Becoming an orthodontist takes 10 to 11 years of education and training after high school. That breaks down into three major phases: four years of undergraduate study, four years of dental school, and two to three years of specialized residency training in orthodontics. Some paths can stretch even longer if you pursue a research-focused degree alongside your clinical training.
The Three Phases of Training
Every orthodontist follows the same general sequence. You start with a bachelor’s degree, then earn a dental doctorate, then complete a residency focused exclusively on orthodontics. Each phase builds on the last, and you can’t skip any of them. Here’s what each stage looks like in practice.
Undergraduate Degree: 4 Years
There’s no required major for aspiring orthodontists, but you need to complete prerequisite courses in biology, chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, and math to qualify for dental school. Most students major in a science field to cover these prerequisites naturally, though some choose unrelated majors and take the science courses separately. During your junior or senior year, you’ll take the Dental Admission Test, a standardized exam that dental schools use as part of their admissions process.
Dental School: 4 Years
Dental school is a full-time, year-round four-year program. You’ll graduate with either a Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) or a Doctor of Dental Medicine (DMD) degree. Both degrees are equivalent and qualify you for the same licensing exams. The first two years focus heavily on classroom and lab instruction in anatomy, pharmacology, and oral pathology, while the last two years shift toward supervised clinical work with real patients. Before or after graduation, you’ll need to pass the National Board Dental Examination to become a licensed general dentist.
At this point, you’re a fully licensed dentist. You could practice general dentistry, but you’re not yet qualified to call yourself an orthodontist. That requires additional specialty training.
Orthodontic Residency: 2 to 3 Years
Orthodontic residency is where you learn the specialty itself: diagnosing bite problems, planning treatment, placing braces and aligners, and managing tooth movement over time. The Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) requires these programs to be a minimum of 24 months and 3,700 scheduled hours. In practice, most residency programs run closer to three years because many combine clinical training with a master’s degree.
Program lengths vary quite a bit. Some certificate-only programs run around 26 to 30 months. Programs that bundle a Master of Science with the clinical certificate typically take about 36 months. At the far end, combined PhD and certificate programs at research universities can take five years. Harvard’s orthodontic program, for example, runs three years for a master’s track and a minimum of four years for a doctoral research track.
Residency spots are competitive. Only about 70 accredited programs exist across the country, and most accept just a handful of residents each year. Strong dental school grades, board scores, and research experience all factor into admissions decisions.
Board Certification After Residency
Once you finish residency, you’re eligible to practice as an orthodontist. Board certification through the American Board of Orthodontics is voluntary but widely pursued. It involves two parts: a written exam (which you can take during the last 18 months of residency) and a scenario-based clinical exam you sit for after graduating. Board certification doesn’t add years to your training timeline, but it does require renewal every 10 years.
You’ll also need a state license to practice orthodontics, which may require a separate state-specific exam depending on where you want to set up practice.
Can You Shorten the Timeline?
The standard 10-to-11-year path is hard to compress significantly. A few dental schools offer combined undergraduate-dental programs that let students finish both degrees in seven years instead of eight, shaving off one year. If you then complete a shorter residency program (around 26 months), you could theoretically finish in about nine and a half years total. These accelerated tracks are rare and extremely competitive.
On the other end, pursuing a research doctorate alongside your orthodontic residency can push the total to 12 or even 13 years. This path is most common for people who want to teach at a university or conduct clinical research in addition to treating patients.
What the Timeline Looks Like Year by Year
- Years 1 through 4: Bachelor’s degree with science prerequisites and the Dental Admission Test
- Years 5 through 8: Dental school, earning a DDS or DMD, plus national board exams
- Years 9 through 11: Orthodontic residency with hands-on specialty training
By the time you’re treating patients independently as an orthodontist, you’ll have spent roughly a decade in school and supervised training. That’s longer than most medical specialties and on par with some surgical subspecialties. The payoff is a career with strong demand, high earning potential, and a focused scope of practice. The average orthodontist doesn’t start independent practice until their early 30s, which is worth factoring into your financial and life planning if you’re considering this path.