Dentistry NC

The Dentistry NC is the Numerus Clausus for this degree programme. It indicates the average grade you need in your A-levels in order to directly gain a place on the degree programme via the best A-level quota. The consistently high NC values for dentistry in recent years show that the demand for this degree programme is high and that there are significantly more applicants than places available.

Study places for dentistry are allocated centrally via hochschulstart.de

The centralised allocation of study places for dentistry is coordinated by the Foundation for University Admissions via its internet platform "Hochschulstart". As an applicant, you enter your Abitur result, any results from aptitude tests for medicine and other relevant information. The order of the universities you enter determines your priorities. It is therefore essential that you enter the university where you would prefer to start your dental medicine degree programme first. If you qualify for several places in the allocation procedure, you will always be offered a place at the university at the top of your list.

The selection procedure for study places in dentistry can be divided into three main sections. We would now like to explain these three sections to you.

First section: The selection limits due to the Abitur quota

30 % of all study places available in the semester in question are allocated exclusively on the basis of the Abitur grade. Firstly, a list is drawn up for each federal state in which the applicants are sorted according to the number of points achieved in the Abitur. These lists are then combined into a final list, whereby care is taken to ensure that an appropriate number of applicants from each federal state are represented on the list.

Due to the sorting by federal state and the different Abitur averages for each federal state, it is possible, for example, that a graduate from Munich or Schleswig-Holstein with a grade of 1.3 fulfils the requirements for the allocation of a study place, while graduates from Bonn, Erlangen or Düsseldorf with the same grade do not receive a study place.

The Numerus Clausus (NC) after the first section

The dentistry NC indicates how good your A-levels must be for you to be offered a place on a dentistry degree programme. This is the grade with which the last applicant in this part of the application process was awarded a place to study dentistry. If you have exceeded this selection threshold, you can hope for the two further parts of the allocation procedure.

Second section: Allocation of places via the additional aptitude quota

10 % of the study places available in the semester in question are allocated on the basis of additional qualifications. For example, if you can prove that you have already completed training in the field of medicine, have completed a voluntary social year (FSJ) or have a test result for a study aptitude test, this is a good prerequisite for obtaining a place at this university.

How the TMS works

The test for medical degree programmes, in short TMSwas developed for applicants in the fields of medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and veterinary medicine. Its result is assessed independently of the federal state and can only have a favourable effect on your chances when applying for a place at university. 

If you don't do well in the test, this has no effect, and of course the universities don't find out about the negative test results.

Section three: the university selection procedure

The last 60 % of the places available in the field of dentistry are allocated in this third and final step. The individual criteria can be weighted differently depending on the university. This is because the universities can determine their own specialisations and thus influence which qualities their future dentistry students must have.

Your Abitur is again included in the third section. You will also receive points here if you have completed vocational training, scored well in the TMS or other study aptitude tests or are particularly qualified for the degree programme through voluntary work or service.

As dentistry is a degree programme that requires dexterity and fine motor skills, among other things, some universities include tests such as the so-called wire bending test where you can demonstrate these skills.

The role of the order of the universities specified in the application

If you apply for a place to study dentistry via hochschulstart.de during the application period, you must list your preferred universities on the form. If you qualify for several places despite the high number of applicants, you will be allocated a place at the university you ranked highest.

Here is an example: If you are qualified for the dentistry degree programmes at LMU Munich and Dresden University of Applied Sciences based on the NC, but these are further down on your list, you will remain in the application process to give you the chance of better alternatives in the form of a university higher on your list.

If you would now have the opportunity for a place at the University of Bonn in the second part of the admission procedure and it is higher on your list, you can now get a place at this university. However, if this is still not your preferred university because you would like to study dentistry at Charité Berlin, for example, you can still take part in the third part of the application process.

Let's assume that you do not fulfil the selection criteria in the university selection procedure for Charité Berlin. Dresden and Munich are no longer on the shortlist anyway because you are already qualified for a degree programme at a university that is higher on your shortlist. 

Incidentally, this principle of prioritising your preferred university works for medical studies, as well as for veterinary medicine and pharmacy courses. The universities do not know whether they are your absolute preferred university or whether you would have preferred to start your dentistry degree programme at another university for which the NC was not sufficient.

The NC for dentistry in the winter semester 2023/24

The exact dentistry NC for current applications cannot be accurately predicted as it depends on the number of applicants, the available study places and the A-level grades submitted. In the winter semester 2023/24, the NC was again 1.0 for each federal state, meaning that a general higher education entrance qualification alone is not enough to get a place. Although there are differences between the individual federal states with regard to the numerus clausus, these are only reflected in the exact number of points in the NC:

• Baden-Württemberg: 837 points
• Bavaria: 830 points
• Berlin: 837 points
• Brandenburg: 845 points
• Bremen: 839 points
• Hamburg: 833 points
• Hesse: 848 points
• Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania: 839 points
• Lower Saxony: 825 points
• North Rhine-Westphalia: 840 points
• Rhineland-Palatinate: 839 points
• Saarland: 860 points
• Saxony: 840 points
• Saxony-Anhalt: 836 points
• Schleswig-Holstein: 823 points
• Thuringia: 848 points

Due to the high NC, you should - if you do not have an Abitur close to the maximum score - take advantage of the additional procedures that are common for medical degree programmes with admission restrictions. For example, take the TMS or other study aptitude tests and see which criteria must be met at the individual universities so that you can increase your chances of studying dentistry.

Even if the NC is not enough, you don't have to miss out on studying dentistry

Are you fascinated by the work in oral and maxillofacial medicine and would you like to become a dentist? Then it's extremely annoying if the NC is too high for you and you don't get one of the coveted places to study dentistry.

Fortunately, there are alternatives. Just like studying medicine, you can also study dentistry in other countries where your university entrance qualification is sufficient even without a top A-level.

At the relevant universities abroad, different rules apply to the allocation of study places and play a much greater role than the NC. With the right approach and often through entrance tests, you can be successful in the allocation process at the universities we recommend and secure your place within the dentistry programme.

Studying dentistry abroad? We can help

Hardly any other specialisation is as much in demand at universities as dentistry, as the high NC clearly shows. If you would like to treat various dental diseases or malocclusions as a dentist in the future and help people to have a beautiful smile and want to achieve this by studying abroad, we can help you.

We take care of the application process for you at the universities that are eligible for a place. We also support you with innovative learning videos and other programmes to help you prepare for the entrance exams, answer questions about tuition fees and many other topics and help you start your studies successfully.

Have your dental studies abroad recognised in Germany

If students have completed the required semesters in the standard period of study or even more semesters at a university abroad and have passed the examination, they can have their studies and degree recognised in Germany and practice as dentists in this country. This makes it possible to enter the dental profession even if the NC initially speaks against it.

Starting your studies in the winter or summer semester?

Demand for the dentistry degree programme is usually higher in the winter semester, as this is when the freshly graduated high school graduates have received their diplomas and are rushing to the universities.

However, not every university offers a start for prospective dentists in the summer semester. Accordingly, there are fewer places available, which means that the NC is high in both the summer and winter semesters. We advise you to apply for the course as early as possible and, if necessary, simply try again in the next semester if you do not get a place on the course due to the NC and other selection limits.

Alternatives to studying dentistry

If you decide against studying dentistry due to the NC, the tuition fees or for other reasons, but are generally very interested in medicine and dentistry, there are a number of good alternatives.

The Dental Technology degree programme is offered in Berlin, Essen, Duisburg, Frankfurt am Main, Osnabrück, Greifswald and Witten. You can acquire a great deal of knowledge and practical skills from the fields of medicine and dentistry, centred around dental materials. Specialised dental technicians are currently in increasing demand due to the many new possibilities in medicine and dentistry.

In general, depending on the federal state and university, there are many interesting degree programmes in dentistry that do not have an NC. Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences, for example, offers a Bachelor's degree programme in dentistry. Although you won't be able to work as a dentist with such a degree programme, you will be able to work in many interesting areas in a similar professional field and have good earning potential.