Undergraduate Admissions Policy - School of Dentistry 2024-25

Please see Course Search for the course list, typical entry requirements, and accepted qualifications.

The School of Dentistry recognises that some applicants may have studied a more flexible curriculum, where they have been able to progress through their educational development at an appropriate rate according to their ability. Where a Level 2 (for example, GCSE) or Level 3 (for example, A Level) qualification has been taken ‘early’ the academic reference should include the reasons for this so that it can be taken into consideration by the admissions team.

All Level 2 qualifications must have been achieved by the time of your application in order for your application to be considered by the School of Dentistry.

The School of Dentistry does not accept Level 2 Functional Skills English in lieu of GCSE English.

Where academic requirements have not been met application information may be shared with the University’s Lifelong Learning Centre or International Foundation Year team for consideration for a Year 0 offer.

In order to gain admittance to the School of Dentistry, applicants must pass the following checks:

Occupational Health

Due to the nature of the programmes and professions, and to meet statutory and professional requirements, all candidates who are offered a place on these courses will be required to complete an occupational health pre-registration questionnaire and, where necessary, assessment. Offers made are conditional upon a satisfactory occupational health assessment and clearance.

Applicants with a health-related issue should contact the relevant academic school as soon as possible if their health is likely to impact on their ability to engage with the admissions process or subsequent course. This allows our occupational health team at the University to support you to meet your true potential on the programme despite any pre-existing health concerns you may have.

Additional information can be found at Occupational Health requirements for students and applicants to the Faculty of Medicine and Health.

Blood-borne viruses

There are additional guidelines regarding blood-borne viruses in Dentistry, please see the Dental School Council’s entry requirements.

Drugs and substance use

The School of Dentistry has a ‘zero tolerance’ policy on illegal drug use. Students found to have taken illegal drugs or to be substance abusers at any point during their studies are likely to be removed from the course.

Dress code

Applicants should be aware that there is a strict dress code for staff and students when working in the clinical areas of the School of Dentistry and in our outreach clinics. Clothing and personal appearance must accord with the reasonable expectations of a member of the public for a professional person. For hygiene and infection prevention reasons, staff and students must comply with NHS Trust Regulations and must be bare below the elbows in clinics. Further details of the dress code will be provided to successful applicants when they register for study.

The reference section of the application is carefully considered by the School of Dentistry and is an important part of the selection process. Details of any extenuating circumstances should be highlighted in the reference.

Eligible Access to Leeds and Realising Opportunities candidates will be considered for an alternative offer. However, please see Course Search for the minimum requirements that will usually apply to any alternative offer made.

Where applicants do not have the formal qualifications for immediate entry to a degree course, progression may be possible through one of the University’s extended degrees with foundation year. Please see the Lifelong Learning Centre website for details.

The School of Dentistry does not accept applications from those who are seeking advanced entry to undergraduate courses. All applications must be made to the first year.

The following full-time undergraduate applications must be made through the online Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). 

Deadlines:  

• Dental Surgery MChD/BChD, Oral Science BSc by 6pm on 16 October 2023.
• Dental Hygiene and Dental Therapy BSc by 6pm on 31 January 2024.

The School of Dentistry reserves the right to consider applications submitted after this date. Availability of courses in UCAS Extra will be detailed on UCAS at the appropriate stage in the cycle. 

Applications for the Dental Surgery MChD/BChD, Oral Science BSc (Graduate Entry) programme are by direct application to the School of Dentistry.

Internal transfers

The School of Dentistry will not consider applications to transfer internally from other programmes at the University of Leeds. Anyone wishing to study a dentistry course will be required to apply directly for year one. The standard academic entry requirements must have been met as found on Course Search, and the same level of information must be provided as on a normal UCAS application. The same application deadlines apply.

The School of Dentistry does not offer courses on a part-time basis.

In addition to the corresponding section of the University of Leeds Taught Admissions Policy, please note:

The General Dental Council stipulates that the lower age limit to practice clinical dentistry is 21. Therefore, the School of Dentistry is not able to admit any students below the age of 16 at the commencement of study.

As part of the student offer for our clinical programmes, an Enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) certificate is required for students to undertake clinical placements as part of their studies within the Faculty of Medicine and Health. The certification process is undertaken on entry to the programme and repeated once every three years whilst they are still undertaking the same programme of study.

The Enhanced DBS certificate can only include background checks for time in the UK. If a student has been resident in the UK for less than 3 years, a criminal record check from their home country is required. This may be referred to as an International Criminality check. 

The University of Leeds is obliged to refuse admission to applicants for certain courses, which are regulated by national or statutory bodies, where an Enhanced DBS certificate or International Criminality check reveals prior criminal behaviour giving rise to concern for the protection of the public. Clinical placements cannot be attended by those who fail to comply with the clearance processes.  

It should be noted that the General Dental Council also considers criminal convictions in relation to fitness to practise and the School has no control over this process. It is possible that certain criminal convictions could pose difficulties at the point of registration. See the GDC Fitness to Practise Guidance (PDF). A full outline of the School of Dentistry’s policy in relation to criminal records is available in the School’s Criminal Records Policy.

The School of Dentistry will consider one re-application from those who have previously applied to the institution. Further re-applications will be considered only at the discretion of the Admissions team. Please note, we do not accept re-applications within the same application cycle. Those who have previously been made an offer are not guaranteed to receive an offer when they reapply.

The School of Dentistry considers applications from candidates who have previously studied at the institution in line with the University of Leeds Taught Admissions Policy.

The School of Dentistry will consider applications from those who are retaking examinations prior to entering the University. The School will only accept one resit attempt at full A levels, unless an applicant is able to provide evidence of mitigating circumstances that may have prevented them from achieving the required grades on their second attempt. In such cases, evidence of all resit grades must be provided prior to or in your application; failure to do so may result in your application being rejected. Consideration for a further application is at the discretion of the Admissions Tutor and is not guaranteed.

If your resit grade is lower than your original grade, the better grade will be considered when reviewing your application. 

Applicants must typically meet the conditions set by the University by 17 August of the application year unless otherwise stated in the prescribed course or professional body requirements, even if the offer is deferred for entry to the following application year.

The School of Dentistry may not be able to confirm a place in the upcoming academic cycle following an improved final grade after a re-mark; however, applicants may be offered a deferred place or be asked to reapply.

Applications from those who have not quite met the required grades may be reviewed and their places may be confirmed if there are places still available on their chosen course. However, where applicants are holding offers for deferred entry they may not be subject to the same level of flexibility.

It should be noted that an unconditional offer means that an applicant has met the academic and non-academic entry requirements but will still be required to meet the health and criminal record checks. If these conditions are not met prior to registration, proof that these checks will be fulfilled during term one can be used to confirm a place. This can be an appointment card or evidence of when forms were submitted.

The School of Dentistry will consider applications for deferred entry and encourages such applicants to make use of the personal statement section of the application form to explain their reasons for requesting deferral. Applicants who wish to defer following the submission of their application are encouraged to do so as early as possible in the cycle and no later than confirmation of a place.  

The personal statement of the application form helps us to assess the nature of the applicant’s interest in the academic subject and is an important part of the selection process. Applicants should take this opportunity to demonstrate their enthusiasm and aptitude for the academic subject. Further information about what we wish to hear about is available in our personal statement guidelines.

An applicant may be assessed based on the strength of their statement relative to others in their cohort, and/or based on criteria set by the academic school.   

The School of Dentistry will not accept statements sent in separately to the personal statement included with your application.

Following assessment of application forms, applicants for the Dental Hygiene and Dental Therapy BSc and Dental Surgery MChD/BChD, Oral Science BSc who score highly enough will be required to attend a virtual interview. Shortlisted applicants will receive an invitation from the School to attend on a specific date and time.  

The interview allows us to further assess the personal qualities that have been demonstrated by successful students on our courses. 

Each applicant will participate in a set of multiple mini interviews (MMIs). Candidates should expect to be present for an entire morning or afternoon session. The format of the interviews is a number of different tasks undertaken consecutively. These tasks are carefully designed to determine each candidate’s suitability to study one of our dental courses. Performance will be assessed separately for each station and an overall score generated.

Some applicants may require adjustments to their interview (for example, if they have a disability or are pregnant) to provide them with full and equal access to the process. The School is responsible for making reasonable adjustments where possible. Email the University’s Disability Services team via disability@leeds.ac.uk for further advice or information regarding disability related adjustments. Email the Equality and Inclusion Unit via equality@leeds.ac.uk for advice on other adjustments. 

Where possible, the School of Dentistry will accommodate requests for alternative interview dates; however, an alternative cannot be guaranteed.  

We operate a ‘gathered field’ system when considering applications to the Dental Hygiene and Dental Therapy BSc and Dental Surgery MChD/BChD, Oral Science BSc courses. This means that the majority of applicants are notified of the outcome of their application following the application deadline. In cases where an applicant does not meet the minimum entry requirements, notification may be received before the deadline.  

UCAT for 2024 Entry onwards

All applicants for the Dental Surgery MChD/BChD, Oral Science BSC are required to sit UCAT. This test must be taken in the year of application. UCAT is a computer based admissions test used by a consortium of UK and international universities to help select applications for the medical and dental degree programmes. We strongly recommend you prepare for the test. There are many materials to help you on the UCAT website.

The result from the first attempt only will be accepted.

Please note that some applicants to the School of Dentistry may be requested to provide a piece of written work and/or undertake a test as part of the admissions process. Further details will be provided to the applicant as required.  

As outlined in the Contextual admissions schemes section of this page, the School of Dentistry will consider prospective students via the Alternative Entry Scheme run by the Lifelong Learning Centre. 

Please refer to the University of Leeds Taught Admissions Policy for information on how decisions will be communicated by the University.