Periodontics Residency Programs in California
California has 5 CODA-accredited advanced dental education programs in periodontics, based in Loma Linda, Los Angeles, San Francisco and West Los Angeles.
Each is listed below with its institution, city, current accreditation status, and the years of CODA's last and next accreditation visits, pulled directly from the Commission on Dental Accreditation's own program directory.
Completing one of these programs is the recognized path into the periodontics specialty — read on for what each program's status means and what happens after residency.
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At a glance
In California
Programs
5
With a program
Cities
4
Approval without Reporting Requirements
Fully approved
5 of 5
Every CODA-Accredited Program in California
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: What California's Accreditation Statuses Mean
The statuses shown above are CODA's own terms, not this site's. "Approval (without Reporting Requirements)" is the classification CODA grants when a program "achieves or exceeds the basic requirements for accreditation." "Approval (with Reporting Requirements)" means CODA has identified specific deficiencies the program must correct within a set timeframe — it is not a warning to avoid the program, only a status mid-correction. "Initial Accreditation" is what CODA grants a program that is accredited but has not yet enrolled and graduated its first class of residents.
The last- and next-visit years shown are CODA's own accreditation-visit schedule, not anything set by the program itself.
For admissions requirements, program structure, or cost, contact the program directly, and confirm any program's current status with CODA before applying.
Why Accreditation Matters for the Path Into Periodontics
Periodontics is one of 12 recognized dental specialties, and completing a CODA-accredited advanced dental education program in the specialty is how a dentist becomes a periodontist.
California has 5 accredited programs, compared with 1 in Oregon, none in Arizona and none in Nevada nearby; wherever you train, our step-by-step guide to becoming a periodontist covers the full sequence from dental school through residency, our periodontist career guide what the role involves day to day, and which dental specialty pays the most how periodontics compares with the other eleven.
Graduates of programs at Loma Linda University School of Dentistry, Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of the University of Southern California and 3 other institutions who go on to practice in California need a dentist license from the Dental Board of California — see California's dentist licensure requirements for the clinical exams it accepts and the rest of what it requires.
After Residency in California
A CODA-accredited residency is the entry point into periodontics, not the final step — practicing afterward still requires holding an active dentist license in the state where you intend to work.
Check whether California also requires a separate specialty license with the Dental Board of California.
That holds whether the residency was completed at one of the five California programs listed above or at an out-of-state program, because CODA accreditation, not the residency's location, is what carries into licensure.
Residents who train in Loma Linda, Los Angeles, San Francisco or West Los Angeles and go on to practice in California can search current periodontist jobs in California to see who's hiring now.
Where California's Periodontics Programs Are Located
California's 5 periodontics programs sit in four cities: Loma Linda, Los Angeles (home to two of the five), San Francisco and West Los Angeles.
That's a wider geographic spread than most states get for a single specialty, though it says nothing about a given program's size, curriculum, or how it compares to another — those specifics live with the program and with CODA, not in this directory.
Use the city column above as a starting point for location, not as a stand-in for the program's own admissions materials.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many CODA-accredited periodontics residency programs are in California?
California has 5 CODA-accredited advanced dental education programs in periodontics, located in Loma Linda, Los Angeles, San Francisco and West Los Angeles.
Each is listed above with its current CODA accreditation status, address and program director.
CODA's own directory is the definitive, up-to-date source — confirm a program's status directly with CODA before applying.
What does "Approval without Reporting Requirements" mean?
It's the classification CODA grants when a program "achieves or exceeds the basic requirements for accreditation," per CODA's own accreditation-status definitions.
It's the status shown for each periodontics program currently listed for California.
Confirm a program's current status directly with CODA before applying, since status can change between accreditation visits.
Do I have to complete a periodontics residency in California to practice as a periodontist there?
No. California licenses dentists — including periodontists — who completed a CODA-accredited residency regardless of which state it's located in; what matters is the residency's CODA accreditation, not its location.
See our California dentist licensure page for what the state itself requires before you can practice.
What comes after finishing a CODA-accredited periodontics residency?
Graduates hold an active dentist license in the state where they intend to practice.
Check whether California also requires a separate specialty license with the Dental Board of California.
Our step-by-step guide to becoming a periodontist walks through the full sequence from dental school through residency and licensure.
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 California & Periodontist 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.