Passing the Fellowship Exam is one of three required steps toward achieving the Fellowship Award. The exam can be taken as early as your first year of active membership. Approximately 85 percent of our members pass the exam on their first try.

The Fellowship Exam includes material from all dental disciplines and strongly emphasizes clinical applications of accepted dental knowledge, techniques, and procedures.

The exam is a criterion-referenced exam, meaning that the passing score is based on what the Council on Examinations considers to be the minimum knowledge a general dentist must possess to be considered proficient.

The exam consists of 400 multiple-choice questions and is administered in one day with two three-hour testing sessions. The exam is available in a computerized version that is offered year-round at LaserGrade Testing Centers; a paper and pencil version is available annually at the AGD Annual Meeting & Exhibits.

All candidates are required to complete and submit a Fellowship Exam application and the applicable fees in order to be eligible to sit for the exam.