DDS Program

You will see, when you leave, that you are so ahead of the game in terms of clinical experience.

Mark Makiling, DDS '15, discusses how the breadth and depth of clinical experience at NYU Dentistry prepares our students for any clinical challenge — and how his service ethic influenced his career path.

 


We "think big" at NYU Dentistry.

The NYU College of Dentistry is the third oldest and the largest dental school in the United States, educating nearly 10 percent of our nation's dentists. Since our founding in 1865, NYU Dentistry has been preparing the next generation of healthcare leaders, pioneering research in all areas of oral/dental medicine, advancing the latest treatments, and applying breakthrough methods of care, all while serving our diverse community of patients in New York City and around the world.

Exceptional education. Vast opportunities. Unparalleled clinical experience.

Students in the Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree program are immersed in an integrated education that combines an in-depth and extensive clinical practice experience with rigorous course work in the biomedical, behavioral, and clinical sciences and the social issues related to the general health and well-being of the public. This integration fosters students' understanding of dentistry and its relationship to overall health.


 

Our 14 Academic Societies — each with about 27 students per class year — allow students to experience smaller-group learning and mentoring while still having access to the vast resources of a large university.

 


The school has a real commitment to making smaller groups out of each class. … And that’s such an important thing, in the first year, to help students to really feel seen and to help them feel that they’re part of a community of learners here.

Elena Cunningham, PhD, discusses the interplay of her research with primate cognition and her teaching methods, as she aims to find the most efficient and least stressful ways for NYU Dentistry students to learn.

 


Students work side-by-side with world-renowned educators, clinicians, and researchers, and have many opportunities to pursue research interests. The College’s sophisticated, state-of-the-art clinical facilities are all housed on nine floors within NYU Dentistry, and students are integrated into the clinical setting early in the D1 year. This unique program is characterized by clinical rotations in the comprehensive care clinics (D1) and the specialty clinics (D2) and culminates in students gaining "initial patient care privileges" at the end of the D2 year. This program is designed to reinforce the integration between the foundational and clinical sciences, and to enhance the "doctoring" skills that are essential to a smooth transition into assuming the responsibilities inherent in being a healthcare provider.


 

With 300,000 patient visits each year, plus community outreach rotations built into the curriculum, our students gain competence and confidence in all aspects of the clinical practice of dentistry within the 4-year curriculum.

 


Support. Guidance. Mentorship.

Each DDS student is supported by a comprehensive network of students, faculty, and staff who provide one-on-one guidance for their professional development. Each Academic Society has their own Student Success Network consisting of a designated Academic Advisor, Senior Mentor, and Peer Assessment Facilitator, as well as a group of dental student Peer Mentors and Peer Tutors who work closely with students and each other to promote and support student success.


 

Our innovations in teaching and technology are meeting students where they are — and leveraging advances in digital media and anatomy instruction to enhance comprehension and facilitate student success.
 


Curricular highlights:

  • Unlike some dental schools who do not have their own resident basic science faculty, NYU Dentistry offers a strong curriculum in the basic sciences tailored specifically to the needs of future dentists by members of the Department of Molecular Pathobiology in close collaboration with the clinical dentistry departments. This diverse group of dentists, physicians, and researchers ensure an innovative and unparalleled curriculum characterized by incorporating plastinated human specimens, a personalized learning platform, virtual reality, and digital dentistry, including robotics, into courses throughout the program.
  • D3 and D4 students choose from a large selection of honors and elective courses, ranging from Dental Care for Survivors of Torture, to Honors in Special Patient Care, to Precision Medicine: Salivary Diagnostics and Genomics, among many others.
  • The NYU Dentistry Center for Oral Health Policy and Management, launched in 2021, is an interdepartmental and interdisciplinary think tank that focuses on oral health policy and management. The Center houses the NYU Dentistry Dental Student Leadership Institute (DDSLI), among several other initiatives.

 

We’re focused on the future. Advancing oral health. Researching new treatments & methodologies. Preparing our students to become exceptional providers and also to lead the profession — with ample opportunities to “think big.”
 



ABOVE AND BEYOND

Only at NYU do you find a community of scholars, scientists, clinicians, and researchers who contribute so significantly to the dental profession, public health, and oral health worldwide.

The initiatives featured below speak to the innovative thinking and creativity they bring to our academic community and to the public we serve.

 



Our campus, in the city that never sleeps.

NYU College of Dentistry's campus spans three buildings along First Avenue in Manhattan — from East 24th Street to East 26th Street — in the heart of the NYU health sciences corridor. The clinical treatment areas of the NYU Dental Center are in the connected Schwartz and Weissman buildings, at 345 E. 24th Street and 421 First Avenue, respectively. The NYU Interprofessional Building at 433 First Avenue houses the NYU Dentistry Student Services suite, the Learning Commons, the Department of Molecular Pathobiology, several classrooms, and casual gathering spaces. The NYU Meyers College of Nursing and the NYU Tandon Bioengineering Institute are also housed in the Interprofessional Building.