Where can you study dental hygiene in Canada?

What this list is

CDAC, the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada, accredits dental hygiene programs and publishes the list. This guide follows the version headed as of September 2026. CDAC says graduates of programs that hold one of its accreditation statuses are recognized for registration and licensure with the provincial regulatory authority.

So check the list before you apply to a program. The FDHRC, the Federation of Dental Hygiene Regulators of Canada, runs the NDHCE. Its FAQ says that if you graduate from a program not accredited in Canada or the US, you are not automatically eligible to write the exam and need an equivalency evaluation first, and its application page lists an Equivalency Assessment among the requirements for that group.

Ontario: 20 programs

Ontario has more than the rest of the country combined, 20 of 34. Lengths are as CDAC lists them, in years, weeks or months. A * marks a program with a note below.

British Columbia: 6 programs

The rest of Canada: 8 programs

The other eight are in Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. No program on the list is in Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador or the territories.

Four programs to look at twice

• Cégep Édouard-Montpetit (Longueuil, Quebec) is footnoted as a program no longer accredited effective December 1, 2025. Its status cell reads: withdrawing from accreditation as of that date.
• Oulton College (Moncton, New Brunswick) is listed as Provisionally Approved with reporting requirements, with its next visit in 2027.
• University of Saskatchewan (Saskatoon) is due its first accreditation survey visit in the fall of 2026 or the winter of 2027, and has no status listed yet.
• Toronto College of Dental Hygiene and Auxiliaries, Steeles Avenue campus (North York) is due its accreditation survey in November 2027, and has no status listed yet.

What the statuses mean

Of the 34 programs, 17 are Approved without reporting requirements, 13 are Approved with reporting requirements and 1, Oulton's, is Provisionally Approved. The other three have no status in the list: the Quebec program that is no longer accredited, and the two waiting for a survey.

CDAC gives "Approved (with reporting requirements)" when a program has specific weaknesses it can fix in a reasonable time. CDAC considers it adequate to meet the eligibility requirements for licensure, and the school has to send a progress report the following year. The provisional status lasts one year, and CDAC says that if the weaknesses aren't corrected, accreditation will be withdrawn.

How long the programs take

CDAC mixes units, so here is a rough common scale. The shortest is the Canadian National Institute of Health in Ottawa at 70 weeks, which is a little over 16 months. Next come 72 and 76 weeks, then the two Oxford College campuses at 18 months, then 79 and 88 weeks. Many programs are 2 or 3 years, and the longest is the University of British Columbia at 4 years.