Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene

Apply to the Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene program

The Indiana University School of Dentistry offers a Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene (B.S.D.H.) degree program with three tracks: education, health care administration, and public health dental hygiene. You must complete between 33 and 35 hours of prerequisite coursework at IUPUI or another college or university before you can be admitted to the B.S.D.H. program—there is no direct admission for high school students.

If you complete your prerequisite coursework at another college or university, you must be admitted to IUPUI before you can apply to the B.S.D.H. program.

Contact the Division of Dental Hygiene

1121 W. Michigan Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202
  • Phone: 317-274-7801
  • Fax: 317-274-1363
  • Email: dnthyg@iu.edu

Admission requirements

To be eligible to apply to the B.S.D.H. program, you must:

  • Have a cumulative college GPA of at least 2.7 (on a 4.0 scale).
  • Complete all prerequisite coursework by the end of the spring semester of the year in which you wish to enter the program. You must complete your prerequisite coursework at IUPUI or another college or university— there is no direct admission to the B.S.D.H. program for high school students.
  • Earn a grade of C or higher in all prerequisite courses. All courses must have letter grades; no pass/fail courses are accepted.
  • Have a GPA of at least 3.0 in these prerequisite courses: elementary chemistry, human anatomy, human physiology, and microbiology. All required science courses must have been completed within the past five years.
  • Complete a minimum of eight hours of observation of licensed dental hygienists in two different private practice settings.

Prerequisite coursework (31–32 credit hours)

  • BIOL-N 217 Human Physiology (5 credit hours) 
  • BIOL-N 261 Human Anatomy (5 credit hours) 
  • CHEM-C 110 Chemistry of Life and CHEM-C 115 lab (5 credit hours)
  • COMM-R 110 Public Speaking (3 credit hours)
  • DHYG-H 101: Dental Hygiene Freshman Experience (1 credit hour)
  • ENG-W 131 English: Writing and Rhetoric (3 credit hours)
  • MICR-J 210 Microbiology and Immunology (4 credit hours)
  • PSY-B 110 Introductory Psychology (3 credit hours)
  • SOC-R 100 Introductory Sociology (3 credit hours)

Step 2: Apply to the B.S.D.H. program

You will apply to the B.S.D.H. program through the American Dental Education Association’s Dental Hygiene Centralized Application Service (DHCAS). The deadline to apply for admission to the B.S.D.H. program is February 1 each year.

A complete application includes the items listed here.

When you fill out the DHCAS online application form, you will be able to download transcript request forms. Send a form to the registrar’s office at each college or university you have attended, including IUPUI, to request that your official transcript be sent to DHCAS. If you have attended a dental assisting program, before sure to request that transcript, too.

In 500 words or fewer, explain why you chose to pursue a career in dental hygiene and how you have prepared for this career path. Describe any accomplishments you achieved and any obstacles or challenges you overcame that affected your preparation for the B.S.D.H. program.

You will upload your personal statement to the DHCAS online application form.

All B.S.D.H. applicants are required to observe licensed dental hygienists for a minimum of eight hours in two different private practice settings. The documentation must be on the practice’s letterhead and include your name, date(s) and time(s) of observation, and the name and signature of the dental hygienist you observed.

You will upload your documentation to the DHCAS online application form.

Dental hygiene information session

All B.S.D.H. applicants are required to attend an information session about the program. You may attend either the on-campus session or the online session.

You will receive information about registering for the information session after your application has been received.

Find out more