Membership
The Membership Examination
An alternative route to Membership of the College — MBCDIS — for experienced implant dentists who hold no Diploma in implant dentistry meeting the College's standard qualification route.
What the examination is for
The Membership Examination lets experienced implant dentists demonstrate, through a structured clinical portfolio, a viva voce examination and a written paper, that their knowledge, clinical judgement and practical experience are of a standard appropriate for Membership of the College.
Successful candidates are entitled to Membership of the British College of Dental Implant Surgery and to the postnominal MBCDIS.
What it does not confer
Passing the Membership Examination does not confer the EduQual Diploma in Implant Dentistry (SCQF Level 11), any framework level, or any other academic award. It confers Membership of the College and nothing else. Membership grades are professional designations of the College: they are not academic qualifications recognised for GDC registration, and they confer no specialist status.
1. Applying for the examination
Applicants provide:
- full name and contact details;
- GDC number, or an overseas professional registration;
- dental qualifications, and any further qualifications held;
- current place of practice;
- a summary of the implant training undertaken;
- the approximate number of implants placed and restored, and the number of years practising implant dentistry;
- current professional indemnity details;
- a CV, and supporting evidence of relevant CPD and implant education.
Admission to the examination is subject to approval by the College.
How to apply
Write to [email protected] and the College will send you the application form and arrange how your portfolio is submitted. Do not send clinical records, radiographs or patient photographs to this website or through any form on it. Portfolios are handled separately, under the College’s own arrangements for clinical information.
2. The clinical portfolio — four cases
Candidates submit four personally treated implant cases showing an appropriate breadth of implant dentistry, and demonstrating their own clinical involvement, treatment planning, decision-making and understanding of the biological, surgical and restorative principles involved.
The four cases should not consist solely of straightforward single implants in healed ridges. A suitable portfolio would ordinarily combine:
- A single implant in a healed ridge — a straightforward case demonstrating sound fundamental principles.
- An immediate implant case — preferably demonstrating immediate placement with appropriate hard and/or soft-tissue grafting.
- A deficient ridge or augmentation case — managing compromised bone or soft tissue, ridge deficiency, or another case requiring additional surgical planning.
- A complex restorative or multiple-implant case — for example implants across quadrants, altered vertical dimension, an implant-retained denture, or a full-arch rehabilitation.
The precise combination may vary, but the four cases together must demonstrate breadth of clinical experience.
3. Documentation for each case
Each case is presented as a structured case record, from initial assessment through treatment to maintenance.
A. Assessment and diagnosis
- Medical and dental history, presenting complaint and relevant risk factors
- Clinical examination, periodontal assessment and occlusal assessment
- Diagnosis and prognosis
- Clinical photographs, preoperative radiographs and preoperative CBCT
- Relevant measurements and anatomical considerations
B. Treatment planning and consent
- Treatment objectives, the alternatives considered, and the rationale for implant treatment
- Proposed implant positions, implant selection and the reasoning behind both
- Prosthetically driven treatment planning
- Risks and complications discussed, and documented patient consent
- Stents or surgical guides, and any diagnostic wax-up, digital or conventional
- Laboratory prescriptions and documentation, where applicable
C. Surgical treatment
- Surgical site, and incision or flap design where applicable
- Osteotomy preparation, implant positioning and placement
- Implant geometry and dimensions selected, and primary stability where recorded
- Grafting procedures undertaken, and hard- and soft-tissue management
- Suturing, wound closure and postoperative management
D. Guided and non-guided surgery
- Guided surgery is recommended but not mandatory; where used, include the planning and guide documentation
- Where implants were placed freehand: how the restorative position was transferred clinically
- How implant position and angulation were determined, and how the osteotomy was developed
- How anatomical structures were considered
- The rationale for the implant position, dimensions and geometry selected
E. Healing and temporisation
- Healing protocol and healing period
- Provisionalisation or temporisation, and soft-tissue management
- Postoperative reviews, and the management of any complications
F. Definitive restoration
- Impression or digital scanning technique, laboratory communication and the laboratory used
- Abutment and restorative design where applicable
- The definitive restoration, its clinical fitting, and occlusal assessment and adjustment
- Final clinical photographs and relevant postoperative radiographs
G. Maintenance and outcome
- Clinical outcome and patient review
- Peri-implant tissue assessment
- Oral hygiene and maintenance instructions, and the long-term maintenance strategy
- Relevant follow-up documentation
Candidates should be able to explain why an implant was positioned and orientated as it was, not simply record that it was placed. Complications or less-than-ideal outcomes do not automatically exclude a case — the College looks for recognition, critical reflection and appropriate management.
4. Evidence of advanced implant practice
Desirable, but not mandatory: evidence across the portfolio of experience in one or more advanced procedures — sinus augmentation, guided bone regeneration, autogenous bone grafting or harvesting, ridge expansion, advanced soft-tissue procedures, full-arch rehabilitation, pterygoid implants, or others.
Submit only procedures you have personally undertaken, or where your precise clinical role is clearly identified.
5. Presenting the portfolio
Four complete, structured case presentations, each in chronological order from initial consultation to definitive restoration and maintenance, with enough clinical records, photographs, radiographic evidence and supporting documentation for the Board to follow:
diagnosis → planning → consent → surgery → healing → restoration → outcome → maintenance
Patient confidentiality
Patient information must be appropriately anonymised and handled in accordance with your professional obligations and applicable data-protection requirements. Nothing clinical is submitted through this website.
6. Viva voce examination
Candidates whose portfolios are accepted attend a formal viva voce examination before the examining panel. The viva principally examines the four submitted cases, and may extend to the underlying principles of implant dentistry relevant to them.
Be prepared to justify your:
- diagnosis
- treatment planning
- consent process
- implant selection
- surgical approach
- implant positioning
- grafting decisions
- prosthetic planning
- occlusal management
- management of complications
- maintenance strategy
- alternative treatment options
The purpose of the viva is to establish that the submitted work reflects the candidate’s own clinical knowledge, judgement and experience.
7. Written examination
A three-hour written examination in implant dentistry, assessing your understanding and application of the principles relevant to contemporary implant practice. The pass mark is 50%.
8. What it takes to pass
Both components must be satisfied independently:
| Component | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Clinical portfolio and viva | Pass |
| Three-hour written examination | Minimum 50% |
Passing one component does not compensate for failing the other. The final decision on admission to Membership rests with the College, in accordance with its examination and governance procedures.
9. When it is held
Where practicable, the Membership Examination is held alongside the examination period for candidates on the College’s EduQual Diploma in Implant Dentistry (SCQF Level 11). Membership Examination candidates are nonetheless assessed through a separate College membership route, and passing confers Membership of the College only.
10. Progression to Fellowship
Membership gained through the examination is an approved membership-level route that may later contribute towards eligibility for Fellowship (FBCDIS). To apply for Fellowship, a candidate admitted by this route must additionally:
- have completed at least ten years in clinical dental practice;
- hold an MSc, MClinDent, PhD or a comparable higher academic qualification specifically in implant dentistry or implantology; and
- demonstrate appropriate ongoing clinical experience and professional standing in implant dentistry.
Membership Examination + a master’s or doctorate in implant dentistry + ten years in practice → eligible to apply for FBCDIS
Passing the examination alone does not confer eligibility for Fellowship, and eligibility permits an application rather than guaranteeing an award. Fellowship remains subject to review and approval by the College. The two routes to Fellowship are therefore a recognised Diploma or the Membership Examination, each with the higher academic qualification and ten years in practice.
Applicant declaration
Every candidate signs this declaration as part of the application. It is reproduced here so you can read it before you begin.
I confirm that the information, clinical cases and supporting documentation submitted in connection with my application are true, accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge. I confirm that my role in each submitted case has been accurately represented and that I have not knowingly presented the clinical work of another practitioner as my own.
I understand that BCDIS may verify qualifications, professional registration and supporting evidence submitted as part of my application. I understand that knowingly providing false, misleading or materially incomplete information may result in refusal of my application, failure of the examination, or subsequent withdrawal of Membership.
I confirm that all patient information submitted has been appropriately anonymised and that I have complied with my professional obligations concerning patient confidentiality and the use of clinical information.
Sitting the examination
The examination fee is £1,600. Write to [email protected] to request the application form and the next examination dates. No payment is taken on this website.
Already hold a Diploma in implant dentistry recognised by the College? You can apply for Membership directly instead — the examination exists for clinicians who do not.