Masters of Dental Surgery in Orthodontics & Dentofacial Orthopaedics is a post-graduation course for doctors who have graduated in dental science and want to work as dentists in India or abroad. They do it after completing their B.D.S. (Bachelor of Dental Surgery) or an equivalent qualification recognized by the Dental Council of India. It should have obtained permanent registration with the State Dental Council.

This Postgraduate program lasts three years and focuses on preventing and correcting oral anomalies and malocclusion and harmonizing the structures involved so that the dental mechanisms will function normally.

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The course is a full-time program pursued at various accredited institutes/hospitals nationwide. Some of the best-accredited institutes/hospitals offering this program include Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Chennai, Maulana Azad Institute of Dental Sciences, New Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Dr D. Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pune, Maharashtra, and many more.

• A candidate for admission to M.D.S. must have a recognized degree of B.D.S. awarded by an Indian University in respect of an acknowledged Dental College under Section 10(2) of the Dentists Act, 1948 or an equal qualification recognized by the Dental Council of India and should have got permanent registration with the State Dental Council.
• Candidates who possess a P.G. diplomas recognized by the DCI with a duration of 2 years (proposed) in a particular speciality are eligible for admission to M.D.S. in the same speciality, and the duration will be two years. The curriculum for the two years will be per the concerned university policies.

Selection Of Postgraduate Candidates:

(1) Students for postgraduate dental courses (M.D.S.) shall be selected strictly based on academic merit.

(2) For selecting the academic merit, the university/institution may adopt any one of the following processes both for P.G. Diploma and M.D.S. degree programs:

(i) based on merit as determined by a competitive exam conducted by the State Government or by the competent authority appointed by the State Government or by the University/group of universities in the same state;

or

(ii) based on merit as determined by a centralized competitive exam held at the national level;

or

(iii) based on the separate incremental performance at the first, second, third & Final B.D.S. examinations, if such examinations have been passed from the same university;

or

(iv) Combination of (i) and (iii); (iii)

• Provided that wherever the entrance test for P.G. Admission is held by a State Government or a university, or any other approved examining body, the minimum percentage of marks for eligibility for admission to pg Dental programs shall be 50% for general category students and 40% for the students belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
• Provided further that in non-Governmental institutions, fifty per cent of the total seats shall be filled by the competent authority and the remaining per cent by the institution's management based on merit.

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Admission Procedure

The admission procedure contains a few steps to be followed by the candidates for admission to the Masters of Dental Surgery. 

• The National Eligibility Entrance Test for M.D.S. is a national-level postgrad level examination conducted by the N.B.E. for admission to M.D.S. programs in approved/recognized Dental Colleges/ Deemed Universities /Institutes.
• The Dental Council of India decides these eligibility criteria with the approval of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). The basic needs to appear for NEET MDS can be checked below:-

· Candidates must hold a B.D.S. degree from a recognized institute to fulfil NEET MDS eligibility criteria 2023.

· Provisional/permanent registration with State Dental Council (S.D.C.) or DCI by July 31, 2023.

· Completing a one-year compulsory rotatory training by July 31 of the academic year a candidate is seeking admission is mandatory.

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