B.S./M.S. Dual Degree Clinical Dental Hygiene Leader Track

Applicants for the CDHL program can submit their applications between October 24, 2025 and February 22, 2026 to be considered for admission.  The recommended minimum GPA for applicants is 3.0; preference in admission is given to students with high scholastic averages, especially in the sciences. Applications that are submitted or remain incomplete after the deadline will not be considered. 

Note:  All supplemental materials must be uploaded to the ADEA DHCAS application portal.  No supplemental materials will be accepted via email or postal mail.

The following application materials should be submitted by February 15:

• ADEA DHCAS Primary Application - Application must have a status of Complete in order to be considered for the current cycle
  
  
  • Completion of Prerequisite Courses
    
    

    A Bachelor’s degree is required for admission to this program. A minimum of 16 of the 24 science credits must be complete at the end of the fall semester PRIOR to the summer you wish to be considered for our program. All pre-requisite courses must be complete at the end of the spring semester PRIOR to the summer you wish to be considered for our dental hygiene program.

  • CDHL Dental Hygiene Shadowing Form   PDF- Permitted file format: PDF
    
    

    BS/MS degree-seeking students are required to observe a registered dental hygienist who is presently working in practice for a minimum of eight hours to increase awareness and knowledge of the profession prior to applying for the Dental Hygiene Program.  

  • Official Transcripts
    

    Official transcripts must be received from each college or university attended.  Foreign transcripts must be evaluated by WES or ECE. If you are enrolled in school during the fall semester, request another transcript after fall grades have been included.

  • Recommendation Letters

    One recommendation must be from a college-level science teacher and another from a dental hygienist or dentist. Recommendations must be from non-family members. Members of the Dental Hygiene faculty at the University of Maryland CANNOT write letters of recommendation. You may wish to submit another recommendation from an employer for a total of three recommendations.

  • Resume - Permitted file formats: PDF or Microsoft Word
• In-State Residency Form Please complete if you wish to be considered for in-state tuition

International Students

• Applicants must submit completed applications and all supporting documents, by February 15.
• Foreign documents must be certified official and be submitted in sealed envelopes from the institution issuing them. If the documents are not in English, they must include an English translation.
• WES www.wes.org or ECE www.ece.org evaluations are required. Ask for a course by course evaluation.

  
  Only courses equivalent in U.S. course names, U.S. letter grades and U.S.  semester hours from the degree requirements listing of prerequisites including inorganic chemistry(also known as general chemistry), organic chemistry, basic statistics, social sciences, lower level elective and humanity elective if taken will be considered.
  

   All prerequisites must be completed by end of Spring semester prior to summer enrollment. To be considered for admission, students should have completed the majority of the prerequisite courses, including a minimum of 16 credits of the science courses, by the end of December prior to the summer enrollment semester for which they are applying.  Anatomy & Physiology I & II with labs, Microbiology with lab and nutrition must have been completed in the last seven years. All courses must be completed by the end of the spring semester prior to summer entry into the BS/MS Dual Degree CDHL Program.

• Please see http://www.umaryland.edu/ois for rules and regulations regarding international students.
• Applicants whose native language is not English must demonstrate English language proficiency. Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is required. Results must be uploaded  to the ADEA DHCAS application portal.  The code number is 5848.

  
  TOEFL scores must be between 80-85 IBT (internet based test), 550 paper based or 213 computer based to be considered for the dental hygiene program here at the University of Maryland Baltimore.

The University of Maryland Bachelor of Science Dental Hygiene Program is accredited regionally by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, (267) 284-5000 and the Commission on Dental Accreditation, (CODA).The Middle States Commission on Higher Education accredits Master of Science Degree Programs in Dental Hygiene.

Please read all the instructions below before completing your online application.

You must complete the ADEA DHCAS application to be considered for the program. The application cycle is open from October 24 until February 15. The ADEA DHCAS application includes all supplemental materials such as transcripts, resume, personal statement, recommendation letters, and shadowing form. There is a fee associated with this application. Please review the Quick Start Guide and FAQs on the ADEA DHCAS website for more information about the application process. If you have questions about the ADEA DHCAS application, please reach out to ADEA DHCAS customer support.

Applicants will check the status and progress of their application online by logging back into ADEA DHCAS. 

Applications for the BS/MS Dual Degree CDHL program are reviewed by the Dental Hygiene Admissions Committee for the following:

• Completion of a prior bachelor degree or in progress of completion by end of spring semester prior to summer enrollment
• Completeness of application
• Completion of required prerequisite courses
• GPA of required science courses
• Overall GPA of required courses
• Overall academic record (including repeats, failures, withdrawals, etc.)
• Written and verbal communication skills
• Professional demeanor
• Potential for and demonstration of leadership qualities
• Interest and knowledge of the dental hygiene profession
• Completion of pre-application dental hygiene shadowing experiences, and quality of personal statement and recommendation letters

Candidates whose applications meet preliminary screening criteria will be invited to continue with the admissions process and will be invited for an interview with members of the Committee on Dental Hygiene Recruitment and Admissions. A personal interview does not guarantee admissions.

General Guidelines

Before completing the ADEA DHCAS, please review the Dual Degree BS/MS Clinical Dental Hygiene Leader admissions requirements and guidelines.

Note: All supplemental materials will be uploaded to the ADEA DHCAS application. No supplemental materials will be accepted via postal mail.

Final Notes and Reminders

You may stop and save your work to continue later while completing both the ADEA DHCAS.  Please note your application will not be reviewed or considered until the ADEA DHCAS is submitted successfully, and all supplemental materials are received.

NOTE:  ADEA DHCAS allows limited changes to your primary application and supplemental materials.

Applicants for the BS/MS Dual Degree CDHL Program must have completed a previous Bachelor’s Degree in a field other than dental hygiene.

All 57 prerequisite credits must be completed by end of the spring semester prior to summer enrollment. The following required courses may be completed at any regionally accredited U.S. college or university. To be considered for admission, students should have completed the majority of the prerequisite courses, including a minimum of 16 credits of the science courses, by the end of December prior to the summer enrollment semester for which they are applying.  Please note that students are required to earn at least a C grade in all prerequisite courses. No grades lower than C will be accepted.

The CDHL Dental Hygiene Program will accept general credit by AP examination in the areas of non-science courses such as sociology, psychology, humanities, social sciences and English only if it appears on an official transcript. 

All sciences courses must have been completed within 7 years of application to CDHL.

Didactic courses offered by the University of Maryland School of Dentistry will be completed onsite in Baltimore in scheduled classrooms with synchronous course delivery.  Pre-clinic, clinical,  and simulation activities are completed live and in-person at the dental educational facility at the Universities at Shady Grove located in Montgomery County and in some rotations each semester to the School of Dentistry located in Baltimore City.  U of MD School of Dentistry dental hygiene and dental faculty work with dental hygiene students in classroom, laboratory, clinic and community settings.  Graduate courses utilize blended learning experiences. The dual degree BS/MS track is fulltime and consists of 7 semesters:  3 summer, 2 fall and 2 spring semesters culminating in the University of Maryland School of Dentistry awarding both the BS degree in Spring II Year II and MS in dental hygiene at the end of summer III year III.  Students should expect to be in Shady Grove 2-3 days and 2-3 days in Baltimore in year 1 and 3-4 days in Shady Grove and 1-2 days in Baltimore year 2.

*Shared course with BS Degree