SIU Dental Medicine Admissions Guide (2027)

Quick facts

• Entry cycle: Fall 2027; SIU explicitly labels its 2026-27 application cycle as open. Application process
• Deadline: verified AADSAS application and required DAT by November 15, 2026.
• Education: at least 90 semester or 135 quarter U.S. college hours; a bachelor's is common but not mandatory. Requirements
• Residency: Illinois residents receive priority.
• Interview: invitation-only half-day visit at the Alton campus with an interview, writing exercise, tour and student panel. Interview page
• Start: classes begin on the first Monday in August; the school does not print the exact Fall 2027 orientation date.

Admission requirements

Applicants need at least three academic years, 90 semester or 135 quarter hours, at an accredited U.S. college or university. A maximum of 60 semester hours may come from a community or junior college. A bachelor's is not mandatory, although most accepted applicants have one. Required courses must be completed with C or better by July of the entering year: biology with labs 8 semester hours, general chemistry with labs 8, organic chemistry with labs 8, physics 6, biochemistry 3 and English 6. A BA or BS can satisfy English. AP credit is not accepted for these subjects, and pass/fail is accepted only for Spring 2020. Requirements

All applicants must submit the DAT; scores must arrive by November 15 and be valid within three years of matriculation. SIU recommends testing by September 15 for first-round interview consideration but publishes no score minimum. Three AADSAS letters are required: two from science professors who taught and graded the applicant plus one evaluator of choice. A pre-health committee letter or packet may replace the three letters.

Dental shadowing and extracurricular activity are highly recommended but not required, and no minimum hour count is published. Illinois residents receive admissions priority. The current DMD pages do not publish a program-specific citizenship, permanent-residence or international-applicant rule, so this guide does not infer one from SIUE's general admissions or financial-aid pages.

Important dates

The 2026-27 ADEA AADSAS service opened May 12, 2026 and first accepted submissions June 2. SIU requires its AADSAS application by November 15, 2026; incomplete or unverified files are not processed. Verified applicants receive a link for SIU's non-refundable application fee, but the current page does not publish the amount. Application process

Admissions Committee file review runs August 2026-February 2027. Interviews are conducted by invitation from September 2026-February 2027; the separate interview page says invitations are initiated from September through January. First-round offers go out December 15, 2026, followed by rolling final decisions January-May 2027.

Required coursework must be complete by July 2027, and classes start the first Monday in August. SIU does not publish a cycle-specific orientation date, exact first class date, seat-deposit amount or offer-response schedule on the reviewed pages.

How selection works

SIU says it reviews the DMD application holistically across all components. The published record includes academic coursework and course load, DAT, letters, experiences, shadowing where present, the writing exercise and required interview. Higher-level science performance is preferred, and Illinois residents receive priority. Requirements

Completed files enter committee review from August through February. Selected candidates interview, and first offers begin December 15 with later rolling decisions through May. Application process

The school does not publish numerical weights, GPA or DAT cutoffs, a file-screen formula, interview or writing-exercise scoring anchors, committee voting mechanics, wait-list order, the number of seats by residency or how each interview-day component affects the final decision.

Interview details

Confirmed

The interview is invitation-only and required. Applicants select an offered date and time. SIU conducts half-day sessions, either 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m. or 11:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., at 2800 College Avenue in Alton. The approximately four-and-a-half-hour visit includes a writing exercise, interview, school tour and student panel with refreshments or lunch. Applicants attend unaccompanied and meet committee members and current students. Interview page

Not published

SIU does not publish the number or duration of interview encounters, panel size, interviewer identities beyond committee members, file access, question domains, writing prompt structure, score anchors, numerical interview weight, remote alternative or post-interview committee formula.

Who this program may suit

This page covers SIU School of Dental Medicine's conventional four-year DMD at its Alton campus. It excludes SIU School of Medicine MD, the International Advanced Placement Program and postdoctoral specialty or residency admissions. DMD programme

The small Alton dental campus and Illinois public-service mission make state connection and community need relevant, but the school does not publish a formula for them. A useful fit response should connect a concrete dental or community experience to what the applicant learned about service, communication and general practice.

Practice and next step

Record a response to a public-service tradeoff where limited appointments must be allocated fairly. Ask a reviewer to mark whether you define the competing needs, explain a defensible decision and communicate it respectfully. Make one adjustment, record a second attempt and compare structure, fairness and clarity.

Frequently asked questions

What is SIU's Fall 2027 deadline?

The AADSAS application and DAT must be received by November 15, 2026.

Is a bachelor's required?

No. SIU requires at least 90 semester or 135 quarter hours, although most accepted applicants have a bachelor's.

Does SIU require shadowing hours?

No minimum is published. Dental shadowing is highly recommended rather than required.

Does SIU prefer Illinois residents?

Yes. The school explicitly gives Illinois residents priority.

Is the interview virtual?

The current page describes a half-day visit at the Alton campus. It does not publish a remote alternative.

Sources

Verified August 12, 2026. Current official sources: 2026-27 application process and timetable, academic, DAT, letter and residency requirements, half-day Alton interview format, four-year regular DMD identity and ADEA AADSAS service dates.