Bachelor of Science Dental Hygiene

Application opens: July 1

Application deadline: November 1 9:59 PM MST (See all Dental Hygiene Admission Deadlines)

Applications for admission are accepted from the beginning of July to November 1 in the year prior to the year admission is sought. Late applications will not be accepted.

Application fee:

• CAD$75 for University of Alberta students
• CAD$125 for non-University of Alberta applicants

We do not accept any advance standing or transfer students from other Dental Hygiene programs.

Applicants that have been Required to Withdraw will not be considered for admission.

See the DH Admissions Checklist for a summary of all application requirements and deadlines.

The following documentation is required:

1. A completed University of Alberta online undergraduate application for admission with a paid non-refundable application fee.
2. Personal Experiences form.
3. Official transcripts of your academic record. All previous and current post-secondary academic records must be declared and provided.
4. Situational Judgment Test (Casper) results.
5. English Language Proficiency/Spoken English Requirement documentation (if required).

More information about English Language Proficiency Requirements can be found in the University Calendar. Documentation must be received by June 15 in the year admission is sought.

Indigenous applicants interested in this program are encouraged to contact the Indigenous Health Initiative Program at or ihi@ualberta.ca or 780-492-9526 for further information and assistance with the admissions process.

Those who seek to enroll in the Dental Hygiene program must complete a per-professional year before admission. The pre-professional requirements can be completed within any Faculty or program.

See the DH Admissions Checklist for a summary of all application requirements and deadlines.

Credit and Course Load Requirements

The minimum requirement for admission is the satisfactory completion of *30 of transferable postsecondary work (5 full-year course equivalents or 10 half-year course equivalents).

The minimum course load requirement is one Fall/Winter academic year of *27 (9 half-year course equivalents). A Fall/Winter academic year is September 1 to April 30 inclusive.

Pre-professional Course Requirements

A minimum grade of C- (or equivalent) is required in any transfer course (i.e., courses not completed at the University of Alberta) used to meet a pre-professional requirement. A minimum grade of D- is required for University of Alberta courses.

* The listed UofA courses are intended to assist prospective applicants in planning their coursework for the DDS program. Non-UofA applicants may use this list as a guide to review course descriptions and select similar courses from their home institutions. We are not able to provide a comprehensive list of all courses from all institutions.

The Transfer Alberta Search tool provides transfer credit information based on agreements in place between Alberta post-secondary institutions.

• *3 is equivalent to one half year course
• *6 is equivalent to one full year course or two half-year courses
• Completion of a certificate in Dental Assisting will not fulfill the pre-professional requirements.

Additional Information:

English courses offered by the Department of English (ENGL) should meet the English requirement. ENGL 150 will not meet the requirement. Classics, History, Linguistics, WRS, WRITE or Philosophy do NOT meet this requirement.

For International Baccalaureate (IB) Graduates

Only higher-level courses with a grade of 6 or greater are considered transferable.

• Chemistry (HL) is equivalent to CHEM 101 (*3) or CHEM 103 (*3)
• Biology (HL) is equivalent to BIOL 107 (*3)
• English: Literature (HL) is equivalent to *6 of ENGL

For Advanced Placement (AP) Graduates

Only courses with a grade of 4 or greater are considered transferable.

• Biology is equivalent to BIOL 107 (*3)
• English is equivalent to *3 of ENGL
• Statistics is equivalent to STAT 151

Overall GPA

A minimum GPA of 2.7 is required for admission. In order to be competitive, applicants should strive for a minimum GPA of 3.0. Students with a GPA of less than 2.7 will not be considered for admission.

Overall GPA (OGPA) is comprised of all transferable post-secondary work completed as a full-time student. Full-time study is equivalent to a minimum of:

• *18 taken during Fall/Winter Terms or;
• *12 taken during Spring/Summer Terms.

For applicants who have completed four or more years of full-time transferable post-secondary work, the overall GPA is calculated with the deletion of the lowest Fall/Winter GPA, provided it is not the most recent Fall/Winter or the only Fall/Winter where *27 was taken.

Unofficial transcripts showing completed work to date and course registration for the Fall/Winter term must be submitted by November 15 to assist in the preliminary assessment of your file.

Unofficial transcripts showing completed work up to and including the Fall term of the current year must be submitted by February 1.

Important: Applicants who fail to submit the required documents by the February 1 deadline cannot be evaluated for interview selection. Applicants who do not receive an interview cannot be considered for admission.

Final official transcripts of current Fall/Winter academic year must be received by June 15. Applicants planning to take Spring term courses in the year admission is sought must notify the Admissions Office of their intention to register by February 1 and provide a final official transcript by June 15.

Post-secondary education completed outside of Canada

All applicants are required to provide a detailed course description for post-secondary work completed outside of Canada, due February 1 in the year admission is sought

Please submit final official transcripts to:

Office of the Registrar and Student Awards
University of Alberta
11487 89 Avenue NW
Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2M7

Via email:
transcripts@ualberta.ca

Submission of University of Alberta transcripts is not necessary for Fall/Winter coursework.

All applicants applying to the Bachelor of Science Dental Hygiene program are required to complete the Casper test from Acuity Insights to assist with our selection process.

The Casper test is a standardized, two-part online assessment of non-cognitive skills, interpersonal characteristics, and personal values and priorities that are believed to be important. The Casper test will complement the other tools that we use for applicant review and evaluation.

You will reserve a test for CSP-10202 – Canadian Undergraduate Health Sciences. Typically, Altus Suite only offers two opportunities to take the Casper test, one in November and one is December. Applicants must be proactive to ensure that they book one of the available test dates.

In order to take Casper, you will be responsible for securing access to a computer with audio capabilities, a webcam, and a reliable internet connection on your selected test date.

Note: the DDS and Dental Hygiene programs require different assessments. If you are applying to both programs you will need to complete the required assessment for each program.

Visit AcuityInsights.app for additional information, important dates, and requirements.

The Casper test results must be submitted to the Admissions Office by January 1 in the year admission is sought. Note: scores can only be used for the current application period.

Snapshot is not required.

The Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry at the University of Alberta values diversity in our entering Dental Hygiene class. The Personal Experiences section gives you the opportunity to highlight the life experiences that you feel will enhance your application.

When an application for admission is submitted the Personal Experiences form will be available in your Launchpad checklist. The deadline for submission of the Personal Experiences form is November 1 9:59 PM MST.

The Personal Experiences section is comprised of four subsections:

Employment: Include a brief description of the nature of the work and your responsibilities, a brief description of the average hours worked per week (i.e., part-time during summer, seasonal, full-time, etc.) and the total number of verifiable hours worked in each position. Maximum of 3 entries. 350 characters per entry. 

Leadership and/or Volunteer Experiences: List and briefly describe areas where you have provided a leadership role or volunteer experience. This applies to scholastic, sports, arts, and community activities. Include a brief description of the time commitment (i.e., part-time during summer, seasonal, full-time, etc.) and the total number of verifiable hours committed. Maximum of 3 entries. 350 characters per entry. 

Life Experience & Achievements: This section encompasses many domains including, but not limited to, achievements and experiences in: education, arts, music, sports, athletics, science, research, languages, communication, cultural and ethnic experiences, and travel. You can include activities which you feel have defined your life. Include a brief description of the time commitment. One entry is allowed. 2000 character maximum.

Personal Highlights: Use this space to highlight something about yourself that has not been previously expressed. One entry is allowed. 1000 characters maximum.

Please note that applicants are not required to reveal anything considered protected under human rights legislation.

For Employment, Leadership & Volunteer Experiences, and Life Experiences & Achievements sections:

Please be selective and concise in the activities you choose to include. By not including any items in any of these sections you are accepting a zero for that section. Details about each activity are required, including length of time commitment, description of time commitment, number of verifiable hours committed, and description of the activity. For example, when calculating the number of hours committed to an activity, please do not include hours dedicated to sleep. 

As all activities are verified, you must provide us with the contact information for someone who can confirm the details you have provided for each activity. We suggest that you discuss the information you are choosing to include with your verifier and notify them that they will be contacted. You should not be using yourself as a verifier. When possible, avoid using family members or close friends as verifiers. If we have any issues during this process, we will contact you directly. If you do not hear from us, assume that there are no issues

A personal interview is required of all competitive applicants annually. Applicants who fail to submit the required documents by February 1 cannot be evaluated for interview selection.

Interview selection is based on post-secondary academic records. 

Competitive applicants will be interviewed to determine if they have the personal qualities necessary for the profession. The interview evaluates an applicant's maturity, motivation, initiative, ability to communicate, personal qualities and interests.

Applicants selected to interview will be contacted by email by the end of February. Emails will be sent to your University of Alberta email account. Please have your U of A account forwarded to your regular email account if you do not regularly check your U of A email account.

Interview Format

The interview format is the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI). In this format, the interviewee will be exposed without interruption to a series of stations, each of which will take 10 minutes to complete.

At each station, the interviewee will be provided with a question, and given two minutes to read the question and formulate a response. After these two minutes, the interviewee will discuss the response with an interviewer for the remaining eight minutes before moving quickly to the next station.

Candidates must interview each year they apply to the University of Alberta.

Applicants not selected for an interview will not be re-evaluated for final selection in the current year.

Sample MMI Questions

Enrolment is limited annually to 44 students. Of the 44 positions available, 40 are reserved for Alberta residents, and up to 4 available for non-Alberta residents. No non-resident shall be admitted to the Dental Hygiene program less qualified than any Alberta resident who is denied admission to the program.

See recent Admission Statistics for number of applicants and competitive averages.

See the DH Admissions Checklist for a summary of all application requirements and deadlines.

Alberta Residency

For admission purposes, a resident of Alberta is defined as a Canadian citizen or Permanent Resident (Landed Immigrant) who has been a continuous resident in the Province of Alberta, Yukon, the Northwest Territories, or Nunavut for at least one year immediately prior to the first day of classes of the Fall term in which admission is sought. Because residency status determines the competitive pool in which an applicant is ranked, applicants may be required to present proof of residency status. Please visit the Residence Requirements of the University of Alberta Calendar for more information.

Indigenous Applicants

In addition to the regular quota positions, additional position(s) per year may be available for a qualified student(s) of indigenous ancestry. Applicants interested in this program are encouraged to contact the Indigenous Health Initiative Program at ihi@ualberta.ca or 780-492-2209 for further information and assistance with the admissions process.

Applicant Profile

Selection factors will include, but are not limited to:

1. Overall GPA;
2. Situational Judgment Test (Casper) results;
3. Personal Experiences;
4. Interview score.

Minimum Requirements

A minimum GPA of 2.7 is required for admission. In order to be competitive, applicants should strive for a minimum GPA of 3.0.

Special Consideration

Applicants who have extenuating circumstances may submit a request for special consideration to the Admissions Committee with supporting documentation to exclude certain years from their Overall GPA. The Admissions Office must receive special consideration requests  by January 2 in the year admission is sought. Special consideration can not used to waive pre-professional requirements. Applicants requesting special consideration must contact the Admissions Office prior to submitting their request for a Request for Special Consideration form.

Notification of Acceptance: May - July

An admission decision is valid only for the Fall/Winter Term for which the applicant applied.

Deposit: Upon notification of acceptance, applicants will be required to confirm their admission and intention to register by submitting a non-refundable tuition deposit of $500 within the time specified in the letter of acceptance. The deposit will be credited toward the payment of tuition upon completion of registration.

Complete and fully documented immunization is a program requirement. The Faculty Immunization Clearance Form must be filled out exactly as detailed on the form by an appropriate health care provider with a minimum month and year of all vaccine injections and supporting serology or letters where indicated. It is strongly recommended, where possible, to utilize the University Health Center for your immunization clearance. Appointments can be booked online or by calling 780-492-2612. The vaccination requirements are based on the Alberta Provincial guidelines for HealthCare Students in a Post-Secondary Institution and serology/immunization outside the guidelines is not routinely done or recommended. All immunization records need to be written and legible. A certified translation must be provided for all non-English documentation. Students without acceptable records will be required to complete their primary immunization series which can take many months so early action on this requirement is strongly advised.

A clear Police Information Check (PIC) is required under the Protection for Persons in Care Act. All students going to any clinical placement or rotation in Alberta are required to complete a PIC (also known as a Criminal Record Check, Security Clearance Check, or Police Clearance), which must include a Vulnerable Sector check. The PIC must have been completed within 6 months of the program start date. The clinical practice site will determine the criteria for acceptance/denial of a placement.

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Certification (CPR) is required for all students registered in the program. The School will only accept Canadian Heart and Stroke or American Heart Association: Basic Life Support (BLS) for health care providers. No other courses will be accepted to meet the CPR requirement. Students must provide evidence of valid CPR certification at the beginning of each fall term throughout their program. A CPR BLS Provider certificate is valid for one year from the completion date of the course.

Students who are Canadian Citizens or Permanent Residents of Alberta

The approximate costs for Canadian Citizens or Permanent Residents for future students in the Dental Hygiene program are as follows:

International Students

If you are not a Canadian Citizen or a Permanent Resident, the approximate costs for future International students are as follows:

Note: All costs noted above are estimates only, and are subject to change and can be affected by economic conditions such as exchange rates. Students pay the fees in effect at the time of registration. Loupes, textbooks and software are separate from the above fees. Students are responsible for any costs associated with these requirements.

The possession of a dental hygiene diploma or degree does not automatically confer the right to practice dental hygiene in any province of Canada. Each province has a licensing authority. A dental hygienist desiring to practice dental hygiene in Canada should contact the appropriate provincial licensing body.

The Registrar of a Provincial licensing body may refuse to issue a registration certificate to practice dental hygiene to any applicant possessing a criminal record. If you have concerns in this area, please contact the appropriate licensing body.

To practice in Alberta, a dental hygienist must be registered with College of Registered Dental Hygienists of Alberta.