As with other medical roles, dentists are in high demand in Germany. Whether you want to become a hygienist, dentist or orthodontist, Germany has plenty of opportunities for you.
In This Guide |
If you hold a foreign dental professional qualification, and wish to become a Dentist in Germany, you need an official, state-issued authorisation, known as "approbation". Approbation is an occupational license which is unrestricted throughout the country. In order to practice dentistry or open your own clinic in Germany, an approbation is mandatory.
You can apply for recognition of this specialised professional title in Germany if you possess both a dental specialty qualification and a dental job specialisation. However, it is important to note that you must receive approbation as a dentist before applying for specialised title recognition.
What does a Dentist get to do in Germany?
A dentist examines patients, records their findings, diagnoses diseases of the teeth, mouth, and jaw, and teeth formation on anomalies. A dental treatment or intervention is prescribed based on the therapeutic measures.
Dentists in Germany may work in dental practices, dental clinics, medical research and teaching, pharmaceutical industry, health authorities, insurance companies, and dentist’s chambers, etc.
How can I become a Dentist in Germany?
Mainly there are two options,
Study Dentistry in Germany
Move to Germany as an experienced Dentist or Dental specialist.
Study Dentistry in Germany or Applying to medical school
There are many promising higher education opportunities in Germany. A number of universities provide dental and medical services, mostly in large cities like Munich, Berlin and Frankfurt, but also in smaller cities like Essen. The German dental Schools offer both bachelor's and master's programs in Dentistry. The bachelor's program is eleven semesters long (ten semesters plus six months of work experience). The preclinical phase consists of five semesters, with a focus on natural sciences, medicine, and dental materials, as well as a preliminary dental exam.
During the remaining five semesters, you will take lectures, seminars, and hands-on training in clinical research. Afterward, professional training in oral surgery, orthodontics, or public health may be required, with a three to four-year training period. It is similar to dental training in all other countries and ends with a state examination.
Upon successful completion of the course, you can apply for the EU Blue Card to work in Germany.
Do I need to learn German to study Dentistry in Germany?
Since it is a medical field and upon completion of the course, you work closely with the people in Germany, it is necessary to have adequate German language knowledge. Initially, knowledge in the B2 - C1 level is required and while you complete the course, it is necessary to have a job specific German language skill.
Move to Germany as an experienced Dentist or Dental specialist.
The recognition of your professional qualification is likely to be required if you wish to move to Germany as an experienced dentist or dental specialist.
In Germany, recognition is essential for many professions, including dentistry. It is impossible to work in these professions without recognition. Recognising your professional degree is a procedure, and there is a competent authority for every recognition procedure. Competent authorities check whether the professional qualification accrued in a foreign country is equivalent to German qualifications.
If you are not from the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland, your profession is regulated in Germany and you are not permitted to work in Germany in this profession without recognition.
If you learned your profession abroad or if you studied abroad at an institute of higher education or a university, and if you have successfully completed your training or degree, and your university certificate is either certified or recognized in any of the EU states, you can directly apply of a recognition and you have a high chance of passing the procedure. Otherwise, the recognition of your professional qualification is necessary for you to work as a Dentist in Germany. However, you do not meet all the requirements. This means that your application for recognition will probably be unsuccessful and you need to provide additional information or supporting documents for a successful recognition.
How to apply for a recognition in Germany
To understand the procedure easily, the information portal of the German government
for the recognition of foreign professional qualifications by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research has prepared a very detailed documentation in English. Please note that this specific documentation is only for the candidates seeking to work in Munich. You can go to the Your place of work section and choose the city you wish to work in. This is because the recognition procedure is different in different states.
As soon as your professional qualification is recognized in Germany, you can start applying to hospitals, medical universities, care homes, or basically any medical organisation that requires your qualifications. You can check LinkedIn, Glassdoor, or Indeed for openings as well as the websites of hospitals and other organisations.
You have a specialisation on Orthodontist, Oral surgery or Public health system
It is possible to apply for recognition of a specialised dental occupation title in Germany if you have obtained additional dental specialisation. However, prior to applying for a specialised recognition, you must already have approbation as a dentist.
Depending on their specialisation, specialists perform different dental activities. Orthodontists, for instance, identify, prevent, or treat masticatory and jaw malformations.
Depending on your skills and open positions, you may get to work in Dental clinics, Centers specialising in dental, oral and maxillofacial medicine, Medical and pharmaceutical research institutes, etc. if you are really skilled, you can even get into the German armed forces or Dentist’s chambers or medical associations too.
The process of recognising dental specialisation in Germany
The process is the same as recognising the dental degree and experience. Checkout the detailed process documented in anerkennung-in-deutschland.de.
Applicants who do not intend to stay in Germany for more than two years can apply for a permit to temporarily practice dental medicine. The temporary permit to practice dentistry can only be granted upon application, which requires proof of completion of dental education and training.
However, if the dental training took place in a member state of the European Union, another state party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area or in Switzerland, a provisional license is not required.
Conclusion
If you are a dentist from another country and you want to work in Germany, you have a good chance to find a job and have a nice life. But you need to work hard and follow some rules. You can either study dentistry again in Germany or show that you already know enough to work as a dentist. You also need to get a special permission from the government to practice dentistry in Germany. The article tells you how to do these things and why it is worth it to work as a dentist in Germany.
