NEET mandatory for BDS Abroad: Dental Council of India issues Clarification

The step is apparently taken to ensure that meritorious medical course candidates are going abroad to pursue dental education. As yet, BDS candidates who have scored 50% in Class 12 were eligible to apply for the course abroad.

New Delhi: The Dental Council of India has recently issued a public notice clarifying the role of National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) for the medical aspirants intending to pursue in UG dentistry Course, BDS from foreign medical institutions.

In its notification, the apex dental authority has stated that the BDS aspirants will have to mandatorily qualify NEET to become eligible to acquire "Eligibility Certificate" from the Dental Council of India.

As per the official notice, this compulsion on NEET for pursuing BDS abroad was already included in law and the gazette notification towards the same was issued in September this year. However, to quash all the confusions pertaining to it, the Dental Council of India has issued the clarification in the form of a public notice stating,

"This is to inform to all the concerned that the Dental Council of India (DCI) with the prior approval of the Government of India, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, New Delhi has made 2nd Amendment in the "DCI Screening Test Regulations, 2009" which has been come into force from 5th September, 2018 (date of notification in the official gazette) according to which no person (Indian Citizen/OCI/PIO Card holders) shall be eligible to obtain "Eligibility Certificate" from DCI for doing his/her foreign UG/PG dental qualification unless he/she has qualified the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET)."

"It is mandatory for the person seeking admission for doing UG/PG dental qualification from foreign dental institution/university, to qualify the NEET before obtaining Eligibility Certificate."

Below is the copy of the order:

The step is apparently taken to ensure that meritorious medical course candidates are going abroad to pursue dental education. As yet, BDS candidates who have scored 50% in Class 12 were eligible to apply for the course abroad.

For more details, the concerned medicos are advised to refer the DCI Screening Test (2nd Amendment) Regulations, 2018 which is available on the DCI Website www.dciindia.org.in.

Earlier, the students intending to pursue MBBS from foreign universities were given one-time exemption from NEET.

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