Graduates of Non Accredited Dental Programs
General Dentists
An individual who wishes to be licensed as a general dentist in Canada must successfully pass the Virtual OSCE administered by the National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB).
If you graduated from a dental program accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC), you can proceed directly to challenging the Virtual OSCE. The process is outlined at this link.
Accredited dental schools are currently those in Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland.
If you graduated from a dental program which is not accredited by CDAC, in order to be eligible to challenge the Virtual OSCE, you will need to successfully complete either:
- the NDEB Equivalency Process, or
- a Qualifying/Degree Completion Program as a Canadian Faculty of Dentistry
These processes are outlined at this link.
Dental Specialists
An individual who wishes to be licensed as a dental specialist in Canada must successfully pass the National Dental Specialty Examination (NDSE) administered by the Royal College of Dentists of Canada (RCDC).
The eligibility requirements for the NDSE are outlined on this webpage.
To be eligible for the NDSE, candidates must satisfy one of the eligibility conditions below:
- Have completed a dental specialty training program or be in their final year of study at the time of taking the examination. During candidate registration, this program must have been accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC) or by an accrediting body with which the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada has signed a reciprocal agreement.
- Have completed, or be in their final year of study at the time of writing the examination, a Dental Specialty Assessment and Training Program (DSATP) for internationally qualified dental specialists of which, during of the candidate’s registration, the DSATP was part of a specialty study program accredited by the CDAC or by an accreditation body with which the CDAC has signed a reciprocity agreement, and; have a letter of permission from the program director or dean confirming that the candidate is academically prepared to sit for the examination.