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Fast Facts

Fast Facts

Researcher in Lab

Snapshot of the School 2023-2024

Year Founded: 1945

Accreditation: ADA Commission on Dental Accreditation

Dean: André V. Ritter, DDS, MS, MBA, PhD

Office of the Dean
Health Sciences Center D-322, Box 356365
Seattle, WA 98195-6365
206-543-5982

Administrative Areas/ Associate & Assistant Deans

Academic Affairs-Sara Gordon, Associate Dean

Advancement, Alumni Relations & CDE-Randy Newquist, Assistant Dean

Clinics-Natasha Flake, Associate Dean

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion-Douglass Jackson, Associate Dean

Faculty-Greg Huang, Associate Dean

Finance & Resources-Gary Farris, Associate Dean

Human Resources-Renni Bispham, Assistant Dean

Infrastructure & Development-Ricardo Schwedhelm, Associate Dean

Regional Affairs-Frank Roberts, Associate Dean

Research-Donald Chi, Associate Dean

Student Services & Admissions-Susan Coldwell, Associate Dean

Departments/ Chairs

Endodontics-James Johnson

Oral Health Sciences-Whasun Oh Chung

Oral Medicine-Mark Drangsholt

Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery-Thomas Dodson

Orthodontics-Greg Huang

Pediatric Dentistry-Travis Nelson

Periodontics-Frank Roberts, Interim

Restorative Dentistry-Daniel Chan

Student Data

Summer 2023 Class of 2027

DDS Applicants 728
DDS Matriculates 63
Women 41
Men 22
WA State Residents 44 (70%)

Number of Students/Residents

All Programs 2023

DDS (4 yrs.) 250
International DDS 30
DDS/PhD 6
GME Residents – certificate only 41 (GPR, OMR, OMS)
GME Resident – certificate & MSD 10 (PEDO)
Graduate Students – certificate & MSD 56 Endo, OM, Ortho, Perio, Pros)
MS 0
PhD 11
Total 404

Postdoctoral Education

Certificate/Residency Programs
General Practice Residency, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Pediatric Dentistry, and Oral Radiology

Master of Science in Dentistry (MSD)
Offered through Departments of Endodontics, Oral Medicine, Orthodontics, Pediatric Dentistry, Periodontics, and Prosthodontics

Master of Science in Dentistry (MSD) / Master of Public Health (MPH): Offered through the Department of Pediatric Dentistry after the Master of Science in Dentistry (MSD)

Master of Science (MS)/Doctor of Philosophy (PhD): Offered through the Department of Oral Health Sciences

Postdoctoral Fellowships: Offered through departments

Regional Initiatives in Dental Education (RIDE)

The RIDE program was developed by the University of Washington School of Dentistry (UWSOD) to address oral health workforce needs in rural and underserved communities. RIDE is a partnership with Eastern Washington University (EWU) and the UW School of Medicine WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho) program to create educational efficiencies as well as innovations. Dental associations, community health centers, Area Health Education Centers (AHECs), and other stakeholders also play an invaluable role in supporting RIDE activities. RIDE was funded by the Washington State Legislature in 2007. The first cohort of RIDE students graduated in 2012.

Fast Facts

Faculty with two students

Faculty

(Fall 2023)

Full-time 69
Part-time 40
Affiliate (volunteer) 488

Staff

(Fall 2023)

Staff FTE (Clinics and Administration) 209.71

Alumni

(FY 2022)

DDS 4,495
Specialty 1,675
Hygiene 515
Total 6,685

Continuing Dental Education (CDE)

Courses offered July 2020 — June 2023 192
Participants 2860

Clinical Services

Predoctoral Clinics

  • Primary training site for dental students
  • Patients receive care under faculty supervision

Postdoctoral Specialties Clinics for training dentists to become specialists in one of the following areas: Endodontics, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Oral Pathology, Orthodontics, Pediatric Dentistry, Periodontics, and Prosthodontics

Unique Clinics

  • DECOD—Dental Education in Care of Persons with Disabilities
  • Autism Clinic: For pediatric dental patients at the Center for Pediatric Dentistry
  • Advanced General Dentistry: for treatment of medically compromised patients
  • Oral Medicine
  • Outreach Clinics: over 30 sites within the region
  • Satellite Geriatric Dental Clinic (Lynnwood): Under faculty supervision, senior dental students provide diagnostic and treatment services for low-income older patients

UW Dentistry Campus Dental Center
These faculty practices are located in the School of Dentistry and at our Sand Point clinic. Another satellite clinic at Harborview Medical Center also provides expert patient care by faculty.

Center for Pediatric Dentistry (CPD)
A joint venture between UW School of Dentistry and Seattle Children’s Hospital, this state-of-the-art clinical facility for pediatric dentistry opened in September 2010.

Research Activities

Research Emphases
Research in the School of Dentistry is wide-ranging. Areas of emphasis include:

  • Origins of disease susceptibility, disparities in disease and access to care in children
  • Addressing the major barriers to accessing dental treatment, including dental anxiety
  • Craniofacial development and disease/craniofacial anomalies
  • Oral microbiome
  • Bacterial/host interactions in periodontal health and disease
  • Temporomandibular Disorders (TMD), and other forms of chronic orofacial pain
  • Dental materials and tissue reactions

School Centers, Institutes and Networks

Regional Clinical Dental Research Center (RCDRC) – The RCDRC is part of the Institute of Translational Health Sciences, one of more than 50 clinical and translational science award centers nationwide. This center provides facilities and staff support for conducting high-quality clinical and translational research in collaboration with NIH-funded investigators and industry research partners.

Timothy A. DeRouen Center for Global Oral Health – a UW School of Dentistry organization affiliated with the Department of Global Health in the UW School of Public Health. Created to foster, support, and enhance collaborations in research, education, and faculty/student exchanges in oral health in international settings or with non-U.S. institutions.

Training Programs (selected)

Clinical, Public Health and Behavioral Oral Health Research Training for Thailand – Short and long term programs on clinical research methods in collaboration with Thammasat and Khon Kaen universities.

Comprehensive Training in Inter-Disciplinary Oral Health Research – A comprehensive program that covers a broad spectrum of interdisciplinary oral health research areas.

Summer Research Fellowship (SURF) – designed to give dental students a meaningful experience conducting oral health research with a faculty mentor

Summer Institute in Clinical Dental Research Methods – Designed to provide clinical research training for dental faculty; since its inception in 1992, more than 400 faculty from dental schools in 30 states and 40 foreign countries have participated

Fast Facts (PDF)