Spanning nearly 60 years, the American Board of Dental Examiners’ rich history is a reflection of the efforts of state boards from across the US and beyond to ensure that qualified dentists and dental hygienists provide safe care to the citizens they serve by demonstrating entry-level competency.
Eight states banded together in 1969 to found the North East Regional Board of Dental Examiners (NERB). Formed in Washington, D.C, additional jurisdictions included Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.
The Western Regional Examining Board’s first three states came together between 1976 and 1978. Utah, Oregon and Arizona worked together and delivered their first Dental Examination in 1978, and Dental Hygiene Examination in 1979.
The American Board of Dental Examiners (ADEX) is founded with representation from multiple dental boards. ADEX was a test development organization with the goal of creating one examination to serve the needs of all boards. ADEX did not deliver examinations.
The first ADEX dental examinations were delivered in 2005, while Dental Hygiene examinations were first conducted in 2006. The NERB organization delivered the first examinations in 2007 and 2008, respectively.
Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia had retained state-based examinations until 2005, when the Council of Interstate Testing Agencies, Inc. was formed. Based in North Carolina, it delivered the CITA examination, then adopted the ADEX examination several years later.