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Accredited dental school

Columbia University College of Dental Medicine

630 West 168th Street, PH7 East Room 122, New York, NY 10032

School website Health centers in New York

Based in New York, NY, Columbia University College 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. New York has 6 accredited dental schools in total, listed on the New York page.

What This School Publishes for Patients

This school states that it does not operate a sliding fee scale or provide free care. Its prices are reduced against private practice, but they are not adjusted to your income, so if you cannot pay a fixed fee a community health center is the better route.

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.

The school lists a patient line on 212-305-6100. That changes 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.

  • Is the clinic open to the public right now, and taking new patients?
  • Is a screening appointment required first, what does it cost, and how soon can you get 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?
  • Are evening or Saturday appointments available, or is it weekdays only?
  • Does the school run an emergency or walk-in session, and who is eligible for it?
  • Would your case go to the student clinic or a graduate clinic, and what is the price difference between them?

Common Questions

Will I see the same person at every visit?

Usually yes for the student, which is one of the better features of this route: your case belongs to one person for the whole course of treatment. The supervising faculty member may change from session to session, and the practice varies by school.

Do they do braces or orthodontics?

Many schools run a graduate orthodontics clinic, and treatment there costs substantially less than private orthodontics — but waiting lists are long and the clinics are selective, because residents need particular kinds of case. Adults are treated as well as children at most of them.

Will a student be doing the work?

In the student clinic, yes, supervised by a licensed faculty dentist who checks the treatment at each stage and signs it off. In graduate and specialty clinics the work is done by a qualified dentist training in that field. Ask which clinic you would be assigned to, because it changes both the price and the wait.

What if I need a specialist the school does not have?

You would be referred out, and that referral is usually to a private specialist at full price. This is the single most common way a dental school plan falls apart, so ask at screening which parts of your treatment the school can do itself and which it cannot.

I am nervous about being treated by a student.

Worth knowing that the work is checked more thoroughly here than almost anywhere else, because it is being graded as well as treated. What you trade is time, not care. If it helps, ask whether a graduate clinic could take your case instead — you pay more, but the treatment is done by a qualified dentist.

What should I bring to the first appointment?

Photo identification, your insurance or Medicaid card if you have one, a list of your current medications, and any recent X-rays or records from a previous dentist. Some schools also ask for proof of income. Allow far more time than the appointment length suggests.

Accreditation

Status: Approval without Reporting Requirements, next reviewed in 2031. 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 New York

New York has 6 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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