A dental school (or dental college) is a tertiary educational institution—or part of such an institution—that teaches dentistry. Upon successful completion, the graduate receives a degree in Dentistry, which, depending upon the jurisdiction, might be a bachelor's degree, master's degree, a professional degree, or a doctorate. Schools can also offer postgraduate training in general dentistry, and/or training in endodontics,oral surgery, dental pathology, dental radiography, orthodontics, pedodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, or dental public health.
A dental school may also train dental assistants, dental hygienists, dental nurses, dental technicians, dental therapists, or other member of the dental auxiliary.
Sometimes dental education is done within medical schools, as in Pakistan; the separation between medical and dental educations is also blurred within certain sub-specialties, such as oral and maxillofacial surgery.
This list of dental schools in the United Kingdom includes all sixteen Dental Schools or Schools of Medicine and Dentistry in the United Kingdom which are recognised by the General Dental Council and lead to a dental degree of a British university. There are eleven such schools in England, three in Scotland, one in Wales and one in Northern Ireland. The list is ordered by country and name.and includes the date of founding of the Dental School or its parent/associated Medical School. The Dental Schools Council represents the interests of all UK Dental Schools.
A joint bid from the Universities of Southampton and Portsmouth to establish the first dental school in the South East outside London has been referred to stage two of the bidding exercise by the Department of Health and HEFCE (Higher Education Funding Council for England), as part of the Government's plans to tackle the national shortage of dentists.
The Universities, in partnership with King's College London, will found a new Southern School of Dentistry in Hampshire. The bid has strong support from local authorities, MPs and the NHS throughout Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Dorset and Somerset.
Central to the bid is that dental students in the new School will learn alongside dental nurses, hygienists and therapists, with much of the education of this integrated dental team taking place in a number of community oral health centres.
Located in areas of high treatment need in Hampshire, the centres will also provide NHS dentistry to the public, and enable specialist dental services to be provided in the community, therefore minimising patient travel to major hospitals.
