Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Getting your Dental License in Germany

Ever wonder if a dentist in the Philippines ends up marrying a German national & is now living in Germany: is it possible for this doctor of dental medicine (DmD) to obtain a dental license in Germany? The answer is a YES! Again, we are lucky to have meet someone who have successfully overcome this obstacle. *Way to go, Doc!!!* What's more: She is kind enough to share us her experiences. Read on to know more of her story.

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Our dentist friend is a proud graduate from Centro Escolar University in Manila. The university is one of the top schools for Dental Medicine in the Philippines. When she moves to be with her husband, she  aspires to be able to practice her profession here in Germany. Read on to know more about her paper work battle.

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Documents asked from her:
1. Proof of identity
     -- she presented her passport
2. Proof of knowledge in German language
     -- at least a B2 certificate is required.
3. Brief CV
4. Birth Certificate
    -- She presented a NSO Birth Certificate copy
5. Marriage Certificate, if married
    -- According to her, this has been repealed in April 2012, thus, is no longer a requirement now.
6. An official certificate stating that the applicant has no criminal records
    -- can be NBI clearance or equivalent  & must be not older than 6 months
7. Certificate stating entitlement to work as a dentist in your country of origin
    -- she presented her Transcript of Records along with her University diploma & certificate of her post-graduate courses
8. Dental Examination Certificate
    -- She presented her Philippine Dentist License & made a copy of the backside which will serve as her good moral declaration & limitation of practice as noted by the dental institution: Philippine Dental Association, Inc. (PDA).
    -- She also attached her Dental Board Examination Result.
9. Medical Certificate
    -- must be issued within the last month
10. A tabular overview of training courses &/or working experiences, if any
    -- She presented her registration in the ''radiation protection training'' that she has previously attended. The said training cost around 500€.


NOTE:
*** Including the passport, all documents must be translated to German by an authorized translator.
*** A payment fee of 450€ is needed for the equivalent verification process.

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If they decide that your education is NOT EQUIVALENT to the German system: they will give you a temporary permit for a year to work with the condition that you will be under the supervision of a licensed dentist in Germany. After which, you will need to pass a so-called 'equivalency examination'  (gleichwertigkeitsprüfung). This is comparable to a board exam which will determine if your educational level is equal to the one required in Germany. The said exam have 3 parts: (1) theoretical (2) practical & (3)oral exam.

My Dentist friend is relief that she did not need to take this route as she heard that the passing rate for the said exam is low.  It is good to know that Centro Escolar University: School of Dentistry  strictly adheres to the standard set by other countries such as the U.S. & Japan (just to name a few). CEU-Dentistry is also being recognized here in Germany as having a german-structured-curriculum equivalent to the University of Bonn.


NOTE:
***In Asia, only Japan has full recognition. The rest of Asia & other third world countries have to go through the verification process since they only have partial recognition.

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If they decide that your education is EQUIVALENT to the German system, you will be invited to an oral exam. The said oral exam will be in German language & comes in 2 parts:

1. A medical text will be given to you that you need to summarized in your own words.

2. A role-playing conversation exam.
    -- It will be a dentist-patient simulation where the examiner will post as the patient who will come to you with certain complains. You, as the dentist:
            a. will give a thorough anamneses
            b. be able to give out your findings
            c. be able to define dental terminologies (for example: periodontitis, caries & the likes) related to the situation presented
            d. be able to explain the cause & effect
            e. be able to give a solution in terms of treatment modalities
            f.  be able to  give advices & other informations but not limited to preventive methods.

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These are just to give you an overview on what are the requirements needed & what to expect if you wanted to apply for a Dental License here in Germany. Please take note that it is best to contact the dental chamber of the Federal German state where you resides for other details.

My dentist friend & myself wish you all well. Good luck!

Mabuhay ang Pilipinas at Mabuhay ang Mamamayang Pilipino!



40 comments:

  1. Hi,

    I just found your posts and I find them refreshing and helpful - esp. about the going to Germany part. :)
    I've been to Deutschland twice, but as a tourist. Now I/we are trying to process our documents and eventually, get a visa for me.
    Awww, taga Cebu pud ko.

    Wish you a good day!
    TC,
    Joy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hallo sis Joy,
      Thank you for your kind words & glad to be of help kahit papaano. :)
      Good luck for your visa! :)

      PS. sorry and hinde talaga ako from Cebu. Just went there for the A1 course. :) I can understand bisaya though so all good! Daghang salamat! ;)

      Delete
  2. Hello.. i would like to ask if Germany required the transcript of record and diploma be certified By CHED and authenticated in DFA? hope for your reply and thank you so much!!!

    God bless!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Anonymous & my apologies for the late reply.
      According to my doc friend: no, it is not required to have it certified by CHED nor authenticated by the DFA. ''As is where is'' is the case. Hope it helps! :)

      Delete
  3. hi,,, hope u r fine ,, a great post to me ,, have few questions 1,, what if someone dont hold the certificate to work as a doctor in their country of origion???,as in my case i m holding Mbbs degree from china , and my nationality is pakistani , so i need to pass state exams in order to work in pakistan , 2 are their institutes who help to pass the (gleichwertigkeitsprüfung) exams,? i m just hoping that if i get the information about the process , REGARDS,,

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Anonymous,

      Thank you for your questions. Unfortunately, I do not know anyone who have the same case as yours. With this, my apologies & I cannot offer you a guideline for the process of documents. But as the rule of the thumb, they will verify if the standard of your school matches the level of education in Germany. Eitherway, they will ask you to take an exam -- just a question if all or just a part of it.

      Again, my apologies & I am not much of help right now. Good luck!!!

      Delete
  4. hello there po. i am an ethiopian currently studying dentistry in the philippines. I would like to practice in germany once i am done because i was actually born in Berlin and have lived therefor three years. After that i attended the german school in ethiopia. So my question is if there would be a chance for me to work as a dentist in germany and is there any special examination i need to take? looking forward to hearing from you po!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Anonymous,

      My apologies for such a late reply.

      The first obstacle is the hardest. On this case, it is getting the correct visa in order for you to stay in Germany long term. Did you get to keep your German citizenship? My dentist friend is half German but grew up in the Philippines. All her documents state that she is a Filipino (with Filipino passport and so on). She is married to a German national to which she applied for 'family reunion visa' & this allow her to stay permanently in Germany. It was only after that when she pursued her license here in Germany so she can also practice here.

      If the residency visa is not the problem, then yes -- you will need to go thru a verification process & so on (as experienced by my friend -- all narrated above). I wish you Good Luck! :)

      Delete
    2. In addition, you can check out the official website of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees for other basic informations:

      www.bamf.de

      Incase you prefer it in English translation -- at the most right corner, there is a box. You can change the prefer language to English there.

      Again, good luck!!!

      Delete
  5. hello Tatty bear
    thank you very much for this information
    do you have a gmail account or any other way to contact you like yahoo or facebook.
    i'm a dentist my self from egypt , well i'm very interested to in moving to germany as well.
    you didn;t mention if you have wrote the exam? i would like to know how east it is ? as your friend mentioned the passign grade is low
    thanks in advance and hope to hear soon from you :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Ash Hu,

      My dentist friend did not need to take the written exam as her University (where she graduated) is among those being recognized here in Germany. She was only required to take the Oral exams. As for me, my degree is not related to Dentistry. This blog topic/entry is solely based on my Dentist Friend´s experiences, & is no where connected to me (maybe only as a narrator). I am sorry to cause any confusions.

      You can contact me via e-mail at:
      chinayjourneytogermany@yahoo.com

      This is all for now. Good day to you! :)

      Delete
  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Ekta and my apology for the late reply.
      The said examinations are all done in German language.
      Good luck to you!

      Delete
  7. This blog is very helpful to filipino dentist here on Germany. I myself as a dentist is worried if they allow me to work here even if I only graduated in a College not in a prestigious University like CEU. Hmm well see. I only have a question, from which bundesland is your dentist friend living now? Because I heard that there are also different rules from different bundesland. Thank you

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Anonymous & thank you for dropping by.
      My apology & I cannot share you this information due to confidentiality agreement between my friend & myself. I hope you understand. If your German language is good already, then, we encourage you to inquire to the dental chamber of the Federal German state where you resides for other details. Kaya mo yan! Good Luck!!!

      PS. If it is not too much to ask: do update us. :)

      Delete
    2. Actually we already inquired in Anerkennungsberatung here in our area but at this moment cant still do much since im not yet finished with B2 classes but they gave me the same list like yours in this blog. Ok ill update you. Thanks tattybear

      Delete
  8. A very helpful article! thx
    BTW,does ur friend get the job easily after she get the "Approbation"?And does a foreign trained dentist need some training or some period like"Adaptation Time"?or she just starts working after she got Approbation?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Anonymous,
      My friend got hired immediately, but because she is a foreign dentist that what she got is near the bottom of the pay scale. She did not mind at all because her boss and the team need to bear with her language limitation. The good news about being in Germany that one is protected from being over-exploited -- they cannot go beyond the range of pay. She believes that if you are not limited to a certain location (because of children & so), that the possibilities is more. :)
      Hope this helps! Good luck!!!

      Delete
    2. Well,thank you very much for the information.It helps a lot.
      em.quite a good news,I thought there is only physicians needed in German,I will learn deutsch ASAP.

      Delete
  9. Thanks for sharing such detailed information about the documents needed for dental certification exam. Our institute helps candidate to improve their dental skills for dental certification from NDEB in Toronto. If you are a foreign trained dentist and are striving to get the NDEB certification or other licensure to practice dentistry across North America, we are here to help you succeed!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hello po :) I would just like to ask if may email address po yung dentist friend n'yo po. Currently, I'm studying in Germany po and I would like to ask some questions regarding my dental operation. I'm hoping for your kind reply po. Thanks :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi tatty bear, thank you for this post and helpfule information.
    I was hoping if you could answer my question?
    I am a dental student graduating from University of The East.
    Since i'm a foreign student i won't be able to take board exam of the philippines, what other document can i present as dental examination certificate?
    Will my preboard exam be accepted az dental examination certificate?

    Thank you in advance :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. If I'll go abroad, I'm going to find a Filipino Makati Dentist to take care of my teeth.:D

    ReplyDelete
  13. I'm a graduate from a dental schools in the philippines and I want to practice my craft in Germany.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Hi there, thanks for sharing these information. May I ask in which state she has registered in Germany? I am a graduate of Cebu Doctors University, filipino/german dual citizen and would like to acquire the "approbation", if possible without the "Gleichwertigkeitsprüfung". Since german is my native language I am not too afraid of the oral language test. However I have heard that the approbation is a case to case decision, which might be more difficult to obtain in certain states (e.g. Bavaria) than in others. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi, this blog was good. I could feel the experiences you have gone through. I am an Indian dentist. I would like to continue my studies in dentistry. But I am not furnished with the German language.Do I have to get it before applying the universities? How is the language there?

    ReplyDelete
  16. Hello,
    Hope you doing fine in germany. I wanted to know what kind of practice is followed here in germany. Is it private practice only or are there corporate hoapitals and polyclinics horing dentists for jobs?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry for the spelling mistakes
      I mea t hiring instead of horing

      Delete
  17. Am a nigerian, do we also follow the same route to practice dentistry in Germany?

    ReplyDelete
  18. hello!
    I am from Mauritius Island and I obtained my dental degree from Romania.

    I want to know if as a non EU citizen but with an EU diploma in dentistry, do I have to go through any dental examinations in order to obtain a dental lisence and work in germany as a dentist?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi,
      I am from Mauritius as well and i'm also looking into practicing in Germany. If you have made any advances, your help would be really appreciated! Thanks!

      Delete
  19. Good Day.
    Thank you for your helpfull informations.
    is there any website or books that helps in studying for the approbation exam. thank once more

    ReplyDelete
  20. Hello..Did you take so much time to prepare for the exam???..Please write something about your preparation..Thank you

    ReplyDelete
  21. hello i have done bds from Pakistan and planning to do MJDF from royal college of surgeons england.would it help anyway in practicing dentistry in germany is MJDF equivalent to german qualifications kindly help plz

    ReplyDelete
  22. HI there,
    i have a similar situation. i completed my BDS in Nepal and have been practising for a year. I got married to a German citizen and am planning to move there soon. my plan is to clear my language exam first. But after that I do not have much idea or guidance as to what I should do. Your post has been very helpful. Could you tell me how similar is the dental practice in Asia and Germany? or is there a vast differance?

    ReplyDelete
  23. Thank you for taking the time to publish this information very useful!
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    ReplyDelete
  24. This information very useful for us. Thanks for sharing. If you are looking for the best doctors/dentists in Jabalpur, check out here..
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    ReplyDelete
  25. Hi Doc is your blog still active, I’m interested to apply in Germany as a Dentist too. How was it for you?

    ReplyDelete
  26. Hello Doc... thank you for the amazing information. I'm inbetween some queries like documents listed above are for BDS degree and which other documents required for MDS, person holding master in dentistry degree? Does German country value the Master degree of dentistry from India?

    ReplyDelete