How many dental schools are in the UK?
20 — 14 in England, 4 in Scotland, 1 in Wales and 1 in Northern Ireland. 18 offer or plan the undergraduate BDS degree — our confirmed teaching count remains 16, pending confirmation of Portsmouth’s advertised 2026 international intake — and 2 (UCL Eastman and Edinburgh) do not teach the BDS at all, though both run undergraduate dental hygiene and therapy degrees. All 20 are listed below and plotted on the map.
2027-entry dentistry deadline: 15 October 2026, 18:00 UK time. This is the UCAS equal-consideration deadline for most dentistry courses; check your course listing. UCAS deadline.
🗺 View dental schools on the interactive map
The full list of UK dental schools
| School | City | Programmes | 2027 BDS entry (grades, test, interview) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham School of Dentistry | Birmingham | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT, MMI | — |
| Bristol Dental School | Bristol | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT | — |
| Cardiff University School of Dentistry | Cardiff | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT, MMI | — |
| Dundee School of Dentistry | Dundee | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | A*AA, UCAT, MMI | — |
| Glasgow Dental School | Glasgow | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT, MMI | — |
| Aberdeen Institute of Dentistry | Aberdeen | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | UCAT, MMI | BDS is graduate-oriented entry |
| Queen's University Belfast — School of Dentistry | Belfast | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT, MMI | — |
| King's College London — Faculty of Dentistry | London (Guy's campus) | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | A*AA, UCAT | Largest UK dental school; UG at Guy's, clinical sites incl. Denmark Hill |
| QMUL — Barts & The London School of Medicine and Dentistry | London (Whitechapel) | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | A*AA, UCAT, panel | — |
| University of Leeds School of Dentistry | Leeds | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT, MMI | — |
| University of Liverpool School of Dentistry | Liverpool | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT, MMI | — |
| University of Manchester Dental School | Manchester | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT, MMI | — |
| Newcastle University School of Dental Sciences | Newcastle upon Tyne | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT, panel | — |
| Peninsula Dental School (University of Plymouth) | Plymouth | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | A*AA, UCAT, MMI | — |
| University of Sheffield School of Clinical Dentistry | Sheffield | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | AAA, UCAT, panel | — |
| University of Lancashire School of Dentistry | Preston | BDS undergraduate + postgraduate | UCAT, MMI | Formerly UCLan (University of Central Lancashire) — renamed 2025. Graduate-entry BDS (A202, 4 years) |
| UCL Eastman Dental Institute | London (Bloomsbury) | Postgraduate only | No BDS | Postgraduate only (MClinDent, MSc, specialty programmes) |
| Edinburgh Dental Institute (University of Edinburgh) | Edinburgh | Postgraduate only | No BDS | Postgraduate only |
| University of Portsmouth Dental School | Portsmouth | BDS undergraduate | AAB, UCAT, panel | New school (official opening 5 June 2026). 25 UK BDS places a year from September 2027; UK applications are open. The course page also advertised EU/international entry for September 2026; actual enrolment has not been confirmed here. Source |
| University of East Anglia (UEA) Dental School | Norwich | BDS undergraduate | AAA, UCAT, MMI | New school: places provisionally allocated in April 2026. First cohort expected September 2027; 25 Government-funded places per year. UCAS applications could be started from 12 May 2026. Source |
Entry column: headline A-level grades, whether the UCAT is required and the interview format (MMI or panel), from the 2027 Dental Schools Council booklet (UEA from UEA directly). Each school page has the full requirements.
Why it is 20 schools but 16 confirmed teaching the BDS
20 is the count as of the 2026 intake — 18 offering the undergraduate BDS and 2 (UCL Eastman and Edinburgh) offering postgraduate programmes only. The 2 newest schools, Portsmouth and UEA, have Government-funded UK places starting in September 2027. Portsmouth also advertised EU/international entry for September 2026; actual enrolment is not confirmed here, so the teaching count remains 16. Counts published before those two were approved will say 18.
UEA’s provisional allocation was reported on 9 April 2026 by James Wild MP. Portsmouth’s official announcement gives its opening date as 5 June 2026.
Dental schools by nation and city
England has 14 (3 of them in London: King's, QMUL and the UCL Eastman), Scotland has 4 (Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow), plus Cardiff in Wales and Queen's Belfast in Northern Ireland. Every school is plotted on the interactive map alongside DFT schemes, DCT posts and specialty training, so you can see the training landscape around each campus.
After dental school
Graduates go into Dental Foundation Training (72 schemes), then optionally Dental Core Training and specialty training. See what each stage pays on the pay page and when each round opens on the timelines page.
UK dental schools: common questions
Why do sources disagree on how many UK dental schools there are?
Because they are counting different things, and at different dates. 20 is the number of dental schools; 18 of those offer the undergraduate BDS; only 16 are confirmed teaching it in this directory. Portsmouth and UEA have Government-funded UK places from 2027, while Portsmouth’s advertised 2026 international intake remains unconfirmed here. Lists predating those two additions say 18.
How many UK dental schools teach the BDS?
18 offer or plan the undergraduate BDS; this directory currently confirms 16 teaching it, pending clarification of Portsmouth’s advertised 2026 international intake. UCL Eastman and Edinburgh do not teach the BDS at all, though both run undergraduate dental hygiene and therapy degrees.
Which UK dental schools offer graduate entry dentistry?
Aberdeen, King's College London, University of Lancashire. The Dental Schools Council lists graduate entry dentistry at these 3 schools for 2027 entry; the rest admit graduates through standard entry instead.
Do all UK dental schools require the UCAT?
15 of the 17 standard-entry dentistry courses in the 2027 Dental Schools Council booklet name the UCAT as their admissions test; the remainder record no test or "N/A". No central table of school-by-school UCAT thresholds is published — check each school's own admissions page.
Is there a dental school foundation or gateway year?
Yes — 4 schools run a Dentistry with a Gateway Year route for 2027 entry, aimed at widening participation. Each school page below carries its own entry criteria.