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Studies & Degrees in Public and Child Dental Health

Public and child dental health covers two branches of dentistry that are often taught side by side: dental public health, which deals with the oral health of whole populations, and paediatric dentistry, which treats children and young people. Both put prevention first. The World Health Organization estimates that oral diseases affect nearly 3.7 billion people and notes that most oral health conditions are largely preventable.

The US National Commission on Recognition of Dental Specialties and Certifying Boards defines dental public health as the science and art of preventing and controlling dental diseases and promoting dental health through organised community efforts; the community, rather than the individual, is the patient. Paediatric dentistry is defined by age. The UK General Dental Council (GDC) describes it as comprehensive oral health care for children and young people, with patients aged 0 to 16.

Students of dental public health learn to assess the needs of a population, audit how fairly a service reaches people, write an oral health strategy, design health promotion programmes and evaluate services. Students of paediatric dentistry learn to treat healthy children, children with traumatic injuries, children with challenging behaviour, medically compromised children and children with dental anomalies, using local anaesthesia, sedation or general anaesthesia.

Qualifications and levels

This is not a first degree. The route starts with a degree in dentistry; at Trinity College Dublin, for example, the Dental Science programme lasts five years. Specialisation follows after some years of practice:

  • Ireland: Trinity College Dublin awards the Doctorate in Dental Surgery (D.Ch.Dent.), a professional doctorate at level 10 of the Irish qualifications framework. It has seven strands, among them Paediatric Dentistry and Dental Public Health, and takes three years full-time; Dental Public Health can also be taken part-time over five years
  • United Kingdom: the GDC keeps specialist lists of dentists who have met the conditions to use a specialist title. Dental public health and paediatric dentistry each have their own specialty curriculum; the current versions took effect for new trainees in September 2024
  • United States: dental public health and pediatric dentistry are two of the 12 recognised dental specialties. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, specialty training is usually a residency of two to four years that often ends with a postdoctoral certificate or a master's degree

Admission is selective. Trinity considers only applicants who have held a primary dental qualification for at least two years. For Dental Public Health it also asks for a master's degree in public health or dental public health. 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 two schools under this subject, one in Ireland and one in Spain. The clearest example is Trinity College Dublin (listed as University of Dublin, Trinity College), where teaching is in English and takes place at the Dublin Dental University Hospital. Its Dental Public Health strand includes work with national health providers such as the Irish Health Service Executive, and the university states that the course is recognised for specialty training by the Dental Council of Ireland. In the Paediatric Dentistry strand, clinical experience is supervised by consultants at the dental hospital and at two paediatric hospitals.

Not every strand opens every year. For the 2026-27 academic year Trinity lists an intake only for Orthodontics, Dental Public Health and Prosthodontics, so applicants interested in Paediatric Dentistry should ask the school about the next intake. Because specialist titles are regulated country by country, it is worth asking each school which regulator recognises its qualification, and checking with the dental regulator of the country where you plan to work.

Careers

Specialists in dental public health rarely work at the dental chair. They plan and evaluate services, advise health authorities and run prevention programmes; the Bureau of Labor Statistics describes them as promoting good dental health and the prevention of dental diseases in specific communities. Paediatric dentists work in clinics, hospitals and private practice. Trinity notes that many graduates of its specialist doctorates set up specialist practices in the community.

Official employment figures are published for dentists as a whole. In the United States there were 161,400 dentists' jobs in 2025, and employment is projected to grow 6 percent from 2025 to 2035, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. A dentist who wants to practise a specialty there needs a licence in that specialty.

Frequently asked questions

Can I study public and child dental health without being a dentist?

Not as a clinical specialty. The specialist programmes described here are open to qualified dentists; Trinity College Dublin, for example, requires a primary dental qualification held for at least two years.

How long does specialist training take?

At Trinity College Dublin the doctorate takes three years full-time, or five years part-time for Dental Public Health. In the United States, specialty residencies usually last two to four years.

What ages does paediatric dentistry cover?

The UK General Dental Council describes the patients of paediatric dentistry as ranging from 0 to 16 years, after which they move to adult oral health services.

Do I need a master's degree before a doctorate in dental public health?

At Trinity College Dublin, yes: applicants for the Dental Public Health strand need a master's in public health or dental public health. Other schools set their own requirements.