The ABDPH administers the Qualifying Exam annually.  Applications are due November 20 of the year prior to the Qualifying Exam (for example, the deadline for the 2027 Exam is November 20, 2026).  The Examination Application Portal will open on September 1, 2026.  Please review the 2027 Qualifying Examination Guide for full examination details. 

The 2027 Exam will be administered at PearsonVUE sites across the U.S. and select U.S. Territories on April 1-2, 2027.  Candidates are responsible for scheduling their exact date/time with PearsonVUE. There will be an Exam Orientation approximately 2-4 weeks prior to the exam.  More details regarding this orientation will be included in Candidate eligibility emails which will be sent no later than December 20, 2026. Sample Multiple Choice Questions are available here.  

Candidates may elect to take the Qualifying Exam near the end of their advanced Dental Public Health preparation program, if at least 75% of the preparation program has been completed.

Following application, candidates will be notified of their eligibility to take the Qualifying Exam no later than December 20, 2026.  Any candidate deemed ineligible will have up to three (3) years to satisfy outstanding requirements without incurring additional fees.  There will be a mandatory exam orientation scheduled approximately 2-4 weeks prior to the Exam. 

The candidate must achieve a score of at least 70% to pass the Qualifying Examination and be permitted to apply for Board eligibility and challenge the Certification Examination.  A candidate who fails the Qualifying Examination may retake it up to two times.  These examinations can only be taken as part of the regularly scheduled ABDPH examination cycle.  All candidates will be notified whether they passed or failed the Qualifying Examination within 45 days of the conclusion of the examination.

The Qualifying Exam must be successfully completed before the candidate can apply to challenge the Certifying Exam.  Once a candidate successfully completes the Qualifying Exam, they have five (5) years to successfully complete the Certifying Exam.  Candidates who do not apply for the Certification Examination within five years must retake the Qualifying Examination.

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• Before completing the online application, please have the following available for upload:

  • • A current headshot photo
    • Current Curriculum Vitae
    • Evidence of Graduation from a School of Dentistry
    • Evidence of Masters of Public Health Degree (MPH) or Equivalent from an U.S. accredited college or university (Canadian graduate degrees may be acceptable)
    • Certificate of Residency or Equivalent (for candidates who have completed their educational requirements at the time of application)
    • Signed Document from Dental Public Health Program Director (for candidates close to completing their educational requirements at the time of application).  Please refer to the Qualifying Examination Guide for details regarding the information that should be included in this letter.

    For a Printable Version of this checklist, click here.

The fee to apply for the Qualifying Exam is $700.  This fee will be collected when your application is submitted.  If you prefer to pay via check rather than by credit card, please contact the Executive Director at executive.director@abdph.org. 

Please refer to the 2027 Qualifying Examination Guide for additional details about the Examination Process.