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Accredited dental school

Tufts University School of Dental Medicine

One Kneeland Street, Boston, MA 02111

School website Health centers in Massachusetts

Based in Boston, MA, Tufts University School of Dental Medicine is an accredited dental school. Schools like this one train dentists, and much of that training happens by treating members of the public in supervised clinics on campus.

Fees at a teaching clinic are set by the school and are usually well below private practice rates, though the care is reduced-cost rather than free. In exchange, appointments are longer and treatment can take more visits than it would elsewhere. Massachusetts has 3 accredited dental schools in total, listed on the Massachusetts page.

What This School Publishes for Patients

This school screens new patients before taking them on. Being screened is not the same as being accepted: the school is deciding whether your case suits its students and its teaching schedule.

Some insurance is accepted here. Plans and public programs change from year to year, so confirm yours by name rather than asking whether insurance is taken in general.

A pediatric clinic operates alongside the adult clinics. Minimum ages and waiting lists differ from the adult side, so ask about children separately.

At the time this was read, the school said it was accepting new patients. That changes with the academic year, so it is worth confirming on the phone.

The school lists a patient line on 978-774-5000 and clinic hours on its patient pages. Both change between academic terms, so check again shortly before you travel.

What a Teaching Clinic Is Like

Which clinic you are placed in decides what you pay. Student clinics take general work at the lowest fee, specialty clinics handle root canals and dentures for more, and the faculty practice is close to ordinary private pricing.

Expect a screening visit first, which decides whether your case suits the students and the teaching schedule rather than simply booking you in. Expect appointments of two to three hours as well, since the work is reviewed at each stage, and expect the clinic to slow down or close between terms.

Our guide to dental schools and teaching clinics covers the screening process, how the discount works on laboratory costs, and what to ask before the first appointment in more detail.

Before You Call

Patient clinics usually run separately from the school office, on their own line and sometimes at their own address. A few minutes on the phone saves a wasted journey.

  • What does the screening appointment cost, and how long is the wait for one?
  • Which clinic would handle the treatment you need — the student clinic, a specialty clinic, or the faculty practice — and does it have its own waiting list?
  • What are the fees for that treatment, and do they include laboratory work for crowns or dentures?
  • Where is the patient entrance, and what should you bring — identification, proof of income, previous X-rays?
  • If the school cannot treat part of your case, where does it refer that work?
  • Would your case go to the student clinic or a graduate clinic, and what is the price difference between them?

Common Questions

How long will a course of treatment take?

Longer than at a private practice, and the gap widens with the amount of work. Individual appointments often run two to three hours because each stage is reviewed, and clinics slow down or close between terms. Someone needing several crowns should expect months rather than weeks.

How is this different from a dental hygiene clinic?

A hygiene clinic is staffed by hygiene students and does preventive work only — cleanings, X-rays, sealants, gum treatment. It cannot fill a cavity or pull a tooth. For preventive care it is cheaper and easier to book; for anything else you need the dental school or a dentist.

What if something goes wrong with the work later?

Schools generally stand behind treatment in the same way a practice does, and problems are reviewed by faculty. What differs is continuity: the student who treated you may have graduated. Ask what the policy is for remakes and repairs, and keep your treatment paperwork.

Is treatment free?

Usually not. Teaching clinics charge, and are best understood as substantially discounted rather than free. The lowest band is a reduced fee, not nothing. If you cannot pay anything at all, free and charitable dental care in Massachusetts is the closer fit.

Is sedation available if I am anxious?

Availability varies and it is rarely included in the quoted fee. Some schools offer nitrous oxide in the student clinic and deeper sedation only in a graduate clinic or through the hospital. If anxiety is the reason you have avoided treatment, say so at screening rather than on the day.

Can I ask for a different student?

Usually not in the way you would change dentist at a private practice. Assignment depends on which students need your kind of case and who has capacity. You can raise a concern with the supervising faculty member, who is responsible for the treatment regardless of who is holding the instruments.

Accreditation

Status: Approval without Reporting Requirements, next reviewed in 2030. Accreditation covers the teaching — curriculum, facilities and faculty — not whether a public clinic is open, what it charges, or how long the wait is.

Other Accredited Dental Schools in Massachusetts

Massachusetts has 3 accredited dental schools altogether. If this one is full or the wait is too long, the others are separate institutions with separate lists:

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