How to get into UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine
Your 2027 Entry step-by-step guide
University of Queensland — Doctor of Dental Medicine in Brisbane, Queensland, QLD runs a graduate-entry dentistry program for 2027 entry. Admission tests listed: GAMSAT. Published hurdles: GPA — minimum GPA 5.0 on a 7-point scale; GAMSAT — minimum 50 in each section, sat within 4 years prior to the year of commencement. UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine lists no interview on its standard entry route.
Photo: Kgbo · CC BY-SA 4.0 · cropped
Photo: Kgbo · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photo: Kgbo · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photo: John Robert McPherson · CC BY-SA 4.0
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UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine expects a bachelor degree with A bachelor’s degree in health, allied health, physical sciences or biological sciences with a GPA of 5.0 on a 7-point scale; university-level human anatomy and human physiology or cellular physiology completed within the 10 years before commencement; GAMSAT sat within 4 years prior to the year of commencement with a minimum score of 50 in each section; and completion of a situational judgement test in the year of application.
Applications are made directly to UQ, not through GEMSAS. for Dentistry (DDS/DMD) and uses No interview — applicants who meet the minimum requirements (including GPA 5.0 and at least 50 in each GAMSAT section) are ranked on a final score of unweighted average GAMSAT (70%) and the Casper situational judgement test (30%) for interviews in the 2027 Entry cycle.
Entry is graduate-entry and selection uses GAMSAT; applications close through GEMSAS or your state TAC (UAC, VTAC, QTAC, SATAC, TISC), and CSP, BMP and full-fee places are all capped, so treat the standard above as a threshold to clear rather than a target to aim at.
This guide is written for 2027 Entry applicants and updated annually before each GEMSAS / UAC cycle. Sources include University of Queensland — Doctor of Dental Medicine's official course page, GEMSAS, the UCAT-ANZ Consortium, ACER (GAMSAT), and direct conversations with current students. Read time: ~12 minutes.
UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine at a glance
| GPA | Minimum GPA 5.0 on a 7-point scale |
|---|---|
| GAMSAT | Minimum 50 in each section, sat within 4 years prior to the year of commencement |
| Interview format | No interview — applicants who meet the minimum requirements (including GPA 5.0 and at least 50 in each GAMSAT section) are ranked on a final score of unweighted average GAMSAT (70%) and the Casper situational judgement test (30%) |
UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine entry requirements
| Pathway | Graduate entry |
|---|---|
| GPA | Minimum GPA 5.0 on a 7-point scale. |
| Prerequisites | University-level human anatomy and human physiology or cellular physiology within the preceding 10 years. |
| Admission tests | GAMSAT |
| GAMSAT | Minimum 50 in each section, sat within 4 years prior to the year of commencement. |
| Interview | No interview — applicants who meet the minimum requirements (including GPA 5.0 and at least 50 in each GAMSAT section) are ranked on a final score of unweighted average GAMSAT (70%) and the Casper situational judgement test (30%) |
A bachelor’s degree in health, allied health, physical sciences or biological sciences with a GPA of 5.0 on a 7-point scale; university-level human anatomy and human physiology or cellular physiology completed within the 10 years before commencement; GAMSAT sat within 4 years prior to the year of commencement with a minimum score of 50 in each section; and completion of a situational judgement test in the year of application.
Applications are made directly to UQ, not through GEMSAS.
A completed bachelor degree (any discipline) with a competitive GPA is the academic gateway; admission-test performance and interview together carry most of the final ranking.
GAMSAT
GAMSAT is a 5.5-hour written test of Humanities & Social Sciences (Section I), Written Communication (Section II) and Biological & Physical Sciences (Section III). Run by ACER twice a year (March and September). Scores remain valid for ~4 years. Most competitive offer-holders score 60+ overall with each section above 50.
Written submissions
Australia has no equivalent of the UK's single UCAS personal statement. GEMSAS graduate-entry applications use GAMSAT + GPA without a written component; most state-TAC undergraduate applications use ATAR + UCAT-ANZ without a written component. The schools that DO require written content (JCU portfolio, Notre Dame Sydney/Fremantle questionnaire, Wollongong short answers, Bond essays) each ask different, school-specific questions. Treat each school's prompt set as a discrete short-answer test - do not recycle a single document across multiple schools.
Limits are school-specific. JCU portfolio responses: typically 250-500 words per question. Notre Dame questionnaire: 250-400 words per response. Wollongong short answers: ~300 words each. Bond essays: 500 words. Read the current cycle's prompt brief for each school carefully - limits and prompts shift cycle-to-cycle.
Five things that win
Four things that lose
Worked-example opener (do not copy — for shape only)
"During my work-experience week at a community dental practice, I watched a hygienist coach a nervous teenager through her first scale and polish. The clinical work took ten minutes; the trust-building took the other twenty. That ratio - slow patient-facing care woven through technical skill - is what made me commit to dentistry…"
Notice: a specific scene rather than a cliché, a precise detail (the nine-minute conversation), and a closing sentence that bridges to the next paragraph. We have a step-by-step written-submissions service if you want a tutor to help shape yours.
How UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine selects without an interview
UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine selection: No interview — applicants who meet the minimum requirements (including GPA 5.0 and at least 50 in each GAMSAT section) are ranked on a final score of unweighted average GAMSAT (70%) and the Casper situational judgement test (30%).
At UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine, expect the following from the selection process. Assessment / recorded-interview format - some Australian schools (JCU's Kira Talent recording, Notre Dame Modern Hire) ask one-way recorded responses; others combine panel interviews with practical tasks (group work, written exercises, presentations). Allow 60-90 minutes for a recorded interview or 4-6 hours for a full in-person assessment day.
What they assess
What UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine assessors are scoring: Multi-station assessment lets the school triangulate - assessors compare notes from each station to spot consistent strengths (and red flags).
What actually decides your application
- Group task observation (how you contribute, listen, lead)
- Written ethics scenario
- Panel interview or recorded one-way response
- Portfolio / personal-statement deep dive
- Hot topics in Australian healthcare (Medicare, rural workforce, Indigenous health)
- Academic curiosity questions
Questions to settle before you apply to UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine
Why dentistry?
Tell us about your work experience.
In a group task, what role did you take and why?
How would you handle disagreement with a senior colleague?
Describe a recent biomedical news story and your view on it.
Where to put your preparation instead
Our panel-interview prep covers ethics frameworks (SPIES, the four pillars), structured behavioural answers (STAR), and live mock interviews with admissions specialists.
Planning around UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine
UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine selects without an interview in its standard entry routes, so there is no interview here to rehearse. Put the effort into where else you apply.
Build the rest of your list
UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine ranks applicants without an interview, so your other choices carry the interview practice. Get a shortlist matched to your scores.
Plan where to applyTalk your choices through with an adviser
A 1-to-1 call on where UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine fits in your application and which schools to pair it with.
Book a strategy callMonth-by-month timeline for 2027 Entry
The cycle runs roughly January 2025 (start of prep) through GEMSAS preference lock and state-TAC deadlines in September 2026, MMIs in October-December 2026, to first-round offers in December 2026 and course start in late January / early February 2027. Here are the milestones you cannot miss.
Decide and start work / clinical experience
Confirm medicine or dentistry as your career direction. Start banking clinical exposure (hospital volunteering, GP shadowing, aged-care or disability-support roles) and non-clinical experience (research assistant, peer tutoring, leadership). Australian schools weight reflection over hours - track what each placement taught you.
Begin UCAT-ANZ / GAMSAT prep
Open your prep window 6-9 months before the test sitting. UCAT-ANZ candidates focus on the 4 sub-tests (Verbal Reasoning, Decision Making, Quantitative Reasoning, Situational Judgement). GAMSAT candidates focus on Section I (Humanities), Section II (Written Communication) and Section III (Sciences) - the Section III sciences gap is the most common reason graduates under-perform.
GAMSAT March sitting
ACER GAMSAT March test date. Scores released early May. Most graduate-entry applicants sit GAMSAT in March of their apply year so results are available before GEMSAS preferences open.
UCAT-ANZ registration + GEMSAS portal info
UCAT-ANZ registration opens (test sat in July). GEMSAS portal information released for graduate-entry medicine. ATAR-tracking begins for current Year 12 applicants.
GEMSAS portal opens + UCAT-ANZ booking
GAMSAT March results released (late May). GEMSAS applications open 1 May and close 29 May across the ten consortium schools (ANU, Deakin, Griffith, Macquarie, Melbourne, Notre Dame Fremantle, Notre Dame Sydney, UQ, UWA, Wollongong). Sydney, Flinders and Monash are NOT in GEMSAS and need separate direct applications. UCAT-ANZ booking deadline is 15 May.
GEMSAS preference entry opens
Rank up to 6 preferences across the 8 GEMSAS schools. ACER GAMSAT September registration window opens (a second sitting option for applicants who under-performed in March).
UCAT-ANZ test window
Take UCAT-ANZ between early July and early August. There is one sitting per cycle - no retake until the following year. Results are released to state TACs (UAC, VTAC, QTAC, SATAC, TISC) in October. State TACs (UAC, VTAC, QTAC, SATAC, TISC) accept undergraduate medicine preferences from July onwards.
GEMSAS preferences lock + direct apps close
GEMSAS interview offers issued in early September; consortium interviews run September-October. ACER GAMSAT September sitting - too late for this cycle, results land mid-November. JCU QTAC + JCU-portal applications close 30 September. State-TAC medicine preferences close 25-30 September. (Bond's QTAC round does not open until January.)
MMI invitations issued
Most graduate-entry consortium schools issue MMI invitations through October. Bond runs its structured interview cycle. UCAT-ANZ results released to state TACs for undergraduate ranking. State TAC preference changes typically close late October.
MMIs run + ATAR results
MMIs run across consortium schools, Bond, JCU and Macquarie through October-December. ATAR results released to state TACs for school-leaver undergraduate applicants. GAMSAT September results released for applicants who sat the second window.
First-round offers
First-round offers released by GEMSAS, state TACs and direct-application schools. Acceptance deadlines are typically within 10 days of offer - reply on time or forfeit the place. Some schools release a second offer round in early January.
Late offers + course start
Late-round offers released through January. Deferral requests due. Orientation week is scheduled by most schools for late January or early February, with first-year teaching commencing late January / early February.
What makes UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine different
UQ’s graduate-entry dental programme (program 5763), a 3.5-year Doctor of Dental Medicine taught at Herston. Distinct from the undergraduate Bachelor of Dental Science (Honours) and applied for directly at UQ — GEMSAS covers graduate MEDICINE only.
Location: Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Founded in 1936. Whether the city suits you matters - five or six years is a long commitment. Visit on an open day if you can; current students will be the most honest assessors of culture and clinical placement quality.
Read the full UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine course guide — integrated, 3.5 years (graduate entry), with placements in Herston, Brisbane, and regional and community clinics across Queensland.
Application statistics for UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine
UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine intake
30 places in the first (2024) intake; UQ’s October 2024 FAQ said it expected to repeat that number in future years.
Source: University of Queensland — Doctor of Dental Medicine admissions data; GEMSAS / state-TAC published statistics; ACER (GAMSAT) and UCAT-ANZ Consortium decile data; recent FOI responses.
Six mistakes that derail dentistry applications
UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine — frequently asked questions
Sources for this UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine guide
Apply to UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine with confidence
We have helped hundreds of applicants turn their GAMSAT / UCAT-ANZ, portfolio and MMI prep into offers from UQ Doctor of Dental Medicine and other Australian dentistry schools.