Foreign-trained dentist license in Colorado
In short, Colorado requires a CODA-accredited advanced-standing degree (no residency-only route found).
Pathway
Advanced-standing CODA DDS/DMD only. Colorado Dental Board Rule (3 CCR 709-1) requires a doctorate (DDS/DMD) from a CODA-approved (or, by reciprocity, CDAC-accredited) dental school. A foreign/non-CODA graduate must earn a US CODA DDS/DMD, generally via a 2–3 year advanced-standing program. A CODA GPR/AEGD residency alone does NOT substitute for the degree. The only narrow exception is licensure by endorsement under the Occupational Credential Portability Program (12-20-202(3), C.R.S.) for someone already licensed and in good standing in another US state/territory.
Required exams
Joint Commission on National Dental Examinations (iNBDE, which replaced NBDE Parts I/II) plus a Board-accepted clinical competency exam (ADEX/CDCA-WREB-CITA family; WREB retired Dec 31, 2022). Regulation leaves specific clinical exam to Board discretion.
Notes
Rule text: foreign grad must 'obtain a doctorate of dental surgery or a doctorate of dental medicine from a dental school approved by CODA' (or CDAC by reciprocity). No residency-only pathway. Colorado recently defended the CODA requirement against legislative attempts to modify it. Board URL is DORA's dental page (dpo.colorado.gov/Dental); verify current clinical-exam acceptance directly with the Board.
Residency pathway
No residency-only route found: the sourced state record generally points foreign-trained dentists toward a CODA-accredited DDS/DMD or advanced-standing pathway, not a residency-only route.
View residency pathwayCompare advanced-standingCompare no-repeat pathsView licensure examsOfficial source
Colorado Dental Board (DORA — Division of Professions and Occupations)
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