ORE Part 1 syllabus: what each subject covers
Paper A covers dental science and human disease, and Paper B covers aspects of clinical dentistry, including law and ethics and health and safety. The provider lists the topics each paper can include, and no weighting is published.
5 min readAbout the examChecked 23 September 2026 against GDC sources
How the syllabus is organised
ORE Part 1 has two papers, each of 200 questions in three hours, taken on consecutive days. The ORE Part 1 exam format guide covers the question types, the pace and the exam days. Paper A covers dental science and human disease. Paper B covers aspects of clinical dentistry, including law and ethics and health and safety.
All content is mapped to the GDC's Preparing for Practice learning outcomes, and candidates are expected to meet the standard of a newly qualified UK BDS graduate. The provider's Examination Specification for Candidates (August 2026) gives a snapshot of the blueprint, the topics that can be included in each paper. The tables below follow it, with the topics that questions can reach and the UK sources the answers rely on. The provider publishes no weighting by topic.
Paper A: dental science and human disease
| Blueprint topic | Topics within it | UK sources |
|---|---|---|
| Anatomy of the head and neck; physiology of the major body systems | Trigeminal and facial nerves and local anaesthetic anatomy, salivary glands, muscles of mastication, fascial spaces, cardiovascular, respiratory and endocrine physiology | Standard anatomy and physiology texts |
| Oral biology; genetics/embryology | Tooth development and eruption, enamel, dentine, pulp and periodontium, saliva, developmental anomalies | Standard oral biology texts |
| Biochemistry relevant to oral disease | Sugar metabolism and plaque pH, collagen, bone and calcium metabolism, the action of fluoride | Standard biochemistry texts |
| Human disease relevant to dentistry; oral aspects of human disease | Cardiovascular, respiratory and endocrine disease, bleeding disorders, immunology, general pathology, the oral effects of systemic disease and its drugs | NICE; SDCEP MRONJ guidance |
| Infection prevention and control of transmission in the oral healthcare setting | Transmission of infection, decontamination and sterilisation, immunisation of the dental team | HTM 01-05 |
| Dental materials | Composite and bonding, glass ionomer, amalgam, impression materials, ceramics, cements | Standard materials texts |
| Behavioural sciences relevant to oral health care | Dental anxiety, behaviour change, prevention advice | Delivering Better Oral Health |
| Statistics and research methods | Study designs, bias, sensitivity and specificity, levels of evidence | Standard epidemiology texts |
Medical emergencies are not named in the Part 1 blueprint. The Preparing for Practice outcome on managing medical emergencies is mapped to Part 1, and ORE Ready places the topic with Paper A's human disease, drawing on Resuscitation Council UK guidance. The Paper A guide describes the question style in these topics.
Paper B: aspects of clinical dentistry, including law and ethics and health and safety
| Blueprint topic | Topics within it | UK sources |
|---|---|---|
| Endodontics | Pulpal and periapical diagnosis, working length, irrigation, rubber dam, outcome assessment | European Society of Endodontology guidance |
| Periodontology | BPE, six-point charting, 2017 classification with staging and grading, non-surgical treatment, maintenance | British Society of Periodontology |
| Prosthodontics | Kennedy classification, partial denture design and surveying, resin-bonded bridges, complete denture problems | Standard prosthodontic texts |
| Oral surgery | Third molar assessment and nerve risk, extraction complications, anticoagulated patients, dry socket, biopsy | NICE TA1; SDCEP anticoagulant guidance |
| Paediatric dentistry | Eruption dates, trauma including avulsion, Hall technique, behaviour management, safeguarding | IADT guidelines; SDCEP caries in children |
| Orthodontics | IOTN, incisor and molar classification, interceptive treatment, referral timing | IOTN |
| Oral medicine | Mucosal disease, orofacial pain, potentially malignant disorders, urgent referral | NICE NG12 |
| Oral pathology; oral microbiology | Cysts of the jaws, odontogenic tumours, mucosal pathology, plaque microbiology | WHO classifications |
| Therapeutics | Local anaesthetic doses and agents, antimicrobial prescribing, analgesics, drug interactions, prescribing in pregnancy | SDCEP Drug Prescribing for Dentistry; BNF; NICE CG64 |
| Special care | Patients with disabilities, older and medically complex patients, capacity | Mental Capacity Act 2005 |
| Dental radiology | IR(ME)R 2017 and IRR17, selection criteria and intervals, technique faults, interpretation | FGDP selection criteria; IR(ME)R 2017 |
| Dental public health | Epidemiology, fluoride, prevention at population level | Delivering Better Oral Health |
| Communication and interpersonal skills; consent; clinical professionalism; ethical and regulatory frameworks; self-management | Valid consent and capacity, confidentiality, raising concerns, complaints, professional duties | GDC Standards for the Dental Team |
Caries, tooth wear and occlusion are not named in the snapshot. The Preparing for Practice outcome on managing them is mapped to Part 1, and ORE Ready places them in Paper B, under its heading of diagnosis and management of disease. Health and safety is in Paper B's title rather than its topic list, and covers areas such as COSHH, RIDDOR, waste, sharps policy and clinical governance. The Paper B guide covers these in more detail.
The GDC's older topic list
The GDC's Part 1 page lists anatomy, bacteriology, biochemistry, dental anatomy and embryology, dental materials, immunology, pathology and human disease, pharmacology, physiology and statistics, without saying which paper each belongs to. Where that list and the provider's blueprint differ, the blueprint is the more specific document: it places therapeutics and oral microbiology in Paper B.
Themes that cross subjects
Several topics can be examined from more than one angle and are worth learning once, thoroughly.
- The anticoagulated patient appears in human disease in Paper A and in oral surgery and therapeutics in Paper B.
- Antibiotic prescribing appears in therapeutics, oral surgery and periodontology.
- Local anaesthesia links anatomy in Paper A with therapeutics in Paper B.
- Infection control in Paper A and health and safety in Paper B meet in decontamination, sharps and waste.
- Children appear across paediatric dentistry, orthodontics, radiology and prevention, with age thresholds for fluoride, amalgam, articaine and the BPE.
What Part 2 adds
Part 1 is a written knowledge examination. Part 2 assesses clinical performance in four components: a dental manikin exercise, an objective structured clinical examination, a diagnosis and treatment planning exercise, and a medical emergencies component. Both Part 1 papers must be passed before a candidate can progress to Part 2, which must be passed within five years of the first attempt at Part 1.
How to use the syllabus
Treat the tables above as a checklist. A topic is covered when you can state the rules it contains, with the source and the numbers, and answer a mixed set of questions in it at 54 seconds a question. The preparation guide explains the order to take the subjects in, the ORE Part 1 study plan turns the list into a timetable, and the ORE Part 1 practice questions page has free questions from both papers. The free diagnostic asks 13 questions in about 15 minutes and gives a first read on every subject.
Questions candidates ask
The provider's Examination Specification for Candidates (August 2026) gives a snapshot of the blueprint, listing the topics that can be included in Paper A and in Paper B, and maps the content to the GDC's Preparing for Practice learning outcomes. The GDC's Part 1 page also lists older science headings without saying which paper each belongs to.
Yes. Paper B covers aspects of clinical dentistry, including law and ethics and health and safety, and its blueprint lists communication and interpersonal skills, consent, clinical professionalism, ethical and regulatory frameworks, and self-management.
This is not published. The blueprint lists the topics each paper can include but gives no weighting, and each paper has 200 questions. After the exam, candidates receive a percentage for each blueprint topic.
Sources
- UCL consortium for the GDC: ORE Examination Specification for Candidates (August 2026)Checked 23 September 2026
- GDC: ORE Part 1Checked 23 September 2026
- GDC: About the OREChecked 23 September 2026
ORE Ready is independent of the General Dental Council. Rules, dates and fees can change: the GDC is the authority, and this page is checked against it.
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