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Studies & Degrees in Restorative Dentistry

Restorative dentistry is the part of dentistry that repairs and rebuilds teeth and the tissues around them so that the mouth works and looks as it should. Every dentist does restorative work, from fillings to crowns. As a specialty it deals with the difficult cases. The UK General Dental Council (GDC) describes restorative dentistry as specialist dental care for patients with complex dental problems, often needing a multidisciplinary team: people with a developmental condition such as a cleft palate or missing adult teeth, or whose mouth has been damaged by cancer or trauma.

The field brings together three narrower disciplines, and students meet all of them:

  • Endodontics: the health, injuries and diseases of the dental pulp (the nerve) and surrounding structures, including root canal treatment
  • Periodontics: the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the gums and the tissues that support the teeth
  • Prosthodontics: the reconstruction and replacement of teeth with prostheses supported by tissue, teeth or implants

Qualifications and levels

Restorative dentistry is first studied inside a dentistry degree. These degrees are long: the Dental Science programme at Trinity College Dublin lasts five years, and Bukovinian State Medical University in Ukraine describes its dentistry programme as five years and 300 ECTS credits, leading to the qualification Master of Stomatology. Many dental schools have a department for the subject. At Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Nigeria, the Department of Restorative Dentistry is one of the four departments of the Faculty of Dentistry, which awards the Bachelor of Dental Surgery (B.Ch.D).

Specialisation comes after graduation and some years of practice, and how it is organised depends on the country:

  • United Kingdom: restorative dentistry is a specialty in its own right, with a GDC specialty curriculum whose current version took effect for new trainees in September 2024. Endodontics, periodontics and prosthodontics are separate specialties with their own lists. Since the curriculum approved on 23 April 2009, training in restorative dentistry no longer gives automatic entry to those three lists
  • Ireland: Trinity College Dublin offers a Doctorate in Dental Surgery (D.Ch.Dent.) with seven strands, including Prosthodontics and Periodontics. The Prosthodontics strand takes three years full-time, with about 60% of the time in clinical training, 20% in teaching and 20% in a research project
  • United States: there is no specialty called restorative dentistry among the 12 recognised dental specialties; endodontics, periodontics and prosthodontics are recognised separately. Specialty training is usually a residency of two to four years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Entry to specialist programmes is for qualified dentists. Trinity considers only applicants who have held a primary dental qualification for at least two years, and applicants who are not native English speakers and did not study in English need an IELTS score of at least 7 overall and in each category.

Where to study it

SpainExchange lists four schools for restorative dentistry, one each in Nigeria, Ireland, Ukraine and Russia:

  • Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, whose dental school was established in 1975
  • Trinity College Dublin (listed as University of Dublin, Trinity College), with teaching in English at the Dublin Dental University Hospital
  • Bukovinian State Medical University, Chernivtsi
  • Rostov State Medical University, Rostov-on-Don

Not every strand at Trinity opens each year. For the 2026-27 academic year, applications for Prosthodontics stay open until 31 January, and the university lists no planned intake for several other strands, so check the current intake before you plan an application. Trinity states that its Prosthodontics programme is approved by the Irish Committee for Specialist Training in Dentistry. For any school, ask which language the programme is taught in and which regulator recognises the qualification.

Careers

Most dentists are general practitioners, and restorative treatment is a large part of their daily work. Specialists take the complex cases. In the UK, the GDC notes that specialist restorative services are mostly delivered by consultant-led teams, usually in hospitals, and that specialists are often involved in health service management, clinical research and dental education. Prosthodontics students at Trinity, for example, attend multidisciplinary clinics for the treatment of dental trauma, developmental disorders and defects left by cancer surgery.

In the United States, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that employment of dentists will grow 6 percent from 2025 to 2035. It counts prosthodontists separately: about 1,000 jobs in 2025 and a projected 1,100 in 2035.

Frequently asked questions

Is restorative dentistry the same as prosthodontics?

No. Prosthodontics is one of the three disciplines inside restorative dentistry, next to endodontics and periodontics. Restorative dentistry as a specialty covers the restoration and rehabilitation of the whole mouth.

Can I study restorative dentistry without a dentistry degree?

Not as a clinical subject. It is taught as part of a dentistry degree and then as postgraduate training for qualified dentists.

How long does it take to specialise?

It depends on the country. The Prosthodontics doctorate at Trinity College Dublin takes three years full-time, and specialty residencies in the United States usually last two to four years, in both cases after the dentistry degree.

Is restorative dentistry a recognised specialty everywhere?

No. The UK has a specialist list for restorative dentistry, while the United States recognises endodontics, periodontics and prosthodontics separately. Check with the dental regulator of the country where you want to work.