There are currently 30 private and 40 public dental schools. The biggest difference to applicants? Tuition. Tuition is substantially higher at private dental schools than public dental schools. For competitive applicants, tuition savings is often enough to make attending their public school a more attractive option.
Despite the higher tuition, there are 5 private dental schools that have been able to break through. Harvard, Columbia, UPenn, U Pittsburgh, and U Pacific have consistently been able to attract top tier talent. They are the only private schools to rank in the top 20 in Path32’s Admission’s Rankings in 2023-24. They are also the only 5 to do so in 2022-23. And the only 5 to do so in 2021-22. No other private dental school has been able to crack the top 20 since our rankings have been out.
This list of 5 is not too surprising. Harvard, Columbia, and UPenn. U Pacific is the only 3-year dental school in the U.S. U Pittsburgh is the only one that might raise an eyebrow. While considered private, U Pittsburgh does give a tuition break to in-stateresidents (Private/State-related), which undoubtedly helps. Let’s take a look at the Admissions and Tuition data for this elite group of private schools.
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