Dental Hygiene Programs in Texas
Texas has 30 CODA-accredited dental hygiene programs, spread across 22 cities from Amarillo and El Paso in the west to Beaumont and Texas City near the Gulf Coast.
Each program is listed below with its city, address, website, and current accreditation status, pulled directly from CODA's own program directory.
Graduating from a CODA-accredited program satisfies the education requirement for licensure in every U.S. jurisdiction, though how a program prepares you for the National Board Dental Hygiene Examination and Texas's own licensing process is worth understanding before you apply.
Verify before you apply
At a glance
In Texas
Programs
30
With a program
Cities
22
Approval without Reporting Requirements
Fully approved
28 of 30
Every CODA-Accredited Program in Texas
Source: CODA program directory, index dated 2026-09-09. Status terms (“Approval without Reporting Requirements,” “Approval with Reporting Requirements,” “Initial Accreditation,” “Discontinued,” etc.) are CODA’s own.
Reading the List Below
"Approval without reporting requirements" means CODA found the program meets or exceeds its accreditation standards outright. "Approval with reporting requirements" means CODA identified specific deficiencies the program must document a fix for within a set timeframe — it is not a warning to avoid the program, just a status mid-correction. "Initial accreditation" applies to a program that hasn't yet graduated its first class.
The site-visit years listed are CODA's own accreditation-cycle dates, not anything set by the program.
Confirm admissions requirements, cost, and current status directly with the program and with CODA before applying.
Why Accreditation Matters for Your License
CODA accreditation is the credential jurisdictions look for when they evaluate a hygiene applicant's education.
Graduating from a CODA-accredited program satisfies the education requirement for licensure in every U.S. jurisdiction.
The National Board Dental Hygiene Examination (NBDHE) fulfills or partially fulfills the written-exam requirement most jurisdictions set, though acceptance of it — like every licensing requirement — is at that jurisdiction's own discretion, including Texas's.
For the full path from enrollment to license, see our step-by-step guide to becoming a dental hygienist, and for how degree level factors in, see associate vs. bachelor's in dental hygiene and how long dental hygiene school takes.
After You Graduate: Licensure and Work in Texas
A CODA-accredited program is the first step, not the last.
Texas's own board sets the exam, application and continuing-education requirements a graduate must meet to hold an active license, and those requirements can change.
See our Texas dental hygienist requirements and scope of practice page for what the state itself requires, and confirm anything you intend to rely on with the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners before enrolling or applying.
Once licensed, our Texas dental hygienist salary guide covers pay by market, and open dental hygienist jobs in Texas lists current openings across the state.
Where Texas's Programs Are Located
Texas's 30 programs cluster in its largest metro areas, with San Antonio and Dallas each home to four programs, and Houston to three, alongside single programs in cities including Amarillo, Austin, Beaumont, Beeville, Big Spring, Bryan, Corpus Christi, Denton, El Paso, Grand Prairie, Harlingen, Hurst, Kingwood, McKinney, Temple, Texas City, Tyler, Wharton and Wichita Falls — several of them, including Denton, Grand Prairie, Hurst and McKinney, in the broader Dallas–Fort Worth area.
That footprint runs from the Panhandle and West Texas across Central Texas to the Gulf Coast and the Rio Grande Valley, so most Texas residents have a CODA-accredited program within driving distance.
Each program sets its own admission requirements and application cycle — contact a program directly for its current details.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many CODA-accredited dental hygiene programs are in Texas?
Texas has 30 CODA-accredited dental hygiene programs, located across 22 cities including Amarillo, Austin, Beaumont, Beeville, Big Spring, Bryan, Corpus Christi, Dallas, Denton, El Paso, Grand Prairie and Harlingen.
Each is listed above with its current CODA accreditation status, address and website.
CODA's own directory is the definitive, up-to-date list — confirm a program's status directly with CODA before applying.
Does it matter which Texas program I attend?
Not for licensure eligibility — every program listed above holds CODA accreditation, and CODA accreditation is what jurisdictions require for the education portion of licensure nationwide, including Texas.
Beyond that baseline, programs differ in location, campus and admission requirements, so contact each one directly to compare them.
See associate vs. bachelor's in dental hygiene if you're also weighing degree level.
Do I have to attend a Texas program to work as a hygienist in Texas?
No. Texas licenses hygienists who graduated from any CODA-accredited program, not only ones located in Texas.
What matters for licensure eligibility is the program's CODA accreditation and passing the required exams — see our Texas requirements page for the state's own licensing rules.
What does "Initial Accreditation" mean for a Texas program?
It's CODA's classification for a program that isn't yet fully operational — meaning it hasn't yet enrolled and graduated at least one class of students.
A program can still be a legitimate CODA-accredited option under this status; check the status shown above and CODA's own directory for a program's current standing before you apply.
What comes after I finish a CODA-accredited hygiene program in Texas?
Graduates typically sit for the National Board Dental Hygiene Examination and a regional or state clinical exam, then apply for licensure with the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners.
Our step-by-step guide to becoming a dental hygienist walks through that full sequence.
Is every program on this list accredited?
Every program above is shown with the CODA accreditation status CODA had published for it as of 2026-09-09, the date this directory was last pulled from CODA's own program search. "Approval without Reporting Requirements" is CODA's standard fully-accredited standing; other status terms on this page — such as "Approval with Reporting Requirements," "Initial Accreditation," or "Discontinued" — mean something different, and a status can change after that date.
Confirm a program's current status directly with CODA before applying.
More Texas & Dental Hygienist Resources
Sourced from the CODA program directory (index dated 2026-09-09). Verified September 2026. Program details change. Confirm accreditation status, admission requirements and costs with the program and with CODA before applying.