Periodontics Residency Programs in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania has 3 CODA-accredited advanced dental education programs in periodontics, based in 2 cities: Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
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 a CODA-accredited periodontics program is the recognized path into the periodontics specialty — read on for what each program's status means and what happens after residency.
Verify before you apply
At a glance
In Pennsylvania
Programs
3
With a program
Cities
2
Approval without Reporting Requirements
Fully approved
3 of 3
Every CODA-Accredited Program in Pennsylvania
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 Pennsylvania'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." By contrast, "Approval (with Reporting Requirements)" means CODA has identified specific deficiencies a program must correct within a set timeframe, and "Initial Accreditation" is what CODA grants a program that is accredited but hasn't yet enrolled and graduated its first class of residents — neither applies to Pennsylvania's programs.
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 each program directly, and confirm its 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.
Pennsylvania has 3 accredited programs, compared with 1 in New Jersey, 2 in Maryland and 6 in New York 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 the Temple University The Maurice H.
Kornberg School of Dentistry, University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine and University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine programs who go on to practice in Pennsylvania need a dentist license from the Pennsylvania State Board of Dentistry — see Pennsylvania's dentist licensure requirements for the clinical exams it accepts and the rest of what it requires.
After Residency in Pennsylvania
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; in Pennsylvania, periodontics is practiced under a dentist license rather than a separate specialty license.
Residents who train in Philadelphia or Pittsburgh and go on to practice in Pennsylvania can search current periodontist jobs to see who's hiring now.
Where Pennsylvania's Programs Are Located
Pennsylvania's three periodontics programs cluster in two cities: two in Philadelphia, at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine and at Temple University's Maurice H.
Kornberg School of Dentistry, and one in Pittsburgh, at the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine.
That's the full list of CODA-accredited periodontics programs in the state — no other city hosts one.
See each program's listing above for its current accreditation status and CODA's most recent and next scheduled site visit years.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many CODA-accredited periodontics residency programs are in Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania has 3 CODA-accredited advanced dental education programs in periodontics, located in 2 cities: Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
Each is listed above with its institution, city and current CODA accreditation status.
CODA's own directory is the definitive, up-to-date source — confirm a program's status directly with CODA before applying.
Does a periodontics residency completed outside Pennsylvania still count toward practicing there?
Yes.
CODA accreditation is national, so a periodontics residency accredited by CODA counts regardless of which state it's located in.
What matters for practicing in Pennsylvania is holding an active Pennsylvania dentist license, not where the residency took place.
See our Pennsylvania dentist licensure page for what the state itself requires.
What does "Approval without Reporting Requirements" mean for a program?
It's CODA's classification for a program that "achieves or exceeds the basic requirements for accreditation," with no outstanding deficiencies CODA has asked it to correct.
It doesn't rank the program against others — CODA doesn't publish comparative rankings.
Confirm a program's current status directly with CODA before applying.
What comes after finishing a CODA-accredited periodontics residency?
Graduates hold an active dentist license in the state where they intend to practice; in Pennsylvania, periodontists practice under that dentist license rather than a separate specialty license.
Board certification from the American Board of Periodontology is a separate, voluntary step after residency.
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 Pennsylvania & 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.