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Aberdeen — Dentistry
Figures are on the current UCAT scale of 2700 unless a cell says otherwise.
Aberdeen - Dentistry
BDS (A201), 4 years
How this university scores applications, with the figures it publishes.
High level summary
Simple summary. Excruciating detail below.
| Question | Answer |
|---|
| Is there a score to clear? | No. The UCAT is folded into one overall score along with other things, so a lower UCAT can be offset by a stronger score elsewhere, and a high one can be dragged down the same way. |
| How to read the UCAT figures here | Only the lowest score is published. It belongs to one applicant, usually one who was strong somewhere else. Matching it is not the same as being competitive. |
| What else counts | Degree subject and class are a requirement in their own right. Details below.
GCSEs are a gate. Meeting the minimum is what counts; beating it earns nothing.
The SJT band does not affect shortlisting. |
Summary of the selection model
| Item | Detail |
|---|
| Scoring approach | Personal statement used both in the application and at interview. UK applicants only |
| UCAT | Required |
| UCAT threshold | A minimum cut-off is NOT used. A score is allocated from overall UCAT performance against Aberdeen's own applicant pool, weighted academic 60 per cent and UCAT 40 per cent. The SJT is not scored but may be used in offer making to separate similar candidates Current-scale equivalents for 2025: about 1710 for Scottish applicants and about 1830 for the rest of the UK, converted from 2320 and 2470 of 3600. |
| UCAT lowest accepted | Lowest score invited to interview, seven years published, 2019 to 2025. For 2025: about 1710 on the current scale for Scottish applicants and about 1830 for the rest of the UK, converted from 2320 and 2470 of 3600. CAUTION: Aberdeen's table is headed only 'Year' and states no scale, so the year labels should be treated with care. A201 is graduate entry only. |
| UCAT average accepted | Unknown. Aberdeen publishes the lowest invited but no mean and no distribution. |
| Interview format | MMI |
| Data status | Seven years of lowest scores invited to interview published, 2019 to 2025. The table is headed only 'Year' and states no scale, so treat the year labels with care. A201 is graduate entry only |
Source
https://www.dentalschoolscouncil.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/DSC-Entry-Requirements-entry-2026.pdf ; https://www.abdn.ac.uk/study/international/english/undergraduate-degrees---english-requirements/ ; https://www.abdn.ac.uk/dental/study/bds/entrance-requirements/ucat/ (lowest invited by year, read 17 September 2026)
FOI-26-283: the full response, 17 September 2026
| Figure | 2025 entry | 2026 entry |
|---|
| Applications | 254 | 249 |
| Invited to interview | 88 | 103 |
| Offers made | 37 | 34 |
| Offers accepted | 22 | 23 |
| Home places | 22 | 22 |
| International places | None | 1 |
| Mean UCAT at interview, home | 2660 (of 3600) | 1980 (of 2700) |
| Mean UCAT at interview, international | Not given | 1950 (of 2700) |
| Mean UCAT at OFFER, home | 2660 (of 3600) | 2040 (of 2700) |
| Mean UCAT at OFFER, international | Not given | Withheld, only one offer made |
Aberdeen own decile bands of its interviewed applicants
| Aberdeen decile | 2025 entry (of 3600) | 2026 entry (of 2700) |
|---|
| 1 | 1790 to 2110 | 1310 to 1570 |
| 2 | 2120 to 2220 | 1580 to 1650 |
| 3 | 2230 to 2340 | 1670 to 1750 |
| 4 | 2350 to 2400 | 1760 to 1810 |
| 5 | 2420 to 2450 | 1820 to 1840 |
| 6 | 2460 to 2510 | 1850 to 1890 |
| 7 | 2520 to 2580 | 1900 to 1940 |
| 8 | 2590 to 2650 | 1950 to 2000 |
| 9 | 2660 to 2790 | 2010 to 2100 |
| 10 | 2810 to 3070 | 2110 to 2520 |
THE ENTIRE BOTTOM DECILE IS BELOW THE NATIONAL FIRST. For 2026 entry Aberdeen bottom band runs 1310 to 1570 and the 1st national decile that year was 1580, so every applicant in that band scored below it and was still interviewed. This is the most accessible dentistry course in the workbook by a wide margin, and dentistry is normally harder to get into than medicine.
SJT bands of applicants interviewed
| Cycle and group | Band 1 | Band 2 | Band 3 | Band 4 |
|---|
| 2025 home | 29 | 44 | 12 | fewer than 5 |
| 2026 home | 38 | 45 | 14 | 0 |
| 2026 international | fewer than 5 | fewer than 5 | fewer than 5 | fewer than 5 |
The scoring matrix, released in full
| UCAT decile | Marks awarded |
|---|
| 10 | 10 |
| 9 | 9 |
| 8 | 8 |
| 7 | 7 |
| 6 | 6 |
| 5 | 5 |
| 4 | 4 |
| 3 | 3 |
| 2 | 2 |
| 1 | 1 |
One mark per decile, one to ten, against medicine three to sixty. Aberdeen does not score GCSEs. Ranked, no threshold. And the answer to contextual admissions was a single word: None. There is no contextual reduction on A201 at all, which makes the low bottom decile more striking rather than less, because nobody got there through a contextual route.
COMPETITION. 249 applications for 23 places in 2026 entry is about 11 per place, against 36 per place for overseas medicine at Leicester and 31 per place for dentistry at Leeds. A201 is graduate entry only and four years, which narrows the field, but on these numbers it is among the least contested dentistry courses in the workbook.
Source: University of Aberdeen FOI-26-283, response 17 September 2026 under FOISA 2002, separate BDS document. National decile placements calculated in this workbook.
Entry requirements
| Item | Detail |
|---|
| Country | Scotland |
| Course (UCAS code) | BDS (A201), 4 years |
| GCSE | Not assessed. This is a graduate entry course, so school qualifications are not used |
| A level | Not assessed. School leavers cannot apply. Entry is on a First or Upper Second Class honours degree in a medical or health related science |
| Scottish Highers / Advanced Highers | Not applicable - this is a graduate-entry-only route. A 2:1 or above in a bioscience or allied health profession degree is required instead of school-leaving qualifications |
| IB | Not applicable |
| English language | Aberdeen's higher tier applies to its clinical programmes: IELTS Academic/UKVI 7.0 overall with Speaking 7.0, Writing 6.0, Listening 5.5, Reading 5.5 |
| Resits accepted? | Unknown |
Further detail
| Item | Detail |
|---|
| Course type | Graduate entry |
| Degree requirement (graduate routes) | Upper second class honours or above in bio sciences or an allied health profession degree |
How the UCAT is turned into a score
| Item | Detail |
|---|
| Is a UCAT points conversion published? | No points conversion has been published. What the University does say about the UCAT is in the row below. |
| How the UCAT is used, in the University’s own words | Personal statement used both in the application and at interview. UK applicants only A minimum cut-off is NOT used. A score is allocated from overall UCAT performance against Aberdeen's own applicant pool, weighted academic 60 per cent and UCAT 40 per cent. The SJT is not scored but may be used in offer making to separate similar candidates Current-scale equivalents for 2025: about 1710 for Scottish applicants and about 1830 for the rest of the UK, converted from 2320 and 2470 of 3600. |
Entry requirements and places, as shown on the comparison table
| Item | Detail |
|---|
| Degree requirement | Upper second class honours or above in bio sciences or an allied health profession degree |
| Figures cover | Places only: Scottish Funding Council dentistry intake target for academic year 2025-26, home, rest of UK and Republic of Ireland plus international together. Aberdeen: 22 home and 1 international. |
| Places | 23 |
| SJT - how the band is used | Not scored, but may be used in offer making to separate similar candidates. |