No. Otago Dentistry (BDS) dropped the UCAT from its 2025 intake, and its published requirements for 2027 entry don't include it. If you are applying to Otago Medicine as well, you will still need UCAT for the Medicine application.
Do you need UCAT for Dentistry in NZ?
Otago's professional programmes page says UCAT stopped being required for Dentistry in 2024, for the 2025 intake. The current Dentistry admissions page sets out the 2027 entry process with no UCAT step. The UCAT ANZ list of participating universities names Otago for Medicine only.
Older pages in search results can still describe the old rule, so check the programme page and the entry year before you book a test. UCAT ANZ 2027 is sat in July 2027 for 2028 entry. Otago hasn't published its 2028 entry rules yet, so look at the Dentistry page again before you apply.
What does Otago use for Dentistry selection?
For 2027 entry, the Dentistry page lists an academic minimum to reach interview, an interview, and final selection on academic score. Health Sciences First Year applicants need all seven first-year papers in the year they apply, an average of at least 65% across their best seven papers, and no mark below 60% in the prescribed papers. About 350 applicants across all categories are invited to a Zoom interview in late September or early October. Those details are for 2027 entry, and the next year's page may differ, so read the section for the category you will apply under.
With UCAT gone, your grades and the interview carry the selection. If you are doing Health Sciences First Year, put your effort into the papers and the interview. Our UCAT ANZ 2027 guide explains why a Dentistry-only applicant and a Medicine applicant can end up with different test plans.
What if I apply to both Medicine and Dentistry?
Plan the two applications separately. Otago's published 2027 Medicine rule required a UCAT result from the year of application for domestic HSFY and Graduate applicants, with thresholds in Verbal Reasoning and Situational Judgement. Dentistry did not require UCAT. If you apply to both, the Medicine application needs it even though the Dentistry one doesn't. Otago also asks students applying to both to choose a preferred programme.
Otago sets the Medicine thresholds each year, and the figures for 2028 entry are not out yet. Our Otago Medicine score guide covers the published rule and its limits. A student applying only to Auckland Medicine for 2028 entry is in a different position again, because Auckland has removed UCAT from that entry process.
FAQ
Did Otago Dentistry use UCAT before?
Yes. Otago says it removed the requirement in 2024, for entry to the BDS programme in 2025.
Does applying to Dentistry cancel my Medicine UCAT requirement?
No. If your Medicine category requires UCAT, adding a Dentistry application doesn't change that.
Do Australian dental programmes use UCAT?
Some do. The UCAT ANZ list for 2027 entry includes dental programmes at Adelaide University, Charles Sturt, Griffith, Queensland and Western Australia. Check the exact course with the university, because Otago's rule doesn't decide theirs.
If Medicine is also on your list and you need timed practice for its UCAT requirement, see how Cutline UCAT practice works.
Cutline is not affiliated with or endorsed by the UCAT ANZ Consortium or the University of Otago. UCAT is used here only to describe the test. Official information checked 14 October 2026. Check ucat.edu.au and Otago for the 2028 entry rules when they are published.
