Oregon Health & Science University School of Dentistry

Oregon Health & Science University School of Dentistry is an accredited dental school in Portland, OR. Dentists are trained by treating patients, which is why a dental school is often the cheapest place in a city to have a large amount of work done.

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.

What This School Publishes for Patients

This school screens new patients before taking them on. It publishes a screening charge of $128.00, payable at that first visit. 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.

The school lists a patient line on 503-494-8867 and clinic hours on its patient pages. Both change between academic terms, so check again shortly before you travel.

Before You Call

The patient clinic is often a separate operation from the school itself, with its own number and sometimes its own building. Worth a call before you set out.

• Is the clinic open to the public right now, and taking new patients?
• 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?
• If the school cannot treat part of your case, where does it refer that work?
• Are X-rays from your own dentist accepted, and how recent do they have to be?
• What is the policy if you have to cancel or cannot make an appointment?

What a Teaching Clinic Is Like

Dental schools usually run several clinics rather than one. Students handle routine general dentistry at the lowest fees; residents training in a specialty handle root canals, gum treatment, dentures, and oral surgery for more; faculty practices charge close to private rates.

The trade is time for money. Screening comes first and does not guarantee acceptance; appointments are two to three hours because each stage is checked; and treatment spanning several months has to work around the school calendar.

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.

Common Questions

Accreditation

Status: Approval without Reporting Requirements, next reviewed in 2031. That is a judgment on the education, not on the clinic: it says nothing about opening hours, prices or whether anyone is being taken on.

Other Low-Cost Options in Oregon

• Community health center dental clinics in Oregon — the income-based route. No screening visit to pass, and appointments are usually weeks rather than months away.
• Dental hygiene programs in Oregon — good for cleanings and gum treatment, easier to book than a dental school, and unable to help with anything a dentist has to do.
• Free and charitable dental care in Oregon — volunteer and donated-care programs, normally with eligibility rules and limited capacity.
• Oregon state oral health program — the health department office that funds sealant programs and safety-net dental services in the state, and a useful place to ask about county-level help.
• How dental school clinics work — a general guide to screening, fees, and what to expect across the country.