after e-submitting your ADEA AADSAS application, so be careful when submitting transcripts and coursework. However, you will be able to add newly completed courses during the Academic Update period.
Letters of Evaluation
For individuals who didn't apply for a committee letter, you are able to submit up to four letters of recommendation in your packet that the office forwards to AADSAS. Please only list, Dr. Mouttapa, as the individual who will be submitting your letter packet.
For those who receiving a committee letter:
- The Health Professions Advising Office compiles the committee packet and uploads it to AADSAS. Please email ItoA@fullerton.edu for further details on how to proceed with this portion of your application.
Essay/Personal Statement
According to the AADSAS website, the personal essay provides an opportunity for you to explain why you desire to pursue dental education. The Admissions Committee members who read your essay are looking for individuals who are motivated, academically prepared, articulate, socially conscious, and knowledgeable about the profession. Write about your experiences and any qualities that will make you stand out. The essay should be 4500 characters in length (including spaces).
Dr. Mouttapa is available to review personal statements if you desire her input on it. If you would like to do this please schedule a 40 minute personal statement review appointment with her online.
The Writing Center in the Pollack Library is also another wonderful resource to aid students in composing and editing their personal statements. The Career Center can provide you with an additional review of your personal statement by their professionally trained counselors. Only current CSUF students are able to utilize the assistance of the Writing Center. A current or recent alumni (less than one year since graduation) can utilize the experiences counselors of the Career Center.
Submitting Application
After successfully filling out all of the required fields and attaching necessary documents, you will be able to submit your application online. Allow 4-6 weeks for application processing. Your application will be considered complete and eligible for processing once the following are received:
- Complete ADEA AADSAS application, submitted online
- One official transcript from every college and university attended, mailed directly to ADEA AADSAS from the institution's registrar's office.
- Application fee payment, credit card via online application, check, or money order.
Please note that the University of Mississippi do not participate with the AADSAS application service. Please visit their website to learn more about their specific application cycle.
Monitoring the Status of Your Application
You can check the status of many items in your application, including the date(s) that transcript(s) and letters of evaluation are received by ADEA AADSAS, when your transcripts have been verified and GPAs have been computed, and when your application information has been sent to dental schools both electronically and in printed form.
The AADSAS website has many resources posted for its users. Please take a moment to explore the site to become familiar to the application process. Please see the ADEA.org site.
Additionally, students can call 617.612.2045 and speak to an AADSAS representative about specific questions pertaining to their applications. We strongly encourage you to always remain polite and professional when speaking to any member of AADSAS (and HPAO) staff.
Information provided in this document was retrieved from the American Dental Education Association
on April 4, 2013.
Fee Assistance Program (FAP)
The FAP was created for dental school applicants who demonstrate an extreme need for financial assistance. Eligibility for FAP is determined by reviewing the financial resources of the applicant, spouse, and parent/guardian of the applicant.
It is important that you read all FAP policies and instructions carefully before completing an FAP application.
Please refer to the ADAE website
to learn more about the FAP program and apply.
Please note, do not submit your ADEA AADSAS application before receiving word as to your status, as you will automatically be denied for the program.
