The University of California San Francisco School of Dentistry's long and rich history has helped build its reputation as a leading research and learning institution. Since its inception over 125 years ago, UCSF's dental school has seen the development of new facilities, departments and programs all geared towards a common mission: "To improve public health through excellence in teaching, research, patient care and public service in the dental and craniofacial sciences."

Today, the UCSF School of Dentistry is considered the "preeminent dental research enterprise in the world." Recognized for its research work in AIDS, oral biology and oral cancer, UCSF has been ranked first among all dental schools for research funding from the National Institute of Health since 1992. The UCSF School of Dentistry has established several research and clinical centers to help meet its goal of "improving the methods for understanding, preventing, treating and curing oral and craniofacial facial diseases and disorders," including:

- The Oral Medicine Clinical Center, which contains the Oral AIDS Center and the Sjögren's Syndrome Clinic, provides diagnosis and management of oral diseases.
- The Center for Craniofacial Anomalies, which offers complete management of cleft and lip palate patients.
- The Center to Address Disparities in Children's Oral Health (CAN DO), one of only five such centers in the United States.

Degree Programs

The UCSF School of Dentistry offers the following degree programs:

Doctor of Dental Surgery -- The DDS program is a competitive program that admits only 80 students per year.

International Dentist Program -- Created in 2001, I.D.P. is a two-year program that prepares international dentists for licensure in the United States.

Postgraduate Programs -- Postgraduate degrees are available for dentists interested in a particular area of dentistry. Click on the link to learn more about these dental specialists:

- Dental Public Health
- Endodontists (root canal therapy)
- Oral Surgeon (all aspects of oral surgery, including wisdom teeth extractions)
- Orthodontist (dental braces)
- Pediatric Dentist ("kid dentist")
- Periodontist (gum disease treatment)
- Prosthodontist (restoring and replacing teeth with a dental crown, dental bridge, dental implants and veneers)

General Practice Residency 

Post Baccalaureate Programs -- Through collaboration with San Francisco State University and the University of the Pacific, UCSF's dental school participates in two Post Baccalaureate programs. The year-long residential programs are designed to help disadvantaged students and previously denied applicants prepare for acceptance to dental school.

The University of California San Francisco School of Dentistry also offers a Ph.D. and Master's program in Oral and Craniofacial Sciences and Continuing Dental Education programs for professional dentists.

Patient Care

The UCSF School of Dentistry operates 14 dental clinics that schedule over 120,000 dental appointments per year. Staffed by students and faculty, several of these clinics offer reduced fee services to members of the community -- many of whom live on a fixed income or public assistance. In fact, the UCSF School of Dentistry is the largest Denti-Cal provider in California.

The USC School of Dentistry is located at:

Admissions Information

Address:        513 Parnassus Avenue, S630, Box 0430
                     San Francisco, CA 94143

Phone:           (415) 476-2737

Website:        http://dentistry.ucsf.edu/

Student Dental Clinic

Address:        707 Parnassus Avenue
                     San Francisco, CA 94143

Phone:           (415) 476-1891

Website:        http://dentistry.ucsf.edu/patients/patients_main.html