Dental Assisting

As a dental assistant, you'll perform a variety of tasks such as caring for patients and taking X-rays, as well as administrative duties. Our program provides the training and hands-on experience needed to pursue a career in this field.

To give you a broad education, we've divided our program into five subsections: general sciences, biomedical sciences, dental sciences, dental assisting, and clinical practice. Your general science courses will cover psychology and communication, while your biomedical sciences curriculum will include classes on physiology and anatomy, microbiology, pharmacology, and nutrition. Our dental school faculty will teach your dental sciences courses, covering more technical subjects such as dental anatomy, oral pathology, dental materials, preventative dentistry, and dental radiology. Then, when you take your dental assisting courses, we'll cover topics such as practice management, dental emergencies, and dental laboratory techniques. Finally, a critical part of your education will be real-world experience, including around 500 hours of patient treatment. Here, you'll get clinical practice opportunities in all general and speciality clinics at the UAB School of Dentistry and private dental clinics. In the end, you'll have earned a certificate that's fully approved by the Board of Dental Examiners of Alabama.

• a completed application;
• a nonrefundable $40 application fee;
• official proof of English proficiency (unless English is your first language);
• official transcripts*. All documents must be sent in English.
• If you are studying or living in the United States currently, you must send a copy of proof of your immigration status (passport, I-94, visa, and/or I-797 approval notice).

Students can apply using the UAB Application or the Common Application using the steps below:

1. Complete and submit the admission application and $40 application fee, payable by credit or debit card, or application fee waiver. If you are applying test-optional, please review the test-optional policy.
2. Submit official high school transcript electronically or by mail.
3. Submit ACT or SAT score if you would like it used for admission and scholarship consideration.