Fast Facts
Snapshot of the School 2024-2025
Year Founded: 1945
First DDS Class: 1946-1950
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
Clinical Affairs: 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 & Global Affairs: Frank Roberts, Associate Dean
Research: Donald Chi, Associate Dean
Student Services & Admissions: Susan Coldwell, Associate Dean
Academic Departments & Department 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
Restorative Dentistry: Alvin Wee
Student Data
Summer 2024 Class of 2028
| DDS Applicants | 976 |
| DDS Matriculates | 63 |
| Female | 34 |
| Male | 29 |
| WA State Residents | 53 (84%) |
Number of Students/Residents
All Programs 2024
| DDS (4 yrs.) | 250 |
| International DDS *Will increase with winter quarter admissions | 20* |
| DDS/PhD *4 accounted for in DDS count | 7* |
| GME Residents – certificate only | 32 (GPR, OMR, OMS) |
| GME Resident – certificate & MSD | 10 (PEDO) |
| Graduate Students – certificate & MSD | 55 (Endo, OM, Ortho, Perio, Pros) |
| MS | 0 |
| PhD | 10 |
| Total | 380 |
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 is a predoctoral educational track developed 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 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 and expanded in 2024 to increase enrollment and curriculum. The first cohort of RIDE students graduated in 2012 and 80% of all graduates currently practice in rural or underserved areas.
Fast Facts
Faculty
(Fall 2024)
| Full-time | 74 |
| Part-time | 38 |
| Affiliate (volunteer) | 482 |
Staff
(Fall 2024)
| Classified Staff | 156 |
| Professional Staff | 86 |
Alumni
(FY 2024)
| DDS | 4,565 |
| Specialty | 1,875 |
| Hygiene | 515 |
| Total | 6,955 |
Continuing Dental Education (CDE)
| Courses offered July 2023 — June 2024 | 84 |
| Participants | 1711 |
Clinical Services
Predoctoral Clinics
- Primary training site for dental students
- Patients receive care under supervision of expert faculty
Postdoctoral Specialty Clinics: Clinics for training dentists to become specialists in one of the following areas: Endodontics, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology, Oral Radiology, Orthodontics, Pediatric Dentistry, Periodontics and Prosthodontics.
Unique Clinics
- DECOD: Dental Education in Care of Persons with Disabilities
- Autism Clinic: For pediatric patients at the Center for Pediatric Dentistry
- General Practice Residency: For treatment of medically compromised patients
- Outreach Clinics: Over 30 sites in the Northwest
- Geriatric Dental Clinic: Offsite clinic where where dental students care for low-income older patients
UW Dentistry Faculty Practice
Experienced dentists who are faculty in the dental school provide care for patients.
Center for Pediatric Dentistry (CPD)
Located in the Washington Dental Service Building in Magnuson Park, CPD provides a broad range of dental services for children.
Northwest Center for Oral and Facial Surgery
Located in the Washington Dental Service Building in Magnuson Park, the Northwest Center for Oral and Facial Surgery provides a broad range of oral and maxillofacial surgery services for patients of all ages.
Research Activities
Research Thematic Areas
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)
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.