College of Dentistry

Welcome to the UP College of Dentistry!

UPCD has been in existence for 111 years and continues to provide the highest quality dental education in the country. We uphold the values of honor, excellence, and service in the way we teach, perform research, and render oral health services to our patients. We are pioneers in the field of dentistry in the country— the first dental academic institution in the country to establish a Department of Community Dentistry, the first to offer a Master of Science in Dentistry (Orthodontics), the first and only dental school to have a virtual haptic simulation laboratory, among others. Aside from academic excellence as evidenced by our unparalleled performance in the National Dentistry Licensure Examination, and several continuing dental education programs, the College’s thrust is developing its research programs to be at par globally and contribute to solving the nation’s oral health problems. We are a service-oriented College, providing affordable oral health services to patients who come to our College for dental treatment.

Dr. Michelle S. Segarra, MOH, PhD

The UP College of Dentistry was first established as a department of the UP College of Medicine and Surgery in Manila on February 8, 1915 when the Philippines was still a colony of the United States of America. This was then organized into a School of Dentistry during the School Year 1917-1918, under the wings of the College of Medicine.

Its operation was interrupted on February 3, 1945 due to the extensive damage caused by the war and it resumed its operations on August 6, 1945 to give completion courses to students whose studies were interrupted. In October 1946, the school offered the regular four-year course in Dentistry.

Upon the recommendation of the College of Medicine, the Board of Regents of the University passed a resolution changing the status of the School of Dentistry to an independent unit as the College of Dentistry on October 21, 1948. The College was one of the pioneer units that moved to the Diliman, Quezon City campus. There, it occupied a Quonset barracks vacated by the U.S Armed Forces on top of the hill where the student union building, Vinzon's Hall, now stands. But due to the lack of patients, the dental clinic was transferred back to Manila during the School Year 1949-1950. After the passing of the second Dental Law – Republic Act No. 417 – in 1949, the College adopted the 6-year dental curriculum with 60 Credit Units by 1951. From the Quonset barracks, the classes were transferred to the 1st floor of the College of Law Building in UP Diliman, Quezon City.

In 1952, the entire College moved back to Manila to occupy the wings of the Rizal Hall in Padre Faura St. This was to be the home of the College until the First Semester of 1959-1960 when it transferred to another location, the former UP Infirmary, still in Padre Faura St. It is now the UP Manila Museum of a History of Ideas.

The facilities in the Padre Faura building were improved and another two-storey building was built just beside the Department of Justice at the Old NEDA Compound, Padre Faura, which was designed to house the proposed graduate program of the College. The Master of Science in Dentistry (Orthodontics) was proposed as early as the 1970's, and was approved during the 1016th meeting of the Board of Regents held on September 22, 1988. It marked a milestone in the history of the College, it being the first school to offer a graduate course in Dentistry in the Philippines. The program was finally implemented in the summer of 1989.

The University of the Philippines Manila College of Dentistry envisions itself to be the country’s premier academic institution providing quality dental education, training, research, and service characterized by global competence, social sensitivity, and responsible leadership in the continuous pursuit of excellence for the service of God and the nation.

The University of the Philippines Manila College of Dentistry:

1. Provides undergraduate and graduate degree programs that produce:
   1. Biologically-oriented, technically-competent and socially-sensitive practitioners responsive to the needs of the nation and the global community;
   2. Leaders, trainers and researchers grounded in sound principles and critical advances in oral health and education, training, research and service;
   3. Individuals imbued with professionalism, integrity, excellence, nationalism and respect for diversity of cultures; and
   4. Cultivates a team of educators, learners and auxiliary staff committed to excellence, leadership and service.
2. Offers continuing education programs for the development of the profession
3. Conducts relevant ethical research for the advancement of oral health and education

The UP College of Dentistry follows the core values of the UP System: Honor, Excellence and Service.

PACUCOA Candidate Status awarded on July 5, 2025

1. Department of Basic Dental Health Sciences
2. Department of Clinical Dental Health Sciences
3. Department of Community Dentistry
4. Graduate Program in Orthodontics

1. Dental Materials Laboratory
   1. Phantom heads for complete dentures training
   2. lathe machines
2. Oral Health Sciences Laboratory (formerly Biochemistry Laboratory)
   1. Phantom heads for periodontal dentistry training
3. Restorative Dentistry Laboratory
   1. Dental simulators for Restorative Dentistry, Endodontics, Fixed Partial Prosthodontics and Pediatric Dentistry

1. Operative Dentistry Section (for Operative Dentistry, Fixed Partial Prosthodontics and Pediatric Dentistry) with 24 dental chairs, 1 periapical radiographic machine), 1 mobile digital radiographic unit
2. Oral Medicine Clinics (for Endodontics and Periodontics) with 26 dental chairs, 1 periapical radiographic machine, 1 dental microscope, 1 mobile digital radiographic unit, phosphor plates
3. Oral Surgery Clinics with 8 dental chairs, 1 periapical radiographic machine
4. Prosthodontics Clinics (for Complete Dentures and Removable Partial Prosthodontics) with 17 dental chairs
5. Orthodontics Clinics with 14 dental chairs, 3-in-1 CBCT, panoramic xray and cephalometric x-ray unit
6. Oral Diagnosis Clinics with 5 dental chairs, 1 periapical radiographic machine

1. Dental Clinics (envisioned to be the future Center for Oral Health); houses the Digital Dental Laboratories
2. Simodont Haptic Virtual Simulation Laboratory
3. Dental Research Laboratory

1. Dental fillings - Operative dentistry
2. Complete and removable dentures
3. Treatment of child patient
4. Crowns and bridges
5. Periodontal Treatment
6. Root canal treatment
7. Oral Surgery (tooth extraction, odontectomy)
8. Dental check-ups
9. Oral Health Education
10. Temporomandibular Disorders and Orofacial Pain Consultations
11. Orthodontic Consultation and Treatment

1. Dental Boards Orientation (Review for Dentistry Licensure Examination)
2. Dental Refresher Course
3. Short Course in Restorative and Esthetic Dentistry
4. Enhancement Course in Oral Surgery for General Dentists

1. Advanced Education in General Dentistry (AEGD)
2. Orofacial Pain and Dental Sleep Medicine

1. Educational Attainment
Senior high graduates Grades 11 and 12 have several academic tracks, including HESS/HUMSS (Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences), ABM (Accountancy, Business, and Management), and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Varied core subjects are offered per track. Those who pass the UPCAT with a 70% in sciences, regardless of track, are qualified.

2. Dexterity examination
This will be in various forms which may include, but not limited to, the following: mirror image drawings, pass the wire test for steadiness of hands, and wax carvings. Just like the College of Fine Arts, students who fail the dexterity examination will not be taken into the program. This will be administered right after the UPCAT to provide for sufficient time for checking and release of results.

Once admitted, the student shall undergo the following for both self-evaluation and for the college to provide better guidance and monitoring.

1. Interview
The interview will consist of questions that lead to determining their sincere desire for dentistry, their communication and interpersonal skills, as well as their values, character, and expectations. This will be conducted soon after acceptance into the DDM program (before enrollment) so as to give the students more input which will help in deciding if they wish to enroll.

2. Psychological Test
This will be conducted in coordination with the guidance counselor’s office and the Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, both of which have available tools which could be used.

Non-admission of transferees from other schools. Only Baccalaureate Degree Holders from UP and other schools will be accepted.
⠀⠀⠀⠀UP Degree holder: GWA of 2.5
⠀⠀⠀⠀Non UP Degree holder: GWA of 2.0

Shifting policies

(1) For shiftees wanting to enter the DDM program

The College of Dentistry will accept shiftees only before the start of the first semester of every academic year during the specified application period set by the University. This is to minimize the possibility of MRR or MRR with appeals. The dentistry subjects are only offered once a year and higher-level subjects have pre-requisites. Thus, entry at the second semester of the school year will leave them with back subjects they would need to await. It is therefore more prudent for them to enter at the first semester.

Shiftees must:

1. Have a GWA of 2.5 and CWA of 2.75 or better
2. Have attended a maximum of four semesters in UP
3. Present a certificate of good moral character issued by the proper authorities
4. Pass the dexterity examination

* For foreign applicants (non-Filipino citizens), they must satisfy the qualifications stated above. In addition, foreign applicants who are from countries not using English as their first language must satisfy the TOEFL or IELTS score specified by the University. Accepted foreign students will be required to attend Filipino classes for Filipino Language Proficiency.

Once accepted, shiftees must finish all pre-clinical courses and deficiencies before the fifth-year level where clinics will begin. They will not be allowed to begin clinical dentistry with deficiencies in pre-clinical subjects.

(2) For shiftees wanting to leave the DDM program
Students will be allowed to shift out of Dentistry (to another program within the system) provided that they comply with RSA terms and conditions.

1. Possession of a Doctor of Dental Medicine (DDM) degree or its equivalent from the University of the Philippines or from other recognized institutions of higher learning
2. Licensed to practice Dentistry in the Philippines (for Filipino applicants)
3. Qualification shall be determined through:
   1. evaluation of undergraduate credentials, dental board scores and academic ranking
   2. character references
   3. interview with the applicant
   4. dexterity examination

1. Certification of financial capability of affidavit of support in English
2. Photocopy of passport (original to be presented for verification)
3. Official Transcript of Records and Certified True Copy of Diploma
4. TOEFL result of at least 500 if English is not the medium of instruction in the country of origin
5. Study permit from the Office of Student Affairs of UP Manila
6. Student visa issued by the Philippine government

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