Yes, at two of the four: UT Health San Antonio and UTHealth Houston place implants at a stated discount from private fees, though no Texas school publishes an implant price. Texas A&M in Dallas trains residents to place implants but gives patients no route to them, and Texas Tech in El Paso lists implants only with its faculty, at private-practice prices. Each school’s first step, fees and rules follow, from the schools’ own pages.
- San Antonio student clinic
- About 60% lessthan private practice, UT Dentistry, 2026
- Houston resident clinics
- About two-thirdsof private-practice fees, UTHealth Houston, 2026
- Screening fees
- $50 to $120San Antonio and Texas A&M adult screening, 2026
- Published implant fee
- Noneall four schools, checked October 2, 2026
How dental school care works
The Texas Department of State Health Services lists four dental schools with clinics open to the public. Students treat under faculty supervision at the lowest fees. Residents, licensed dentists in specialty training, charge more than students and less than private practice, and faculty practices charge about what a private office does. Outside San Antonio’s student clinic, every Texas school page that mentions placing implants belongs to a resident or faculty clinic. The trade is time: San Antonio, Texas A&M and Texas Tech all warn that visits run longer than in a private office.
UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry
Its clinics are branded UT Dentistry. Local private fees are on San Antonio.
- Student Dental Clinic. For adults 18 and over, after a screening with a $50 payment at booking; a faculty dentist checks that a student can meet your needs. The services listed include dental implant surgery, implant restoration, crowns, bridges and dentures. Care “costs about 60 percent less than private practice care.” No dental insurance is accepted, payment is due at each visit, and appointments take two to three times longer than in private practice.
- Resident Practices. Fees “are about 33 percent lower than private practice but vary by procedure.” Periodontics residents place implants and bone grafts; prosthodontics residents restore implants.
- Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery clinic. Treats all ages, including “replacement of teeth with dental implants.” Book online or at 210-450-3100; Carelink patients call 210-358-3350. Its listed plans include Superior Medicaid, Medicare, Carelink, Delta Dental, DentaQuest and MCNA, and it takes CareCredit.
- Faculty Practices. Fees “similar to those of private practice.” Some UT Dentistry practices offer payment plans.
UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry
Local private fees are on Houston.
- Student clinics. New patients book at 713-486-4000 or online, starting with an assessment of about an hour. Fees “vary, but most are under $200,” paid in full before treatment, and an emergency visit carries a $32 exam fee. The page does not list implants among student services and does not mention insurance.
- Resident clinics. Fees “average about two-thirds the cost of fees for a typical private-practice setting.” Oral and maxillofacial surgery residents place implants and bone grafts (713-790-4600), prosthodontics residents replace missing teeth “with permanent bridges or implants” (713-486-4347), and general dentistry residents do implant restorations.
Texas A&M University College of Dentistry, Dallas
Local private fees are on Dallas.
- Adult Dental Clinic. For adults 18 and over whose needs fit the students’ teaching, decided at a $120 screening that includes registration and x-rays: “If you’re not accepted as a patient, there’s no fee.” Call (214) 828-8981. Adult clinics “do not currently accept dental insurance” and state “much lower costs” without figures. The children’s clinic takes Medicaid and CHIP.
- Urgent Care Clinic. $131 covers “the exam, x-ray and first extraction,” wisdom teeth excepted.
- Implants. The patient pages never mention them. Graduate prosthodontics residents place implants through the Postgraduate Dental Implant Placement Program (PDIPP), and graduate periodontics includes implant therapy, but neither page gives a fee, phone number or way for patients to book.
Texas Tech Dental Oral Health Clinic, El Paso
TTUHSC El Paso’s Woody L. Hunt School of Dental Medicine treats patients as the Texas Tech Dental Oral Health Clinic, 915-215-6700. Local private fees are on El Paso.
- Student care. A student screens you at the first visit under a faculty dentist’s direct supervision, and appointments run about 2 to 4 hours. Student fees “can be as much as 50% lower than some fees charged in a private practice.”
- Insurance. Not required. The clinic accepts “a limited number of insurance plans: including Texas Medicaid and Delta Dental.” It takes cash and card, no checks.
- Implants. Listed only on the Faculty Care Providers page, titled “Coming Soon,” at a cost “Similar to private practice.”
Whether Texas Medicaid pays for the implant itself is a separate rule, set out on Texas Medicaid and dental implants.
Residency programs that place implants
The American Academy of Periodontology lists four Texas periodontics programs: Texas A&M, the United States Air Force, UTHealth Houston and UT Health San Antonio. The Air Force program’s site did not load when we checked, so its eligibility is not covered here. The American Dental Education Association’s pages describe the civilian programs, all accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation:
| Program | Length, residents | Implant work stated |
|---|---|---|
| UTHealth Houston periodontics | 36 months, 4 | About 50% of the program is implant surgery |
| UT Health San Antonio periodontics | 36 months, 4 | Dental implant therapy |
| Texas A&M periodontics | 35 months, 3 | Implant therapy |
| UTHealth Houston prosthodontics | 36 months, 4 | Implant placement |
| UT Health San Antonio prosthodontics | 35 months, 4 | Surgical placement of implants |
| Texas A&M prosthodontics | 36 months, 3 | Implant placement (PDIPP) |
Hospital oral surgery residencies say less. UT Southwestern’s residency, five residents a year at Parkland, UT Southwestern University Hospitals, the Dallas VA, JPS and Children’s Medical Center Dallas, focuses on major hospital surgery, and its page does not mention implants. Texas A&M’s, based at Baylor University Medical Center, lists trauma, jaw and reconstructive surgery without implants. In Fort Worth, the JPS Health Network oral and maxillofacial surgery service lists dental implants among its procedures (817-702-3431), but gives no eligibility, referral or fee details.
The four schools side by side
| School | First step | Stated discount | Insurance | Implants on patient pages |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UT Health San Antonio | $50 screening | Students about 60% less; residents about 33% less | None in the student clinic; OMS lists Medicaid, Medicare, Carelink | Student, periodontics, prosthodontics, OMS |
| UTHealth Houston | 1-hour assessment; $32 emergency exam | Most student fees under $200; residents about two-thirds | Not stated for students | OMS and prosthodontics residents |
| Texas A&M, Dallas | $120 screening, no fee if not accepted | “Much lower,” no figure | None for adults | None |
| Texas Tech, El Paso | Student screening | Students up to 50% less | Texas Medicaid, Delta Dental | Faculty only, private-practice prices |
No school publishes a per-implant fee or a waiting time, and each measures its discount its own way. Set any quote against the private fees on dental implant cost in Texas; other routes are on ways to pay less for implants in Texas.
Frequently asked questions
Do Texas dental schools do implants?
Yes. UT Health San Antonio lists implant surgery and restoration in its student, periodontics, prosthodontics and oral surgery clinics, and UTHealth Houston’s oral surgery and prosthodontics residents place implants. Texas A&M’s residents place them with no published patient route, and Texas Tech El Paso lists them only with faculty.
How much does an implant cost at a Texas dental school?
No school publishes a price. They state discounts: about 60 percent off for San Antonio students and 33 percent for its residents, about two-thirds of private fees for Houston residents, and up to 50 percent off for El Paso students.
How do I become a patient?
Book a screening or assessment: $50 in San Antonio, about an hour in Houston, $120 in Dallas (no fee if you are not accepted) and a student screening in El Paso. The school then decides whether your case fits a clinic.
Can I use insurance or Medicaid at a Texas dental school?
San Antonio’s student clinic and Texas A&M’s adult clinics take no insurance. San Antonio’s oral surgery clinic lists Superior Medicaid, Medicare and Carelink, and Texas Tech El Paso accepts Texas Medicaid and Delta Dental.
Is a faculty dentist at a school cheaper?
No. San Antonio and El Paso both state faculty fees similar to private practice.
Sources
- UT Dentistry: Student Dental Clinic; Payment information; Clinic Directory; Oral Surgery
- UTHealth Houston: Student Clinics; Resident Clinics
- Texas A&M: Screening; Patient FAQ; Prosthodontics; Periodontics; OMS Residency
- Texas Tech Dental: Becoming a Patient; Payment; Faculty Care
- American Academy of Periodontology, Periodontal Programs
- ADEA PASS: Houston periodontics; San Antonio periodontics; Houston prosthodontics; San Antonio prosthodontics; Texas A&M periodontics; Texas A&M prosthodontics
- UT Southwestern, OMS Residency; JPS Health Network, OMFS; Texas DSHS, Find a Dentist
Figures retrieved October 2, 2026 from the schools’ and programs’ own pages. Fees, intake and accepted plans change; confirm with the clinic before you book. Tooth Restoration TX is a publication, not a practice.
