Dental Schools in North Carolina
3 DDS/DMD dental programs in our catalogue for North Carolina. Compare DAT score requirements, GPA profiles, in-state preference and AADSAS application strategy.
About North Carolina: Pop. ~10.8M; Raleigh-Durham Research Triangle and Charlotte are major growth centres. Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, and Wake Forest are among the most respected medical programs in the Southeast.
In-state context: Duke is a private school admitting nationally with no in-state preference. UNC School of Medicine and Wake Forest strongly favour North Carolina residents; public school in-state seats typically 70–80% of intake. Brody School of Medicine at ECU has a strong rural/underserved NC mission.
Major health systems: Atrium Health · Duke Health · UNC Health · Novant Health · WakeMed Health & Hospitals
DDS vs DMD — what is the difference?
Both DDS (Doctor of Dental Surgery) and DMD (Doctor of Medicine in Dentistry / Doctor of Dental Medicine) are equivalent degrees. The title used depends solely on the university, not on any difference in training, scope of practice, or licensure. All CODA-accredited programs lead to the same dental licence. Applications go through AADSAS (ADEA) for most schools. The DAT (Dental Admission Test) is required by virtually all programs.
3 Dental Programs in North Carolina
- UNC Adams School of Dentistry (DDS)
Chapel Hill, NC
The UNC Adams School of Dentistry (formerly the UNC School of Dentistry), founded in 1950, is the dental school of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill — a flagship public research university. UNC Dentistry is consistently ranked among the top dental schools in the United States and is the only dental school in North Carolina. It has a strong public health mission, serving rural and underserved communities across the state through its community dental programmes.
DDS5.0% acceptanceStrong in-state pref. - East Carolina University School of Dental Medicine (DMD)
Greenville, NC
East Carolina University School of Dental Medicine, located in Greenville, North Carolina, was founded in 2011 to address the severe dental access crisis in Eastern North Carolina — one of the most underserved dental health regions in the United States. The school uses an MMI interview process and has a community-based clinical training model that places students in rural and underserved health centres across Eastern NC. ECU SDM is one of the few US dental schools that uses MMI, and its explicit public health and access-to-care mission distinguishes it from most regional public dental programmes.
DMD10.0% acceptanceStrong in-state pref. - Workman School of Dental Medicine at High Point University (DMD)
High Point, NC
The Workman School of Dental Medicine at High Point University is a private dental school located in High Point, North Carolina, part of High Point University's expanding health sciences enterprise. The school is designed with a patient-centred, whole-person care philosophy and emphasises community outreach, interprofessional education, and early clinical exposure. It aims to address the dental workforce needs of the Triad and Piedmont regions of North Carolina, areas with documented shortages of dental providers.
DMD9.0% acceptance
Applying to dental school in North Carolina?
Expert DAT prep, AADSAS personal statement coaching, secondary essay strategy and mock interview practice — tailored to the DDS/DMD programs you want.