The American Board of Dental Examiners is a national dental and dental hygiene examination organization responsible for administering clinical licensure examinations used by dental boards across the United States. The organization has evolved significantly through a series of mergers designed to strengthen standardization, expand board participation, and create a unified national structure for assessment in dentistry and dental hygiene.
The organization traces its origins to the North East Regional Board of Dental Examiners (NERB), one of the earliest regional examining boards established to promote consistency in clinical licensure examinations at a time when each state maintained its own independent exam.
The American Board of Dental Examiners administers:
ADEX examinations are required by law in 51 U.S. jurisdictions internationally.
The organization's membership and exam acceptance footprint includes:
State requirements are noted in the chart below.
Certain states also recognize other examinations a meeting some licensure requirements.