utexas.edu College of Natural Sciences
Home
Search the site

Pre-Dental Course Requirements

Course Requirements Overview

This is a guide to common pre-dental course requirements.  

Professional schools have a variety of prerequisites required for admission to their programs. On this page, we include information about timelines for pre-dental requirements and the options available. 

  • Individual schools may require or recommend additional courses.
  • All Prerequisites must be completed with a letter grade of C or higher.
  • Schools vary on Credit-By-Exam (AP/IB/CLEP) policies and preferences for prerequisites.

School requirements can change. See individual school websites and admissions guides under “Research Dental Schools Before You Apply." We always recommend checking for any updates.

Recommended Pre-Dental Courses

Most Texas dental schools require:

  • Biology:  Lecture – 12-15 hrs;  Lab – 2-3 hrs 
  • General Chemistry:  Lecture – 6 hrs;  Lab – 2 hrs
  • Organic Chemistry:  Lecture – 6 hrs;  Lab – 2 hrs
  • Biochemistry:  Lecture – 3 hrs
  • General Physics:  Lecture – 6 hrs;  Lab – 2 hrs
  • Math:  Statistics – 3 hrs
  • English:  Rhetoric (Composition) and/or Literature – 6 hrs

Humanities and Social Science Course Options:

  • Psychology and Sociology
  • Ethics
  • Analytical problem-solving and Critical thinking
  • Writing, Interpersonal communications, and Presentation skills
  • Small business management and Accounting
  • Mechanical drawing and studio art
  • Cultural studies
  • Spanish and other language studies relevant to your career goals

UT Austin Courses Typically Taken to Fulfill Requirements

In addition to the course lists below, see explanations of requirements on the TMDSAS (Texas Medical and Dental Schools Application Service) Undergraduate Course Requirements & look at the TMDSAS Approved Course List

Science Requirements

Subject Lecture Lab
Biology BIO 311C + BIO 311D + BIO 325 + [BIO 326R or 326M] + BIO 446L + BIO 365S OR   [BIO 315H + BIO 325H]  + [BIO 326R or 326M]  + BIO 446L + BIO 365S    BIO 325 is not specifically required, but it is a UT Austin prerequisite for other required upper-division Biology.
  • BIO 206L OR 
  • 2 hrs of upper-division BIO lab OR
  • BCH 369L (for majors)
  • BIO or BCH lab must be formal lab course work.  
  Research lab credit, such as BIO 377, does not fulfill this requirement. 
Chemistry  
  • CH 301 + CH 302 OR
  • CH 301H + CH 302H
  • CH 204 OR
  • CH 317 (honors)
Organic Chemistry
  • CH 320M + CH 320N OR
  • CH 328M + CH 328N 
  • CH 220C OR
  • CH 128K + CH 128L (for majors)
Biochemistry
  • BCH 369 OR
  • BCH 339F (for majors)
  
Physics
  • PHY 317K + PHY 105M and PHY 317L + PHY 105N  OR
  • PHY 302K + PHY 105M and PHY 302L + PHY 105N OR
  • PHY 303K + PHY 105M and PHY 303L + PHY 105N OR 
  • PHY 301 + PHY 101L and PHY 316 + PHY 116L
  

Non-Science Courses

Subject Course Information
Statistics Statistics usually fulfills math requirement at Texas schools. See TMDSAS acceptable statistics courses  
Rhetoric (Composition)
  • RHE 306
  • RHE 309K
  • Any Writing Flag course in RHE Dept.
 Choose 1 courses from rhetoric (composition).
Literature
  • E 316L
  • E 316M
  • E 316N
  • E 316P
  • Any Literature course in English Dept.
 Choose 1 courses from the literature. Remedial, developmental, and "English As a Second Language" courses are not accepted.

Dental Schools Prerequisite Course Timelines

Completing the pre-dental courses and extra-curricular activities generally requires six semesters or longer, regardless of the student’s age or year in college. Your personal timeline may differ from these samples. Work with your academic advisor to incorporate these courses into your degree plan.

Important Note: Timelines do not include all course options and details. To be sure that you are fulfilling all requirements, see individual school websites and Research Dental Schools Before You Apply.

Additional Course Information