Bristol dental school: BDS entry requirements

Bristol Dental School, Bristol. 2 dentistry programmes for 2027 entry, plus 2 hygiene/therapy programmes. Entry requirements, admissions test, interview format and resit policy below, as published by the Dental Schools Council.

UCAS code	A206
Course length	5 years
Typical A level offer	A-level: AAA including Chemistry and one of Biology, Physics or Mathematics.
Admissions test	UCAT
Interview	On-line, structured interview format.

Entry requirements — 2027 entry

BDS Dentistry (A206) — 5 years

Standard Entry Dentistry

A levels / Scottish Highers	A-level: AAA including Chemistry and one of Biology, Physics or Mathematics. PE Physical Education will additionally be accepted alongside the current ‘and one of Biology, Physics or Mathematics’ across all domains. AAAAB in Standard Highers with AA in Chemistry and either Biology, Physics or Mathematics at Advanced Highers.
GCSEs / Scottish Nationals	GCSEs: Advance numeracy requirement (7/A in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent) and Standard literacy requirement (4/C in GCSE English or equivalent).
International Baccalaureate	36 points overall with 18 at Higher Level, including 6, 6 at Higher Level in Chemistry and one of Biology, Physics or Mathematics (either Analysis & Approaches or Applications & Interpretations). Access to Higher Education Diplomas/BTEC offer Access to HE Diploma in Science, Biomedical/Medical/Health Science or Psychology (or similar titles). The 45 graded Level 3 credits must include: • at least 30 credits at Distinction • at least 15 credits at Merit or above • at least 12 credits at Distinction from Chemistry units • at least 12 credits (with 9 at Distinction) from one of Biology, Physics or Mathematics. BTEC: DDD in Applied Science BTEC National Level 3 Extended Diploma, with Distinctions in five specified Chemistry units
Degree (graduate applicants)	2:1 Honours degree in any subject and BBB at A-level including Chemistry and one of Biology, Physics or Mathematics.
Admissions test	UCAT
Personal statement	We will not be using the personal statements. We may refer to the personal statement and reference to differentiate between applicants with similar academic profiles. In these cases, we use the following criteria: evidence of work experience & motivation and understanding of dentistry; evidence of team work or non- academic achievement; evidence of contribution to society.
Interview method	On-line, structured interview format.
Work experience	Please refer to our page on Work Experience.
Resit policy	Resits are accepted in all circumstances.
Widening participation	Please see the university's website for information on widening particupation. Applicants identified as being contextually eligible are required to meet conditions two grades below standard entry (AAA/ABB). Any offers made also reflect this. We do not use contextual data when assessing UCAT or interview. See website for more details.

Gateway to Dentistry BDS (A208) — 6 years

Dentistry with a Gateway Year

A levels / Scottish Highers	BBC including B in Biology or Chemistry. Applicants with predicted or achieved grades of AAB or above (or points equivalent), or with A in Chemistry, are not eligible for this course. Advanced Higher: BB including Biology or Chemistry, and Standard Level: BBBBC. Applicants with achieved or predicted Advanced Higher grades of AA, or with Chemistry at A grade, are not eligible for this course.
GCSEs / Scottish Nationals	Standard literacy requirement (4 or C in GCSE English or equivalent) and Standard numeracy requirement (4 or C in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent).
International Baccalaureate	29 points overall with 14 at Higher level, including 5 at Higher Level in Biology or Chemistry. Applicants with predicted or achieved grades of 33 points overall including 16 at Higher Level, or with 6 at Higher Level in Chemistry, are not eligible for this course. BTEC offer DMM in Applied Sciences, Medical Sciences or Health and Social Care (Science pathway). Applicants who are taking BTECs plus A-level Chemistry are not eligible for this course.
Admissions test	UCAT
Personal statement	We no longer use the personal statement as a weighted component of our selection criteria.
Interview method	Multiple mini-interviews
Work experience	Please refer to our page on Work Experience.
Resit policy	Resits are accepted in all circumstances.
Widening participation	This course is only open to applicants with certain contextual markers: they must have attended an aspiring state school or have spent time in care or have been eligible for free school meals. Please see the website for information on contextual offers. Only open to UK applicants who meet specific widening participation criteria.

How Bristol uses the UCAT

UCAT

The UCAT Consortium does not publish a central table of how each school scores the test, and this site does not publish unsourced cut-off scores. Check the admissions pages linked below for the current threshold or ranking method. Preliminary UCAT mean scores and deciles are published each September; since 2025 the test has no Abstract Reasoning section, so the maximum is 2700, not 3600.

Dental hygiene and therapy at Bristol

Bristol also runs 2 dental care professional programmes. These train hygienists and therapists, not dentists, and do not lead to the BDS. See every GDC-approved therapy and hygiene course in the UK, with approval status.

BSc Dental Therapy (B760) · 3 years — ABB including Biology.
BSc Dental Hygeine (B770) · 3 years — ABB including Biology.

DFT schemes nearest Bristol

Dental Foundation Training is the year every UK graduate does next. These are the 5 DFT schemes closest to the school, with their post counts — allocation is national and by ranked preference, so proximity is context, not entitlement.

Scheme	Base	Posts	Distance
Bristol and South Cotswold Scheme	Bristol	9	1 km
Bath Longitudinal 24 month Scheme	Bath	1	17 km
Bath and West Scheme	Bath	7	19 km
Newport and East Wales Scheme (HEIW)	Newport	12	31 km
Cardiff and Barry Scheme (HEIW)	Cardiff	11	41 km

🗺 See this school and its DFT schemes on the map

Bristol dentistry: common questions

What A level grades does Bristol need for dentistry?

A-level: AAA including Chemistry and one of Biology, Physics or Mathematics.

What GCSEs does Bristol require for dentistry?

GCSEs: Advance numeracy requirement (7/A in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent) and Standard literacy requirement (4/C in GCSE English or equivalent).

Does Bristol use the UCAT?

Yes — the UCAT.

Is the Bristol dentistry interview an MMI or a panel?

On-line, structured interview format.

Does Bristol accept A level resits for dentistry?

Resits are accepted in all circumstances.

Which DFT scheme is nearest Bristol?

Bristol and South Cotswold Scheme, based in Bristol, about 1 km away with 9 posts. DFT allocation is national and by ranked preference, so proximity is context, not entitlement.

Sources

Entry requirements above are as published by the Dental Schools Council, Entry requirements for UK and Ireland dental schools — 2027 entry, collated directly from admissions staff and checked on 8 Sep 2026. Requirements change every cycle — confirm on the school's own page before applying.

Admissions pages for Bristol:

Part of all UK dental schools · recruitment timelines · what training pays