Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences

On This Page

Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences (Graduate)
Program Overview
Admission Requirements and Application Procedures

Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences (Graduate)

The Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences at McGill University has a long and proud tradition of excellence in both its teaching and multidisciplinary research programs. Highly regarded for the quality of its students and for its innovative research activities, the Faculty’s national and international reputation stands tall amongst the best faculties of dentistry in the world. With a highly engaged and dynamic professoriate and support staff, and with a diverse and passionate undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral student community, the Faculty provides a stimulating, academic environment in the life sciences that nimbly adapts to advances in professional dentistry, craniofacial, oral health, and multidisciplinary research.

Program Overview

The Master of Science (M.Sc.) Dental Sciences (Non-Thesis) (45 credits) focuses on research and/or clinical expertise to improve populational health, including diagnosis, prevention, monitoring, and control. The program includes a practicum in an organization or a clinic implicated in providing public health services. All non-thesis students are encouraged to seek volunteer and summer research opportunities with researchers in the faculty to further their research experience.

This program offers students a great opportunity to clarify their interests, connect with faculty members, and engage with their cutting-edge research programs to seek additional career and training options (such as entering a Ph.D. program). This non-thesis option is not a residency program and does not provide clinical qualifications.

The goal of the Master of Science (M.Sc.) Dental Sciences (Thesis) (45 credits) is to train students in research in the dental sciences, which comprise a number of disciplines relating to the functioning of the oro-facial complex. For the thesis master’s in dental sciences, we aim to train students to:

perform a literature review;
identify important issues in a specific field and understand the scientific approach to research questions;
carry out a scientific study and appropriately manage its data;
appreciate the ethics involved in animal and/or human research; and
express themselves clearly when speaking and writing about science.

This program also includes the Clinician-Scientist Pathway (MSc-DMD). If admitted through this pathway, the candidate would start with their graduate studies and complete their two-year Master's of Dental Science (Thesis) degree before moving to the first year of the Doctor of Dental Medicine Program (DMD) and complete the four years of their professional dentistry training.

The Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) Oral Health Sciences requires a thesis that constitutes a distinct contribution of knowledge to the field of Oral Health Sciences.

Admission Requirements and Application Procedures

Admission Requirements

M.Sc. in Dental Sciences

Students who have completed a D.M.D./D.D.S. or a B.Sc. in one of the Health Science disciplines listed on our website with a CGPA of 3.2 on a 4.0 scale are eligible to apply for admission to a graduate program in the Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences leading to the M.Sc. degree in Dental Sciences. Applicants with a CGPA of lower than 3.2 may still be considered for admission if their application is accompanied by a justification for the lower CGPA. TOEFL (or IELTS) test results are required for applicants to graduate studies whose mother tongue is not English, and who have not completed an undergraduate or graduate degree from a recognized Canadian institution (anglophone or francophone) or from a recognized foreign institution where English is the language of instruction.

The number of candidates accepted each year will depend on the elective courses and research facilities available that are applicable to the candidate's area of expertise.

Application Procedures

McGill’s online application form for graduate program candidates is available at mcgill.ca/gradapplicants/apply.

See University Regulations & Resources > Graduate > Graduate Admissions and Application Procedures > Application Procedures for detailed application procedures.

Application Dates and Deadlines

Application opening dates are set by Enrolment Services in consultation with Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (GPS), while application deadlines are set by the Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences and may be revised at any time. Applicants must verify all deadlines and documentation requirements well in advance on the appropriate McGill departmental website; please consult the list at mcgill.ca/gps/contact/graduate-program.

Information on application deadlines is available at mcgill.ca/gradapplicants/how-apply/application-steps/application-deadlines.

Admission to graduate studies is competitive; accordingly, late and/or incomplete applications are considered only as time and space permit.

2025-2026