The Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) is a five-year undergraduate dental course that leads a learner into a future career in dental science and oral care. The BDS degree is not only to equip the students with theories but also with clinical training skills that make graduates able to diagnose, treat, and prevent several dental and oral diseases. It has a period of academic studies of four years with a one-year mandatory rotatory residential internship to train.
For the BDS admission in Kerala, the candidates need to appear for the NEET-UG entrance test, followed by online counselling as organised by the Commissioner of Entrance Examination, Kerala. After qualifying for the NEET UG exam, the candidates need to go through the counseling process where seats in both government and private dental colleges are offered on a merit basis. The criterion is that they must have completed 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry, and Biology, and must be above a certain age. BDS is a course accepted by the Dental Council of India, and it is currently one of the most pursued health professional fields after MBBS in Kerala.
Kerala BDS Admission: Eligibility Criteria
To enroll in the colleges for BDS in Kerala, the candidates need to fulfill the required eligibility criteria of BDS, which are given below:
- The candidates are required to complete their 12th standard or its equivalent from a recognized board.
- The candidates need to study Physics, Chemistry, and Biology (PCB) as the compulsory subjects.
- The candidates need to score at least 50% marks in the 12th standard. A relaxation in the minimum marks will be given to the candidates belonging to the reserved categories.
- In addition to this, the candidates need to appear and qualify for the entrance exam for NEET UG.
- The candidates must not be below the age of 17 years by December 31 during the year of admission.
Kerala BDS Admission: Entrance Exam
To take admission in the top BDS colleges in Kerala, along with fulfilling the eligibility criteria, the candidates need to appear and qualify for the entrance exam. The complete details of the BDS entrance exam are given below.
Kerala BDS Admission Process
To get admission in the top BDS colleges in Kerala, the candidates need to follow a simple process for BDS admission in Kerala. The admission process for BDS admission in Kerala at Kerala University of Health Sciences is given below:
Step 1: The candidates need to register for the NEET UG exam by visiting the NEET UG NTA website.
Step 2: The candidates need to appear for the NEET UG exam and wait for the results.
Step 3: Once the results are declared, move forward with the admission process.
Step 4: The admission process requires filling out the application form, which is made available on the KUHS or Kerala CEE official websites.
Step 5: Make the necessary payment of the application fee as indicated at the time the application is submitted
Step 6: The merit list of the selected candidates will be released, and the selected candidates will be called for the counseling process.
Step 7: Participate in the counseling of Kerala state used by the Commissioner of Entrance Examination (CEE Kerala).
Step 8: Once the counseling is done, complete the choices of your colleges and courses that you want to pursue dentistry in with references to your NEET rank.
Step 9: Appear for the document verification where original document copies and eligibility are examined.
Step 10: Once the seat is allotted, complete your admission by paying the course fee.
Documents Required
The candidates need the following documents for the counseling process:
- Class 10th and 12th marksheet
- Caste certificate
- Transfer Certificate
- Migration Certificate
- Passport-sized photograph
- Signature
- NEET UG Scorecard.
If you want to take admission in the BDS colleges in Karnataka, check the BDS admission in Karnataka
Kerala BDS Admission FAQs
What is the BDS fees in the private BDS colleges in Kerala?
Private BDS colleges throughout Kerala tend to charge an equivalent of 3.2 lakhs to 4.5 lakhs every year as tuition fees. The total course charge is usually around 16 to 20 lakhs with fees and other expenses included in a period of 5 years course duration. Additional charges of hostel and food are extra and these may range between 60,000 to 1.5 lakh a year between different colleges and kinds of accommodation.
Which are the major private BDS colleges in Kerala?
Notable examples of the privately funded colleges are MES Dental College (Perinthalmanna), Educare Institute of Dental Sciences (Malappuram), PMS Dental College (Thiruvananthapuram), Royal Dental College (Palakkad), Amrita School of Dentistry (Kochi), and so on.
Which are the BDS government colleges in Kerala and their fees?
The overall cost of doing the BDS course in Kerala is quite high. Government dental colleges charge around INR 52,000 per annum, and a total of INR 3 to 3.5 lakhs of rupees is sufficient to complete the entire 5 years of dental course, which is inclusive of internship. The fees are higher at around 3.3 to 4.5 lakhs a year at the private colleges; thus were the total of INR 16 to 20 lakhs over all the years at the end of the course, not considering other adjustments of hostels and other fees. Even higher fees are charged on NRI quotas
What is the minimum NEET score for BDS in Kerala?
In Kerala, to be sure of getting a seat in the state government or a well-known college in the private sector of dental study, one requires high marks, often exceeding 550 in NEET, to ensure that the candidate is safe in terms of securing a seat. The low scores vary by category, college, and quota but the above are the common low scores.
