Internationally Educated Dentist Program, College of Dentistry

In 1994, the Florida Legislature funded a program at the University of Florida College of Dentistry with support from the Florida Board of Dentistry, Department of Professional Regulation, and the Florida Dental Association, to address the need in the State for educating foreign-born and -trained dentists who had legally immigrated to Florida with the knowledge and skills of U.S. graduates of accredited dental school in order to qualify for state dental licensure. 84% of the 160 program graduates have been Latino.

The two-year highly competitive program has enrolled 12 candidates per year. Their average GPA has been 3.44, and they have all successfully completed both Part I and Part II of the National Board examinations (prerequisites for state dental licensure in the United States). The first year of preclinical and clinical training occurs in Gainesville at the College of Dentistry. During the second, clinical year, the majority of the students train at the dental clinic in Hialeah in Dade County, a community facility that provides dental care to a largely Latino population.