dental state examination

What does the dental state examination consist of?

The ZApprO divides the examination into three sections. The First Section may be taken at the earliest at the end of the fourth subject semester (§ 28 ZApprO), the Second Section at the earliest two subject semesters after passing it (§ 42 ZApprO), and the Third Section at the earliest four further subject semesters later (§ 58 ZApprO). The degree programme itself must cover at least five years and 5,000 hours; the standard period of study is five years and six months. Ten semesters of teaching plus examination time is therefore the calculation. Under § 2 ZApprO the training also includes a first aid course, one month of nursing service, and a four-week dental elective placement (Famulatur), all of which must be evidenced before admission to the Third Section.

Who examines, and who grants admission?

The competent body is not the university but the state authority designated under § 18 ZApprO — usually a state examination office (Landesprüfungsamt) or a regional government office. It decides on admission, issues the summons, appoints the examining committees, and at the end issues the certificate under § 81 ZApprO. The First and Second Sections take place during the semester break; the written component of the Third Section is held nationwide in June and November. Failed subjects may be retaken twice. After that the route is permanently closed, even after a further period of study. Anyone who falls ill or withdraws must notify the authority immediately under § 26 ZApprO and provide evidence, otherwise the attempt is deemed to have been failed.

What does this mean for graduates from EU countries?

Graduates who study in Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Croatia, Malta, or the Baltic states sit the national qualifying examination there, not the German dental state examination. For the German licence to practise, the qualifying certificate is decisive — it must be listed in Annex V no. 5.3.2 of Directive 2005/36/EC. Retaking the German examination is not required for this purpose. For graduates from Serbia or Bosnia and Herzegovina the situation is different: those countries are not EU member states, and the procedure runs via the equivalence assessment and, if required, a knowledge test under § 2(3) of the Dentists' Act.

Common misconceptions

The dental state examination is not a state examination followed by a practical year, as in human medicine. After the Third Section the training ends; the licence to practise follows on application. And a passed examination does not yet confer panel status.