- UCAT
UCAT Cut-Off Scores for UK Dental Schools (2027 Entry)
Everything you need to shortlist for dentistry — cut-offs, UCAT weighting, GCSE and A-level requirements, SJT rules and interview format, for every dental school we have verified.
Some schools use individual section scores — Nottingham doubles Verbal Reasoning, City St George’s needs 500 in every section — so enter all three if you have them. The total alone still works everywhere else.
That is 12 A-levels — the most this tool takes. Remove one to add another.
General Studies and Critical Thinking are not accepted as A-levels and are not counted. Ticking resit? shows a “first sit” grade — some schools (e.g. Manchester, Lancaster) require particular grades at your first attempt.
That is 14 GCSEs — the most this tool takes. Remove one to add another.
Add all your GCSEs so we can check subject and grade-count requirements. Some schools score your best 6, 8 or 9; most check English and Maths by name. Combined Science counts as two.
Contextual criteria differ by school; each card explains what the flag changes. King’s uses Attainment 8 (a lower-attaining school increases your GCSE score there) — find it on gov.uk under “compare school performance”.
Compare every school we have checked
How to read these cards
Every card carries a confidence pill — it says what kind of number you are looking at
- confidence 2027 figure
- Published in advance for your application cycle. Use it to plan.
- confidence 2026 figure
- The cut-off the school set for last year’s applicants. This year’s will be set again and may change. Treat it as a close guide, not a promise.
- confidence Last cycle
- The school sets no cut-off in advance — it ranks applicants and invites the highest scorers until interview places fill. This is last year’s lowest score invited to interview; it depends on who else applied.
- confidence Rule only
- No number published. This is the rule used instead — usually more useful.
- confidence Estimate
- The school publishes no number. The ~figure is our recent guide to where the line has fallen, using averages, Freedom of Information responses or last known interview invitations. It is approximate — a guide, not the school’s cut-off.
- confidence Scored formula
- Applicants are ranked using the school’s published points formula (GCSEs, UCAT, SJT). The verdict compares your score on that scale with the most recent interview line.
- Grad only
- Graduate entry. You need a degree already — not open to school leavers.
Some cards also carry an interview-to-offer rate
- interview-to-offer rate ~60% 2025
- Of the applicants the school interviewed, the share who then got an offer. It measures how selective the interview stage is — it is not your chance of being invited to interview, and not your chance of an offer. Getting to interview is decided by the cut-off and the verdict above.
Once you run your profile, each card also carries a verdict
- strong
- Meets every published requirement with room to spare.
- borderline
- Meets the requirements, but sits near the line or within a ranking that reached higher.
- unlikely
- Below last cycle’s line, or in a ranking where your total rarely succeeds — no rule excludes you.
- ineligible
- A rule the school applies at application rules you out — an SJT band, a missing subject, a GCSE floor, or predicted grades where the school screens on them. Where a school says it does not use predicted grades, a prediction below the offer never makes you ineligible here; the card tells you what you must still achieve.
- check
- The school requires information you have not entered yet — or withholds its scoring, so a reliable number is not possible. The card explains what to consider.
How we read your UCAT decile
UCAT splits each year’s candidates into ten equal tenths by score. The 2026 marks are 1st 1590 · 2nd 1700 · 3rd 1780 · 4th 1850 · 5th 1920 · 6th 1980 · 7th 2050 · 8th 2140 · 9th 2250.
“Decile” is used two ways, one apart. Your UCAT result names the highest mark you have passed — a 2100 passes the 7th mark (2050) but not the 8th (2140), so it reads as the 7th decile. A school’s scoring counts which tenth you land in — a 2100 sits in the 8th tenth (better than roughly 70–80% of candidates). Passing the 7th mark is what puts you into the 8th tenth, so the two differ by one. The points on each card follow that school’s own numbering.
Worked example — Birmingham (UCAT scored out of 4.0, one step per tenth): the 8th tenth (2050–2139) scores 3.11 and the 7th tenth (1980–2049) scores 2.67, so a 2100 scores 3.11.
Some schools (for example Edinburgh and Hull York) publish the weighting but withhold the exact points per UCAT decile. Where that happens, the number shown is our model of where the line falls — a guide, tagged estimate, not the school’s own figure.
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| School | UCAT number | How the UCAT is used | Signals | Entry grades | GCSEs | SJT | Interview | Source | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AberdeenRule Grad only |
No number publishedgraduate-entry BDS (A201, 4 years, UK applicants only); UCAT used with other criteria | “the scores obtained are used with other criteria to select for interview”. No weighting, threshold or ranking method is published | MMI interviewconfidence Rule only | Entry grades: see the school’s own page | Not applicable — entry is by degree: a First or 2:1 in a medical or health-related science | Not published on the pages we checked | Multiple mini-interviews (DSC 2027 booklet) | Graduate entry: A levels and GCSEs are N/A. Requires a First or Upper Second in a bio-science or allied-health degree (DSC), or a medical/health-related science degree (course page). | Graduate-entry only and UK applicants only. The UCAT is one input among several; nothing about weighting is published. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | ||||
Birmingham2026 |
2190lowest UCAT interviewed, 2026 entry, standard applicants (mean 2303; lowest offered 2210; 320 interviewed for 65 places) — published by the school in its admissions statistics, September 2026 | Academic and non-academic minimums checked first, personal statement read for motivation, then “the UCAT score will then be used to determine if an interview is offered”. 2025-entry lowest interviewed was 2870 — old /3600 scale, not comparable | interview-to-offer rate ~37% 2026MMI interviewA-level resits not acceptedwork experience expectedconfidence 2026 figure | An academic gate, a motivation read of the personal statement, then total UCAT ranks you — the SJT band is ignored entirely, so a band 4 is no disadvantage here. The lowest interviewed for 2026 was 2190 and the mean 2303. First sitting only: resits are not considered. The MMI, which includes a manual-dexterity task, decides the offer on its own. | Free school meals or local-authority care: AAB offer. Pathways to Birmingham: ABB offer, predicted BBB minimum and reduced GCSEs. UCAT ranking unchanged. | AAA incl. Biology + Chemistry; contextual AAB · GCSEs: Maths 7, Eng Lang|English Literature 7, Biology 8, Chemistry 8 · No resits | Maths 7, English Language or Literature 7, Biology 8 and Chemistry 8 | SJT band not used at any stage | Multiple mini-interviews | DSC ‘Resits accepted? No’. All A levels taken concurrently over a maximum of 2 years. | No minimum score, and the SJT band is ignored entirely. Personal statement is read for motivation before the UCAT decides the interview. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | ||
Bristol2026 |
2340Home 2026 · overseas 1970 — where the interview line fell | Once the academic minimum is met the application is “scored with a 100% weighting on the UCAT result”. The admissions statement also says “there is no cut-off score for the UCAT” — the 2340 is an outcome, not a bar | interview-to-offer rate ~54% 2025InterviewA-level resits OKwork experience noneconfidence 2026 figure | 100% UCAT to interview once the academic floor is met — 2340 Home for 2026 entry, the highest dental bar in the country, with overseas far lower at 1970. GCSEs, A-levels, the SJT and the personal statement do nothing for the shortlist. Resits are accepted in all circumstances, but a missed Chemistry A or GCSE Maths 7 can only be fixed by resitting it. | Contextual offer ABB (A still in Chemistry) for a range of WP reasons. The UCAT threshold is not lowered. | AAA incl. Chemistry + Biology or Physics or Mathematics; contextual ABB · GCSEs: Maths 7, English 4 · Resits accepted | Maths at 7/A and English at 4/C — the only two GCSEs specified | SJT excluded from the combined score | Online, structured interview | Bristol does not weight GCSEs or A levels; these are floors only. | ‘Resits are accepted in all circumstances.’ | 100% UCAT once the academic floor is met, so the interview line is purely where the cohort’s scores fall. Overseas line sat far below Home in 2026. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | |
CardiffRule |
No number publishedUCAT cut-off used only if too many applicants share the top academic score | Achieved GCSEs (typically seven) are scored A*=4, A=3, B=2, C=1; 28 points is the ceiling. “A UCAT cut-off score is only used if we have too many applicants sitting on excellent academic scores … It cannot currently be predicted”. Predicted grades are not considered at all | interview-to-offer rate ~40% 2024MMI interviewA-level resits by exceptionwork experience noneconfidence Rule only | Near-perfect achieved GCSEs are the real bar: your top seven, with Biology and Chemistry compulsory, are scored to 28 and predicted grades are never looked at. Past that, a 7th–8th-decile UCAT (about 2050+) is what trims the pile of full-academic applicants. Gap-year applicants can top the score up with achieved A-levels; no A-level resits unless you held a Cardiff firm offer and just missed. | Contextual (UK-wide) and Welsh-domiciled applicants are given additional consideration in the scoring; the weighting is unpublished, so do not rely on it. | AAA incl. Biology + Chemistry · GCSEs: Eng Lang 6, Biology 7, Chemistry 7 · Resits by exception only | English Language 6/B; Biology and Chemistry 7/A (or 77 double award). Scored, not just checked | Not published on the pages we checked | MMI, in person for Home applicants; online only for overseas | Achieved GCSEs ARE scored (typically seven: A*/8/9=4, A/7=3, B/6=2, C/4/5=1; 28 points = maximum) but ‘best 7’ is not a g_scored enum value. Predicted grades not considered at any stage. Contextual offer not stated on the pages read. | GCSE resits accepted if achieved at application. A level resits not accepted ‘unless you have been successful at interview and were given an honoured offer for the following year’. | Achieved GCSEs are scored first (28 points is the ceiling); the UCAT is only a tie-break cut when too many applicants top the academic score. Predicted grades are never looked at. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | |
Lancashire (UCLan)Rule Grad only |
No number publishedA202 is a 4-year BDS for graduates; ranked on UCAT, highest scores interviewed | “Your UCAT score will be utilised to rank your application prior to interview. The highest scoring applicants will be invited to attend an interview” | MMI interviewwork experience noneconfidence Rule only | CCC incl. Biology or Physics or Chemistry or Mathematics + Biology or Physics or Chemistry or Mathematics · GCSEs: English 6, Maths 6 | English and Maths at B (DSC 2027 booklet) | Not published on the pages we checked | Multiple mini-interviews and group tasks; 2027-entry interviews on 14 December 2026 | Graduate entry: the real gate is a 2:1 in a Biomedical discipline; the CCC/GCSE lines are the school-leaving minimums listed alongside it in the DSC booklet. | “We will consider your educational achievements and predicted grades.” — the school’s admissions page, read 22 September 2026 | A 4-year graduate BDS: a 2:1 in a biomedical discipline is the real gate, then applicants are ranked on UCAT for interview. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | |||
DundeeGuide |
~2000no published cut-off — guide: modelled rest-of-UK interview line for a near-maxed academic profile; Dundee weights school-leavers 36% GCSE + 24% A-level + 40% UCAT decile and publishes no cut-off | “Selection for interview will be based on academic achievement to date, including predicted grades, and UCAT score”. Dundee warns its published tables “will not be directly comparable” with scores from 2025 on. 2023/24 entry lowest interviewed: 1940/3600, not comparable | interview-to-offer rate ~28% 2026MMI interviewA-level resits not acceptedconfidence Estimate | Academic attainment and the UCAT are combined rather than gated: school-leavers are scored 36% GCSEs, 24% A-levels and 40% UCAT decile, and the grade-to-points scheme is not published. Rest-of-UK is brutally tight — 58 invitations from 821 applications for 2026 — so this needs near-all 9s with three A* predictions as well as a strong UCAT. No resits. | Home Scottish and rest-of-UK applicants who evidence their contextual circumstances and are on course for the widening-access requirements are normally interviewed — conditional, not guaranteed. | A*AA incl. Biology + Chemistry · GCSEs: English 6, Maths 6 · No resits | English and Maths at B/6 minimum, no retakes | SJT bands not used in the initial selection for interview | In-person MMI, 7 stations; online for international applicants | The only published contextual offer is for Scottish Highers (AAABB); no contextual A-level offer is stated. | ‘All to be achieved in one sitting with no retakes.’ GCSEs also ‘with no retakes’. | This line moves with your academics — weaker GCSEs or fewer A* predictions push it up in 100-point steps. Observed 2026 rest-of-UK figures (FOI, contextual and non-contextual combined) were 1890 lowest invited and 2068 average invited. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | |
Norwich (UEA)Guide |
~2100no published cut-off — guide: a working guide for the first-ever cohort (September 2027, 25 UK places) — UEA says outright that a high score helps and a low one does not disqualify anyone | “UEA does not have a cut off score. A high score is advantageous; a low score does not disqualify an applicant from consideration”. Overall UCAT ranks for interview; after interview, UCAT and interview score are weighted equally for offers | MMI interviewA-level resits with conditionsconfidence Estimate | Also brand new for September 2027, but the machine is known because it is UEA medicine’s: gates plus a satisfactory personal statement and reference, then UCAT ranks the field when it is oversubscribed, and the offer is the interview score and your UCAT weighted equally. That published 50/50 means a strong UCAT pays twice. The subject gate is unusually kind — Biology or Chemistry, not both. | AAA incl. Biology or Chemistry · GCSEs: Maths 6, Eng Lang 6; 6 at grade 6+; 2 sciences at 6+ · Resits with conditions | Six GCSEs at 6/B including Maths, English Language and two sciences or Double Science | SJT score is folded into the interview score, not used at shortlisting | MMI on campus, 5-minute stations, November to March | Not in the DSC 2027 booklet. Read from an Internet Archive copy of the UEA course page dated 15 Jun 2026; the live page sits behind a human-verification wall. | ‘we expect applicants to demonstrate significantly improved performance that exceeds our standard entry requirements … Applicants resitting more than once will not normally be considered.’ The specific A-level resit grades sit in a tab we could not read. | UCAT ranks for interview only when the field is oversubscribed — near-certain at 25 places — and then counts again in the offer, weighted equally with the interview score. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | ||
GlasgowGuide |
~2130no published cut-off — guide: rest-of-UK estimate for 2026 entry, the first /2700 cycle — Glasgow publishes the lowest score considered per fee group only after the cycle, and its 2025 rest-of-UK line was 2770/3600 Glasgow’s own BDS admissions data (read 22 Sept 2026): lowest UCAT interviewed 2660/3600 for 2025 entry, 2590 for 2024, 2500 for 2023; the first /2700 cycle is not yet published. | “if your score is deemed to be too low then you will not be selected for interview, regardless of your qualifications”. “All applicants will be ranked on the basis of their UCAT score, the percentile cut-off point varies from year to year” | interview-to-offer rate ~46% 2025MMI interviewA-level resits not acceptedwork experience expectedconfidence Estimate | “Home” means Scotland here — English, Welsh and NI applicants sit in the rest-of-UK pool, which carries the highest line and the lowest conversion (46% of rest-of-UK interviewees were offered in 2025). The SJT is not used at any stage and the personal statement is only a pass/fail read. Nothing may be resat, from any exam board. | Contextual admissions apply to Scotland-resident applicants only (Reach completion; UCAT up to 10% below the threshold considered). No route for rest-of-UK. | AAA incl. Chemistry + Biology · GCSEs: Maths|Physics 7, Eng Lang|English Literature 6; 6 at grade 7+ · No resits | Six GCSEs at A/7 including Maths or Physics and English (English accepted at 6/B if six others are at 7) | SJT banding not taken into consideration | Online MMIs, late January / early February | English accepted at B/6 only if six other GCSEs are at A/7. Adjusted offers are published for Scottish Highers only. | ‘We do not accept resits for GCSEs or A-levels.’ ‘Qualifications must be obtained at the first sitting, this applies to all qualifications, from all countries and exam bodies.’ | “Home” means Scotland at Glasgow. English, Welsh and NI applicants sit in the rest-of-UK pool, which runs above the Scottish line and converts worst of the three fee groups. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | |
King’s College LondonRule |
No number published“no threshold UCAT score in any particular year”; ranked on GCSEs + UCAT + context | “Applications are ranked based on GCSE/IGCSE performance, UCAT score and contextual information”, then grades, statement and reference are read. Overall score matters more than subtests. Last full cycle: just under 1,000 applications, ~350 interviewed, ~160 Home offers | interview-to-offer rate ~52% 2024Panel interviewA-level resits with conditionswork experience expectedconfidence Rule only | GCSEs, UCAT, A-levels and contextual data are ranked together and King’s publishes none of the weights, so the number you need is personal: roughly 2200 with seven or more GCSEs at 8/9 and SJT band 1 or 2, and higher with fewer strong grades. A*AA including Biology or Chemistry is the gate, the EPQ counts for nothing, and the offer is decided at interview. | Contextual circumstances are considered at shortlisting (roughly a +75 UCAT-equivalent lift for a qualifying marker, an estimate). The A*AA academic gate stays. | A*AA incl. Biology or Chemistry + Biology or Chemistry or Physics or Mathematics or Psychology · GCSEs: Eng Lang 6, Maths 6 · Resits with conditions | English Language and Maths at 6/B; GCSE performance is part of the ranking | SJT is taken into account when shortlisting | Remote panel of two interviewers (previously in-person MMI) | ‘We do not consider the EPQ at any point.’ ‘We do not make contextual offers for this programme.’ GCSE performance is ranked but the count scored is not published. Further Maths cannot be the third A level if Maths meets a subject requirement. | First resit (A levels completed within 3 years) considered; second resit only with mitigating circumstances, referred to the faculty. Same rule for GCSE resits. | “We then review the rest of the application including achieved/predicted grades, personal statement and reference.” — the school’s admissions page, read 22 September 2026 | GCSE performance, UCAT and contextual data are ranked together, so strong GCSEs genuinely help. No contextual offers, but context is weighed in the ranking. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 |
LeedsRule |
No number publishedacademic score + UCAT make one total; “no pre-determined cut-off” | “A high academic score can compensate for a lower UCAT score, and vice versa”. Published lowest-shortlisted figures are 2024 and 2025 entry only, on the old /3600 scale — not comparable. Leeds only began using the UCAT in 2024 | MMI interviewA-level resits with conditionswork experience noneconfidence Rule only | Leeds adds an academic score to the UCAT and publishes neither the weights nor the grade points, so read the facts rather than a number: the lowest UCAT shortlisted for 2026 was 1720 UK, 1590 widening-participation and 1740 international — but those came from applicants with near-maximum GCSEs and A* predictions, so they are not a target. Strong GCSEs genuinely compensate for a lower UCAT here, and the offer is the interview alone. | Access to Leeds: ABB including Biology and Chemistry with an A in one science. No dentistry-specific UCAT or GCSE concession confirmed. | AAA incl. Biology + Chemistry; contextual ABB · GCSEs: Chemistry 6, Biology 6, English 6, Maths 6; 6 at grade 6+ · Resits with conditions | Six GCSEs at 6/B or higher including Chemistry, Biology (or Dual Science), English and Maths | Not published on the pages we checked | Online multiple mini-interviews (to be confirmed) | Dual Science accepted in place of Biology and Chemistry. Access to Leeds = two grades below (AAA -> ABB); Low Progression Neighbourhood = one grade. | ‘One A Level and GCSE resit is allowed but must have achieved results.’ | “In our interview shortlisting process, we assess academic criteria, including achieved and predicted grades, alongside the UCAT score.” — the school’s admissions page, read 22 September 2026 | Academic score and UCAT are added, so one compensates for the other. Only two years of UCAT history, both on the old scale. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 |
LiverpoolRule |
No number published“We do not have a set UCAT cut-off score as this figure will change every year” | Academic criteria first; those who meet them get a non-academic questionnaire. “The total UCAT and SJT score will be used” and “No further information on how we use the UCAT will be released” | interview-to-offer rate ~23% 2025MMI interviewA-level resits by exceptionwork experience expectedconfidence Rule only | Liverpool has disclosed the pre-interview points: cognitive UCAT scores 10–20 in 100-point bands and the SJT 20/15/10 for bands 1/2/3, with band 4 excluded — but that whole block is only 40% of the score. The other 60% is a non-academic questionnaire whose mark scheme is withheld, so a band 1 with a 2050 is a better position than a much higher score with a band 2. Check the 2027 policy: the questionnaire has vanished from the live page but survives in the DSC guide. | Eligible Home applicants can receive an ABB offer and additional consideration at shortlisting or interview; contextual interview numbers are matched to the contextual share of applications. No fixed points uplift. | AAA incl. Biology + Chemistry; contextual ABB · GCSEs: Eng Lang 6, Maths 6, Science 6; 8 at grade 6+; 5 at grade 7+ · Resits by exception only | Eight GCSEs: five at 7/A and three at 6/B, with English Language, Maths and Science at 6/B | Band 4 → “not deemed a competitive enough score” to be considered | Multiple mini-interview | Eight GCSEs with at least five at 7/A and three at 6/B. Vocational/Applied GCSEs not accepted. | A level resits only for those who ‘narrowly fail … because their education and/or examination performance was affected by significant extenuating circumstances’; less than BBB at first sitting is not considered. GCSE resits accepted if in place at application. | “Predicted grades for examinations/degrees still to be taken or awarded and only those applicants predicted to achieve the entry criteria are invited for interview.” — the school’s admissions page, read 22 September 2026 | Total UCAT plus SJT are used but Liverpool says plainly it will release nothing further about how. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 |
Manchester2026 |
2200Standard 2026 entry · WP+ 2100 — above it, automatic interview | “Applicants … who achieved an overall UCAT score that exceeded these thresholds were automatically invited to interview”. Below it the application goes into a holistic pool, ranked on UCAT first | interview-to-offer rate ~44% 2026MMI interviewA-level resits with conditionsconfidence 2026 figure | Clear the published line — 2200 standard, 2100 widening-participation for 2026 — and you are interviewed automatically; below it you are reviewed rather than rejected. The SJT must be band 1 or 2, which is stricter than almost anywhere. You also need seven GCSEs at 7, and the MMI alone decides the offer. | WP+ (disadvantaged area or below-average school): AAB. WP++ (care, refugee): ABB. Both use the lower WP UCAT cut-off (2100 vs 2200) and a relaxed GCSE breadth bar. | AAA incl. Chemistry + Biology; contextual AAB · GCSEs: Eng Lang 6, Maths 6; 7 at grade 7+; 2 sciences at 6+ · Resits with conditions | Seven GCSEs at 7/A; English Language, Maths and two sciences at 6/B minimum | Band 3 or 4 → not considered | Multiple mini-interviews | English Literature not accepted in lieu of English Language. Dual Award minimum 66/BB. | May resit one of Year 12 or Year 13 only; minimum grade B in each subject at first sitting; resitters must then achieve A*AA with the A* in a required science. Very similar subject pairs (Biology + Human Biology, Maths + Further Maths) not accepted together. | Rejects SJT band 3 as well as band 4. Above the threshold you are automatically interviewed; below it you are still assessed holistically. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | |
NewcastleGuide |
~2200no published cut-off — guide: the 2026-entry interview line seen on offer-holders, the first /2700 cycle; PARTNERS ran about 2150. Newcastle never publishes the line during the cycle and its 2025 figure (2800/3600) came out by FOI | “The UCAT threshold may differ in each admissions cycle as it is dependent on the scores achieved by those applicants who apply”. PARTNERS applicants get a slightly lower threshold | interview-to-offer rate ~37% 2025Panel interviewA-level resits with conditionsconfidence Estimate | One of the most UCAT-led dental schools: GCSEs are never scored beyond a pass in Maths and English, the SJT is not used, and total UCAT ranks you from the top down. The offer is then the online panel interview alone, so a big score buys the room and nothing more. PARTNERS lowers the grades, the UCAT line and the interview line together. | PARTNERS stacks three reductions: ABB offer, a lower UCAT line for interview and a lower interview cut-off — conditional on completing the PARTNERS summer school. | AAA incl. Biology + Chemistry; contextual ABB · GCSEs: Maths 4, English 4 · Resits with conditions | Minimum of a pass in Maths and English | Not published on the pages we checked | Online panel interview | ‘Minimum of a pass grade in Maths and English’ logged as grade 4. Contextual offer ‘typically a 2-grade drop’ via PARTNERS. | ‘We accept A level resits, however, only from candidates who have previously applied to Newcastle Dental School … we ask for one grade higher than the offer.’ | Publishes past thresholds after the fact (2022-2025 entry) but never the current one; all published figures are on the old /3600 scale. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | |
PlymouthGuide |
~2120no published cut-off — guide: the reported Home threshold for 2026 entry, taken from a rejection email an applicant reproduced — Plymouth’s own published series stops at 2025 (2690/3600) Plymouth’s own page (read 22 Sept 2026): “average UCAT threshold 2023–2025 Home 2650, International 2613” on the old /3600 scale — about 1990 / 1960 on today’s test, below this line. | “UCAT test results will be used alongside A Levels and GCSEs to select for interview”; the threshold “can alter each year” and is confirmed only after all applications are assessed. Personal statement not read at any point | interview-to-offer rate ~27% 2025MMI interviewA-level resits with conditionswork experience noneconfidence Estimate | GCSEs above the grade-4 minimum and the personal statement are not looked at again, so the UCAT alone decides the shortlist. The operative gate for 2026 firmed to AAA with an A in Biology and an A in a second science. Home places were cut to a reported 20 for 2026, which makes the line volatile; the MMI alone decides the offer. | Widening Access AAB (A in Biology and a second science) for three or more WP indicators. UCAT and GCSE requirements stay the same. | AAA incl. Biology + Chemistry or Physics or Mathematics or Psychology; contextual AAB · GCSEs: Eng Lang 4, Maths 4; 7 at grade 4+; 2 sciences at 4+ · Resits with conditions | Seven GCSEs at 4/C including English Language, Maths and two sciences (or Double Award) | Panel “reserve the right to consider all aspects of the UCAT” | Online multiple mini-interviews | Typical offer published as a RANGE, ‘A*AA – AAB’, with A in Biology and A in a second science; no single standard offer, so al_std is left None. AAB is the widening-access offer. A levels must be completed within five years of the cycle start. | Predicted-grade applicants need ABB at first sitting; otherwise resit and apply once grades are achieved; A levels within 3 years of study; profile must be achieved on the first resit. Widening-participation resit floor is ABC. | “If you are applying with predicted grades, a minimum of ABB must be achieved on first sitting of A Level (Dental Schools Council booklet, 2027 entry).” — the school’s admissions page, read 22 September 2026 | Plymouth cut to a reported 20 Home places for 2026, so this line sits on an unusually small cycle and could move sharply either way. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 |
PortsmouthGuide |
~2100no published cut-off — guide: a working guide for the first-ever Home cohort (September 2027, 25 funded places) — Portsmouth has no history and weighs the UCAT alongside the personal statement and your GCSE/A-level record | “Do you have a UCAT cut off score? No … the score will be determined based on the performance of the cohort taking that year’s UCAT test”. Combined approach: personal statement, UCAT and GCSE/A-level achievement, so “higher achievement in other areas could compensate partially for a lower UCAT score” | Panel interviewA-level resits OKwork experience noneconfidence Estimate | Brand new: the first Home cohort starts September 2027 with 25 funded places and there is no line, no funnel and no offer-holder profile to read. Portsmouth says the personal statement, the UCAT and your GCSE/A-level record are assessed together and that strength elsewhere can partly cover a lower UCAT. The GCSE gate is stiffer than most — English and Maths at 7, achieved before you apply — and A-level resits are accepted. | Contextual applicants get additional consideration at interview selection and offers reduced by up to two grades (to ABB). Whether the UCAT bar sits lower is not yet known — first intake 2027. | AAB incl. Biology + Chemistry or Physics or Mathematics; contextual ABB · GCSEs: English 6, Maths 6; 7 at grade 4+; 2 sciences at 6+ · Resits accepted | Seven GCSEs at 4/C, with English, Maths and two sciences at 6/B; achieved before you apply | Not published on the pages we checked | Semi-structured panel interview — individual online or on campus | Offer published as ‘Tariff range 136 (AAB) – 152 (AAA*)’ with grade A in Biology and A in a second science; AAB is the floor of that range. GCSEs must be achieved at application (predicted not accepted). Not in UCAT list as A2xx: code B758 on ucat.ac.uk, A758 in the DSC booklet. | ‘Resits for A-Level are considered.’ GCSE resits accepted if results are in place at application. | First intake September 2027. No cut-off; Portsmouth says other parts of the application can partially compensate for a lower UCAT. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 | |
Queen Mary (Barts)Guide |
~2210no published cut-off — guide: the 2026-entry Home interview line (overseas 2130), published by Queen Mary after the cycle rather than in advance — the separate minimum-eligibility threshold was 1761 | “Your application will not be considered further if you obtained a total UCAT score below the fourth decile”. Above it, a weighted score of UCAT and UCAS tariff decides interviews; “there is no guarantee that you will be offered an interview if you score above the fourth decile” | interview-to-offer rate ~79% 2026Panel interviewconfidence Estimate | A near-pure UCAT race behind an A*AA gate: the tariff only spans 152–168, so three A* over A*AA barely moves you and GCSEs and the personal statement are not scored at all. The published Home line was 2210 for 2026 and has risen every year, so aim 2240+; keep the SJT out of band 4, and remember the offer is the interview plus SJT alone. | Care-experienced or Bridge the Gap completers are considered at interview stage and can get a one-grade-lower AAA offer; Realising Opportunities completers get additional consideration. | A*AA incl. Biology or Chemistry + Chemistry or Biology or Physics or Mathematics; contextual AAA · GCSEs: Biology 6, Chemistry 6, Eng Lang|English Literature 6, Maths 6; 6 at grade 6+ | AAABBB / 777666 in any order, including Biology, Chemistry, English (Language or Literature) and Maths | Band 4 → rejected | Online panel interviews | AAABBB / 777666 in any order: three at 7 and three at 6, which must include Biology, Chemistry, English and Maths; Double Award Science may substitute the sciences. Contextual: ‘Applicants may receive one grade reduction.’ | A levels ‘must be achieved in one sitting over a study period of no longer than two years’; DSC says ‘see the university’s website for further information on our resit policy’ and the pages we read do not state it. | “You must be predicted to achieve a minimum UCAS Tariff of at least 152 (A*AA) from the academic qualifications and subjects we require for entry.” — the school’s admissions page, read 22 September 2026 | The line has risen every year and the tariff barely separates anyone at A*AA, so the UCAT does almost all the work. Below the 4th decile, or SJT band 4, is an outright reject. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 |
Queen’s BelfastRule |
No number publishedUCAT decile → up to 9 points, added to GCSE points; the interview line varies each year | Home-fee applicants only: “ranked on the basis of their combined academic and UCAT score”. UCAT is scored 0–9 by national decile; GCSEs are scored from the best nine. Offers then rest on interview alone | interview-to-offer rate ~45% 2026MMI interviewA-level resits by exceptionconfidence Rule only | A GCSE school: your best nine GCSEs make 36 of a 45-point score and the UCAT decile the other 9. Aim for eight or nine grade 9s and a 6th–7th-decile UCAT (~1980+). Only your first attempt at each GCSE counts, and the contextual routes are reserved for Northern Irish applicants, so GB applicants face the full bar. | Contextual help is for Northern Ireland postcodes only; GB applicants face the full score-based bar. | AAA incl. Biology + Chemistry; contextual AAB · GCSEs: Maths 4, English 4 · Resits by exception only | Best nine scored: A*/9 = 4, A/7–8 = 3, B/6 = 2, C/4–5 = 1. Maths and English at C/4 minimum | Used only to separate borderline applicants, before and after interview | Multiple mini-interviews | Best nine GCSEs scored A*/9=4, A/7-8=3, B/6=2, C/4-5=1, first attempt only, Years 10-11 (England/Wales) only. Maths/English C/4 required only if not offered at AS/A level. Contextual: Pathway Opportunity Programme = guaranteed interview and possibly one grade below. | Only those who applied to QUB Dentistry at the first attempt, held it as CF, and achieved AAB (or one grade below the previous year’s standard) may resit; the repeat offer is AAA. | “In shortlisting for interview, previous academic background, predicted grades in any qualifications still to be completed, evidence of proficiency in English, the academic reference and personal statement will be taken into consideration.” — the school’s admissions page, read 22 September 2026 | UCAT is scored 0-9 by decile and added to a best-nine GCSE score; international applicants are not scored on the UCAT at all. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 |
SheffieldGuide |
~2150no published cut-off — guide: modelled Home interview line for 2026 entry — Sheffield’s published lowest-invited was a flat 2690/3600 for five years running and the 2026 figure is due in December Sheffield’s own 2027 selection page (read 22 Sept 2026) confirms the Phase-1 floor: “average or above total score in the cognitive components” plus SJT band 1 or 2; the ranking line is not published. | “Average or above total score in the cognitive components in UCAT” and “bands 1 or 2 in the UCAT Situational Judgement Test” to pass Phase 1; “we use the UCAT cognitive component to prioritise those applicants for an interview”. The 2021–2025 data sheet shows 2690 — old /3600 scale, not comparable. ~1,250 applications for 71 places | interview-to-offer rate ~42% 2025Panel interviewA-level resits with conditionsconfidence Estimate | Three filters, and two of them catch strong applicants out. The SJT must be band 1 or 2 (a band 3 is screened out however high your score), and the personal statement is genuinely assessed at Phase 2 — a medicine-focused statement gets rejected here regardless of UCAT. Past both, the UCAT ranks about 300 to a selection day, and the day alone decides the offer. | Access+ / Access to Dentistry: alternative grade offers and resit concessions; the two-year Access to Sheffield programme also gets a UCAT dispensation (amount unpublished). General contextual eligibility alone does not lower the UCAT line. | AAA incl. Chemistry + Biology; contextual AAB · GCSEs: English 7, Maths 7, Science 7; 6 at grade 7+ · Resits with conditions · EPQ offer: AAB including AA in Chemistry and Biology + B in a dentistry or health-related EPQ, EPQ and A levels in the same sitting | Six GCSEs at 7/A including English, Maths and Science | Band 3 or 4 → does not pass Phase 1 screening | Semi-structured panel interview plus an interpersonal-skills test, on a selection day | Pass required in the practical element of any science A level. Access+ / Access to Sheffield (Dentistry) offer is AAB. | ‘Where A Levels have previously been attempted, applicants are normally expected to have obtained a minimum of grade B in each subject at the first sitting.’ Otherwise apply only once AAA is achieved. GCSE resits allowed. | “Your application must include a complete and accurate academic record and predicted grades where appropriate. We use A2 grades or predicted grades where applicable.” — the school’s admissions page, read 22 September 2026 | A separate Phase-1 floor sits well below this: an average-or-above cognitive total (about 1890) plus SJT band 1 or 2. The personal statement is then read, and rejected on, before the UCAT ranking runs. | Their published policy checked 2026-09-19 |
How did this tool do?
No school matches every filter. Remove one of the filters above — or, if your score is ruling schools out, book a 15-minute planning call to discuss your options. Then interviews: our weekend masterclass covers MMI and panel, with marked mocks — see interview prep.
Verdicts are a guide based on each school’s published rules and the 2026 final UCAT deciles, not a prediction of an offer. Where a school publishes no line, the verdict says so. It compares your total with the national deciles or with a guide figure marked Estimate — never with an estimate presented as the school’s policy.
Your four — discussion summary
How these results are calculated
Published figures, historical data and estimates have separate labels — each card’s confidence label identifies the type, and the legend above the list explains every verdict. A ~figure is our guide to where a line has fallen (an average, a Freedom of Information response, the last known interview invitation). It is marked Estimate and is never presented as the school’s own threshold. Here is where confident figures elsewhere can go wrong:
- Rescaled old scores. UCAT removed Abstract Reasoning in 2025, changing the total from 3600 to 2700. Multiplying an old dentistry figure by 0.75 makes it look current, but it is not.
- Estimates presented like facts. Where a school publishes a method rather than a number, we show that method. A figure without a calculation is a guess.
- New schools with no history. Norwich (UEA) and Portsmouth take their first dentistry cohorts in 2027. Any “cut-off” for them is invented.
Check any figure, including ours: can you follow the link to the school’s own page and find it there? Every card above includes that link.
UCAT deciles and data year
Several schools state their rule in deciles or centiles, not points. These are the published boundaries from the most recent final UCAT statistics (2026, 42,359 tests). Dentistry and medicine applicants sit the same test, so the same boundaries apply.
1st1590
2nd1700
3rd1780
4th1850
5th1920
6th1980
7th2050
8th2140
9th2250
- Mean total 1918. Subtest means: Verbal Reasoning 602 · Decision Making 640 · Quantitative Reasoning 675.
- SJT bands → Band 1 15% · Band 2 40% · Band 3 34% · Band 4 11%.
- Not comparable with pre-2025 scores. Abstract Reasoning was removed in 2025; the total is out of 2700, not 3600. Any dentistry “cut-off” quoted above 2700 is an old-scale figure.
- These are the 2026 final boundaries (tests to 24 September 2026) — the cohort applying this October. Every boundary rose on 2025: the 4th decile moved from 1820 to 1850 and the mean from 1891 to 1918.
What to do with your number
A score below every number on this page is not a score below every dental school. Several schools publish no threshold and rank instead, and two are brand new for 2027 with no history at all. For most applicants it changes where to apply far more than whether.
- Read the verdict line, not just the number. It explains the school’s requirements and how your profile compares. Where a card says Estimate, open details and check what the figure represents before relying on it.
- Check the school’s requirements — required A-level subjects, GCSE minimums, SJT band. The Entry grades row compares them with your profile. A check verdict means information is missing or withheld, not that you are ineligible.
- Build your four: one ambitious, two realistic, one where your numbers already clear the line. The bar above the list says how the set balances. UCAS gives you four dentistry choices; bring the discussion summary to the call.
A fairer, clearer path.
Compare your profile with the policies
A 15-minute planning call about your shortlist. Bring your total, your SJT band and your predicted grades.
Then interviews. Our weekend masterclass covers MMI on the Saturday and panel on the Sunday, with mock interviews marked against examiner-style schemes. See interview prep
Or message us on WhatsApp, or email info@dreammedic.co.uk.
Sources and last checked
Every figure was read from the school’s own published policy or admissions data on the date shown. Published figures, historical data and estimates are labelled separately — on the card, in the verdict and in the legend. Open a school’s details to see the evidence used.
- Aberdeen — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Birmingham — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Bristol — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Cardiff — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Lancashire (UCLan) — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Dundee — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Norwich (UEA) — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Glasgow — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- King’s College London — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Leeds — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Liverpool — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Manchester — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Newcastle — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Plymouth — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Portsmouth — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Queen Mary (Barts) — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Queen’s Belfast — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
- Sheffield — dentistry admissions, checked 19 September 2026
There is no single number. Only a minority of UK medical schools publish a threshold in advance. Edinburgh has published a minimum total of 1850 for 2027 entry. Most other schools set their threshold after applications close in October, once they can see the cohort, so no figure exists yet for those. Several state explicitly that previous years cannot be used to predict the current one.
Edinburgh publishes a figure: 1850 minimum total for 2027 entry. Sheffield publishes its method rather than a number, setting the threshold from the previous three years' 40th-centile average score. Schools such as Manchester and Imperial state that their threshold is calculated only after UCAT results come in, and cannot be confirmed in advance.
It depends entirely on the school. Queen Mary rejects any applicant scoring below the 4th decile in the year they apply. Edinburgh does not consider applicants below 1850, with the exception of Plus Flag applicants, who are considered with any total score. Lancaster places a small number of applicants scoring up to 10 points below its threshold into a borderline pool. Many schools have no threshold at all and rank applicants instead, so a lower score is not automatically disqualifying. It changes where you should apply, not whether you should.
They treat it very differently. Imperial requires a minimum of Band 3 and discounts Band 4. Queen Mary and Edinburgh reject Band 4 outright. Bristol excludes the SJT from the score it uses to select for interview. Sheffield uses it later in the process, as a virtual ninth MMI station. Checking each school's position on the SJT is as important as checking the total.
Only as a sense of scale. Schools set thresholds against the cohort in front of them, and several say directly that past figures do not indicate future ones. There is also a structural break: Abstract Reasoning was removed in 2025, so the total is now out of 2700 rather than 3600, and scores are not comparable with pre-2025 years.
