UK Dental School Rankings
— Best Universities for Dentistry
UK dental schools ranked by the NGMP Score — a single 0–100 measure blending the major dentistry subject league tables (Complete University Guide, Guardian, Times/Sunday Times and QS). Dentistry has no TrueScore, so the order reflects the league-table consensus, with each school's post-interview success rate shown alongside.
Newer and graduate-only dental schools not yet in a 2026 subject table sit at the bottom. See the full UK dental schools guide.
How the NGMP Score works
We normalise each dentistry subject table to a common 0–100 scale and average whichever of them rank a given school into the NGMP Score. The Complete University Guide is the only table that ranks every UK dental school, so it anchors the order; the Guardian, Times and QS refine it where they publish a position. A school is scored on the mean of the tables that cover it — absence from a table never counts against it.
Unlike medicine, dentistry carries no TrueScore weighting, so the NGMP Score here is the league-table Quality Consensus alone. Where two schools tie, the one ranked by more tables is placed higher.
Sources blended into the NGMP Score
- Complete University Guide (2026, UK subject ranking) · table
- The Guardian University Guide (2026, UK subject ranking)Guardian Dentistry positions are limited to the four we could verify to a high standard.
- Times / Sunday Times Good University Guide (2026, UK subject ranking)The full Times subject tables are paywalled; only publicly-reproduced top positions are shown.
- QS World University Rankings by Subject (2026, global subject ranking) · tableQS positions are GLOBAL (not UK) and banded at the tail; only verifiable UK entries are shown.
¹ QS positions are global (not UK) and shown for context. A “—” means the publisher does not rank that school (or its position isn’t public). Absent sources never count against a school — the NGMP Score is the mean of the sources that do cover it. Snapshot last updated 31 May 2026.
Full ranking of UK dental schools, 2027 Entry
17 UK dental schools (15 ranked by the NGMP Score). Click any school for its full profile.
| # | School | Location | NGMP Score/100 | CUG | Guardian | Times | QS¹ | Post-interview |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Queen's University Belfast | Belfast | 93.3 | 3 | 1 | — | — | All applicants (2024): 87/204 = 43%. |
| 2 | Dundee | Dundee | 93.3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | — | Scottish: 71/149 = 48%. RUK: 17/127 = 13%. Overseas: 28/58 = 48%. |
| 3 | Bristol | Bristol | 80.0 | 6 | 2 | — | — | UK applicants: 89/169 = 53% (2025). |
| 4 | Liverpool | Liverpool | 80.0 | 2 | — | 6 | — | Non-widening participation (2024): 89/402 = 22%. |
| 5 | Glasgow1 source | Glasgow | 80.0 | 4 | — | — | — | Scottish: 76/108 = 70%. RUK: 42/70 = 60%. International: 22/27 = 81%. |
| 6 | Queen Mary (QMUL) | London | 77.2 | 7 | — | — | 12 | 2025 - All applicants: 182/267 = 68%. Overseas: 13/22 = 59%. |
| 7 | Cardiff | Cardiff | 76.6 | 5 | — | — | 41 | Total: 128/319 = 40% (2025). Home: 117/298 = 39%. International: 11/21 = 52%. |
| 8 | Birmingham | Birmingham | 68.8 | 9 | — | — | 19 | Home: 131/302 = 43% (2025). Overseas: 10/15 = 67%. |
| 9 | Newcastle | Newcastle | 65.9 | 8 | — | — | 44 | 2025: ~126/328 = 38%. Partners (2024): 59/164 = 36%. Home non-partners (2024): 47/179 = 26%. International (2024): 9/10 = 90%. |
| 10 | King's College London (KCL) | London | 62.3 | 12 | — | — | 5 | Non-contextual home students without degree: 98/171 = 57% (2025). Overall 2025: 175/350 = 50%. |
| 11 | Manchester | Manchester | 54.9 | 11 | — | — | 48 | UK students: 126/351 = 36% (2025). International: 11/15 = 73%. |
| 12 | Sheffield | Sheffield | 51.5 | 13 | — | — | 35 | Home applicants: 132/317 = 42% (2024). International: 4/11 = 36%. Typically ~130 offers and ~350 interviews. |
| 13 | Leeds | Leeds | 40.0 | 10 | 10 | — | — | All applicants (2025): 76/547 = 14% headline, but ~25% in reality (the 547 includes Dental Hygiene & Therapy applicants - likely ~400 dentistry interviews for 76 places + waitlist offers). |
| 14 | Plymouth1 source | Plymouth | 13.3 | 14 | — | — | — | Home: 132/499 = 26% (2025). Overseas: 8/28 = 29%. Home Foundation Year: 17/104 = 16%. |
| 15 | UCLan (Graduate Dentistry)1 source | Preston | 6.7 | 15 | — | — | — | 38/120 = 32% (2025). |
| — | Aberdeen (Graduate Dentistry) | Aberdeen | — | — | — | — | — | Approximately 30 offers from 60 interviews (~50%) for 20 places. |
| — | Aston Dental School | Birmingham | — | — | — | — | — | — |
NGMP Score = league-table Quality Consensus (CUG / Guardian / Times / QS dentistry tables). CUG / Guardian / Times columns are UK subject ranks; QS is a global position. “1 source” flags a school ranked by only one table.
Score tiers explained
Top tier
NGMP Score 75+Consistently elite across the league-table consensus and entry competitiveness. The strongest, most-selective schools sit here.
Upper tier
60–74.9Strongly regarded across most published tables, often with a standout result on one (e.g. Guardian teaching scores) plus a competitive entry bar.
Mid tier
45–59.9Solid, well-established programmes that rank respectably across the tables. Realistic, high-quality choices for most applicants.
Emerging tier
Below 45Lower in the published tables today — often newer schools or those compensating with widening-participation routes. A blank rank means the school is too new to appear in any 2026 subject table yet (not a quality judgement).
Frequently asked questions
- How is the NGMP dental school ranking calculated?
- Each school is scored 0–100 (the NGMP Score). We normalise the dentistry subject tables that rank UK schools — the Complete University Guide, the Guardian, the Times / Sunday Times Good University Guide and QS — to a common scale and average whichever rank a given school. The Complete University Guide is the only table that ranks every UK dental school, so it anchors the order; the others refine it where they publish a position.
- Why is there no TrueScore for dentistry?
- TrueScore models the UCAT score needed to win an interview at each UK MEDICAL school. Dental schools weight the UCAT differently and the entry data isn’t modelled the same way, so we rank dentistry on the league-table Quality Consensus instead — and show each school’s published post-interview success rate where we have it.
- Which is the best university for dentistry in the UK?
- Dundee and Queen’s University Belfast sit at the top of the blended ranking — each is ranked #1 by a major table — followed by a strong field including Glasgow, Bristol, Liverpool, Cardiff and Queen Mary (Barts). King’s College London ranks highest globally (QS) but lower domestically, so it lands mid-table on the consensus.
- Some dental schools show no rank — why?
- A blank rank means the school does not appear in a verifiable 2026 dentistry subject table — typically the newest or graduate-only programmes (e.g. Aston’s new dental school, Aberdeen’s graduate dentistry). It is not a quality judgement; all UK dental schools are GDC-accredited to the same standard.
- How often is the ranking updated?
- Annually. The domestic dentistry tables publish each autumn and QS each spring; we refresh the snapshot after they land. The “last updated” date is shown beneath the methodology.
Build your UCAS dentistry shortlist
Compare entry requirements, interview formats and post-interview odds across UK dental schools.