Accredited dental school
Marquette University School of Dentistry
1801 W. Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, WI 53233
Marquette University School of Dentistry is an accredited dental school in Milwaukee, WI. 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. 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 (414) 288-6790 and clinic hours on its patient pages. Both change between academic terms, so check again shortly before you travel.
Common Questions
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 the school cannot take me?
A common outcome and not the end of the search. Federally funded health centers in Milwaukee, WI charge on a sliding scale by household income and can usually see you sooner. Dental hygiene programs handle cleanings and preventive work cheaply. Both are linked further down this page.
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.
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.
Can I pay in instalments?
Payment is often expected at each visit rather than at the end, which spreads the cost in practice even where there is no formal plan. Formal payment plans are less common at schools than at private practices. Third-party dental finance is sometimes accepted; ask before assuming it.
What happens when my student graduates?
Treatment still in progress is normally transferred to another student, with the faculty supervisor carrying the plan across. It is one reason a long course of work can stretch out. If you start late in the academic year, ask how the handover is handled before you commit.
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.
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?
- 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?
- Are X-rays from your own dentist accepted, and how recent do they have to be?
- Does the school run an emergency or walk-in session, and who is eligible for it?
- Where is the patient entrance, and what should you bring — identification, proof of income, previous X-rays?
Accreditation
Status: Approval without Reporting Requirements, next reviewed in 2029. It reviews the program every few years against a national standard for teaching. Patient access, fees and waiting times are outside what it looks at.
Other Low-Cost Options in Wisconsin
- Community health center dental clinics in Wisconsin — priced against your household income rather than by using students, which makes them the better option if your income is low and your need is routine.
- Dental hygiene programs in Wisconsin — teaching clinics for cleanings, X-rays, sealants and gum treatment at low cost. They do not do fillings or extractions.
- Free and charitable dental care in Wisconsin — volunteer and donated-care programs, normally with eligibility rules and limited capacity.
- Wisconsin 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.
Other Dental Schools Nearby
- A.T. Still University Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health — Mesa, AZ
- Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine — Boston, MA
- California Northstate University College of Dental Medicine — Elk Grove, CA
- Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine — Cleveland, OH
- Columbia University College of Dental Medicine — New York, NY