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Applying for dental hygiene -> dentistry

I was doing Biochem at a pretty prestigious uni in London but I didn't like the sound of the career pathways coming from Biochem nor the uni. I've worked in hospitals a lot so I know I like interacting with patients but I think medicine would do quite a toll on me emotionally with the hours and the risks of doing something wrong.

I feel like dentistry is a good middle ground because I would be earning a good amount after graduation. I missed the 2024 entry apps for dentistry. My issue is how long it will take me to get there since I'm 22 right now and if I apply for dentistry I'll be like 29 by the time I graduate. Which is why I was considering applying for Dental Therapy and Hygiene as I heard you also earn a decent amount (though not as much as dentistry obviously) after grad and if you do well enough, for Liverpool Uni there's an option to move onto the Dentistry course, which I'm sure is even more competitive than applying for Dentistry itself.

I got AAA in Bio, Chem and Latin in 2020 so I was wondering how my chances are looking for Dentistry and what unis people really recommend applying for. And also my chances of DT&H -> Dentistry and if any other unis offer this pathway? Has anyone gotten into KCL or QMUL or Plymouth with AAA from contextual offers? Should I just get a job and save money in the meantime and wait to apply for 2025 Dentistry?

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Reply 1

hi, your alevel grades are good so whatever you pick dentistry or dth you'll be fine, and it doesnt matter how old you are when you graduate you should do it! both courses are very competitive and there is ucat with dentistry. dth is very competitive (more competitive than dentistry) but no ucat and most unis require ABB

Reply 2

Hey please let me know if you have had nay updates as I am also looking to do a similar thing :smile:

Reply 3

Hi, I have studied dental therapy at Plymouth and am now doing dentistry elsewhere. I’d say if you are set on being a dentist then do that, but if not then hygiene and therapy is a great career will very good pay and much less stress than being a dentist.
Dentistry is very competitive and you will need to have a passion for it that will show through in interviews. If your only motivation is the money then you might not enjoy it!
Feel free to message me if you have any questions.

Reply 4

Original post
by ru1998
Hi, I have studied dental therapy at Plymouth and am now doing dentistry elsewhere. I’d say if you are set on being a dentist then do that, but if not then hygiene and therapy is a great career will very good pay and much less stress than being a dentist.
Dentistry is very competitive and you will need to have a passion for it that will show through in interviews. If your only motivation is the money then you might not enjoy it!
Feel free to message me if you have any questions.

hey you’re doing exactly what i want to do, how did you find dental therapy? and did you apply for it as a school leaver? what were ur predicted pls, gcses etc if you dont mind sharing

Reply 5

Dental therapy was good!! I enjoyed it! No I wasn’t a school leaver I had done dental nursing before. Feel free to message me if you like!

Reply 6

Original post
by ru1998
Hi, I have studied dental therapy at Plymouth and am now doing dentistry elsewhere. I’d say if you are set on being a dentist then do that, but if not then hygiene and therapy is a great career will very good pay and much less stress than being a dentist.
Dentistry is very competitive and you will need to have a passion for it that will show through in interviews. If your only motivation is the money then you might not enjoy it!
Feel free to message me if you have any questions.

hi how was the application process for dentistry after dental therapy

Reply 7

Original post
by Alziii71973
hi how was the application process for dentistry after dental therapy


It’s the same process as for undergrads, UCAT and UCAS applications then interviews. Spaces are more limited for graduate though

Reply 8

Original post
by ru1998
It’s the same process as for undergrads, UCAT and UCAS applications then interviews. Spaces are more limited for graduate though

what would you recommend to like increase my chances to get a spot i’m kinda stressing tbh

Reply 9

Just make sure you have the right grades at undergrad and try to do well in UCAT and then it’s just interview prep :smile: I’d say most people fail on the UCAT ie they don’t score enough to secure an interview

Reply 10

Original post
by ru1998
Just make sure you have the right grades at undergrad and try to do well in UCAT and then it’s just interview prep :smile: I’d say most people fail on the UCAT ie they don’t score enough to secure an interview

thank you yeah i heard ucat is hella tuff by any chance do you remember what you got for like a rough estimate

Reply 11

Original post
by Alziii71973
thank you yeah i heard ucat is hella tuff by any chance do you remember what you got for like a rough estimate


I got 2680 which is still generally pretty low but luckily was enough

Reply 12

Original post
by ru1998
I got 2680 which is still generally pretty low but luckily was enough

what unis can you apply for and what did you apply for i’m not sure if kings will allow dental hygiene and therapy as it doesn’t specify

Reply 13

The graduate entry ones are kings, Aberdeen and UCLan but you can apply to many others including QMUL, Manchester, Bristol etc for their standards 5 year programmes. Just check the uni website to see if they accept graduates.

You can apply to kings with a degree in dental therapy

Reply 14

Original post
by peachyanon
I was doing Biochem at a pretty prestigious uni in London but I didn't like the sound of the career pathways coming from Biochem nor the uni. I've worked in hospitals a lot so I know I like interacting with patients but I think medicine would do quite a toll on me emotionally with the hours and the risks of doing something wrong.
I feel like dentistry is a good middle ground because I would be earning a good amount after graduation. I missed the 2024 entry apps for dentistry. My issue is how long it will take me to get there since I'm 22 right now and if I apply for dentistry I'll be like 29 by the time I graduate. Which is why I was considering applying for Dental Therapy and Hygiene as I heard you also earn a decent amount (though not as much as dentistry obviously) after grad and if you do well enough, for Liverpool Uni there's an option to move onto the Dentistry course, which I'm sure is even more competitive than applying for Dentistry itself.
I got AAA in Bio, Chem and Latin in 2020 so I was wondering how my chances are looking for Dentistry and what unis people really recommend applying for. And also my chances of DT&H -> Dentistry and if any other unis offer this pathway? Has anyone gotten into KCL or QMUL or Plymouth with AAA from contextual offers? Should I just get a job and save money in the meantime and wait to apply for 2025 Dentistry?

Hi what did you end up doing ?

Reply 15

Original post
by ru1998
Hi, I have studied dental therapy at Plymouth and am now doing dentistry elsewhere. I’d say if you are set on being a dentist then do that, but if not then hygiene and therapy is a great career will very good pay and much less stress than being a dentist.
Dentistry is very competitive and you will need to have a passion for it that will show through in interviews. If your only motivation is the money then you might not enjoy it!
Feel free to message me if you have any questions.

Did you apply for postgrad dentistry or under grad?

Reply 16

Both - I applied for post grad courses at at Plymouth and Aberdeen and undergrad courses at Manchester and QM. All dentistry is undergraduate in uk tho just some are only open to people already with a degree

Reply 17

Original post
by ru1998
Hi, I have studied dental therapy at Plymouth and am now doing dentistry elsewhere. I’d say if you are set on being a dentist then do that, but if not then hygiene and therapy is a great career will very good pay and much less stress than being a dentist.
Dentistry is very competitive and you will need to have a passion for it that will show through in interviews. If your only motivation is the money then you might not enjoy it!
Feel free to message me if you have any questions.


I’m wondering how long you worked as a dental therapist before applying to dentistry. As in of course you had to explain why you want to be a dentist rather than a therapist - so how did you justify it? (If that make sense)

Reply 18

Original post
by heyy928288282
I’m wondering how long you worked as a dental therapist before applying to dentistry. As in of course you had to explain why you want to be a dentist rather than a therapist - so how did you justify it? (If that make sense)


I didn’t work, I applied for dentistry in my final year of dental therapy and went straight in after.

In my personal statement I said about wanting to carry out more of the treatment my patients need, being able to build a good rapport with them etc and said see them through the majority of their plans etc and also mentioned the attraction of specialising

Reply 19

Original post
by ru1998
Both - I applied for post grad courses at at Plymouth and Aberdeen and undergrad courses at Manchester and QM. All dentistry is undergraduate in uk tho just some are only open to people already with a degree

sorry to be nosy but where do you study dentistry as a grad , idk if kings accepts dth as they don’t specify

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