- Students pursuing this program are assigned to the pre-dental adviser who assists them in selecting the courses required and recommended for admission into dental school and for general advisement on other required pre-dental activities. The choice of major is not restricted and students should choose a major that will interest them and provide a possible career opportunity for them upon graduation. Regardless of the major, students must take the science courses required by dental schools for admission. It is also recommended that other upper level biology courses be taken to enhance preparedness for dental school success. Please see the course listings below. A pre-dental handbook is available from the adviser in the Physics Department.
- Northern Michigan University has a pre-dental advisory board made up of practicing dentists and professors from the university. While the pre-dental adviser provides the student with information on the process of working towards acceptance into dental school, the board may interview students who are in the application process and the chair of the board (the pre-dental adviser) will then write a letter of evaluation (the board letter) that assesses the suitability of a student for the profession. This letter is provided to the dental schools to which the student is applying. Selection for the board interview is based on G.P.A., DAT scores, references, and demonstrated participation in pre-dental activities throughout the undergraduate career, particularly in the areas of volunteer work and observation experiences with dentists.
- Pre-dental students at the sophomore level and above are given the opportunity to make contact with area dentists and dental specialists in order to gain valuable observation experiences during the academic year while they are on campus at NMU. Students should also get additional experiences in their hometown during the summer break.
- The course listing below shows those courses which are required by all dental schools for admission and also lists additional recommended courses. It should be noted that all the courses in the list are part of a biology/physiology or biochemistry major. Dental schools may require an additional course or two for entry so students should investigate dental schools at an early stage in their undergraduate careers.
Minimum course requirements for U.S. dental schools. All of these science courses have an associated laboratory requirement.
For department information or additional degree requirements, click here
For course description, click on the course.
The minimum mathematics requirement for all dental schools in the U.S. is college algebra, MA104 or MA105. Some dental schools may require calculus (MA161 and MA163) and/or statistics (MA171).