Dental schools in California
California has 7 DDS/DMD dental schools in NextGen MedPrep's US school directory. Compare each one's GPA figures, in-state preference rating, and interview format below, then see how residency is treated.
Studying dentistry in California
About California: Pop. ~39.0M; Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego, and Sacramento each host world-class academic medical centers.
In-state preference: Private schools such as Stanford, USC Keck and Loma Linda carry no formal residency preference. The University of California schools differ from one another: UCLA states that applicants are reviewed without consideration of state of residence, our school profiles record a moderate preference for California residents at UCSF, UC San Diego, UC Davis and UC Irvine, and a strong one at UC Riverside. Many California programs still enroll mostly Californians, so check each school's recorded in-state share.
Major health systems in California
- Kaiser Permanente
- Dignity Health
- Sutter Health
- UCSF Health
- Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
- UCLA Health
- Keck Medicine of USC
Dental schools in California
7 dental schools in California for 2027 entry. Click any program for its full how-to-get-in guide.
- GPA
- 3.70
- unconfirmed
- GPA
- 3.87
- unconfirmed
- GPA
- 3.60
- unconfirmed
- GPA
- 3.68
- unconfirmed
- GPA
- 3.65
- unconfirmed
- GPA
- 3.65
- unconfirmed
- GPA
- 3.58
- unconfirmed
GPA figures are labeled median or mean when the school's own published class profile confirms them, and “unconfirmed” when it has not yet been checked — the school's page cites the source. In-state preference tags are NextGen MedPrep's rating, not school policy, unless marked “published policy”.
Residents vs out-of-state applicants in California
Of the 7 dental programs in California in our catalog, 1 is rated as giving strong preference to California residents. None of these programs has admissions figures we have confirmed on the school's own pages yet, so the table shows the in-state rating and verification status only. Each program's profile has more detail.
| Program | In-state preference | Data check |
|---|---|---|
| UCSF School of Dentistry | None recorded | Not yet checked against the school's own page |
| UCLA School of Dentistry | Strong | Not yet checked against the school's own page |
| California Northstate University College of Dental Medicine | None recorded | Checked against the school's own page, August 14, 2026 |
| Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC | None recorded | Not yet checked against the school's own page |
| Loma Linda University School of Dentistry | None recorded | Not yet checked against the school's own page |
| University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry | None recorded | Not yet checked against the school's own page |
| Western University College of Dental Medicine | None recorded | Not yet checked against the school's own page |
The in-state preference column is NextGen MedPrep's rating from each school's matriculation pattern and admissions guidance, not a school policy, except where a row says “published policy”. A dash means the school has not published that figure in a form we could confirm. Sources for every confirmed figure are linked on the program's profile.
Nearby: other West states with dental schools
States in the same US Census region (West), with the number of dental schools in each.
More on California
Frequently asked questions
Apply to dental school from California with NextGen MedPrep
DAT preparation, ADEA AADSAS personal statement and secondary essay review, and dental school interview practice for applicants from California.
New to the process? Start with the US dental school application guide.