History
The Manipal College of Dental Sciences (MCODS), Manipal, formerly known as College of Dental Surgery, was the first self financing dental college in the private sector of our country. Established in the year 1965, it initially had an intake of 40 students which was later increased to 100 admissions from 1983 - 84 onwards.
The inception of MCODS, Manipal heralded a significant milestone in our university. Initially, the college was set up in a humble thatched-roof structure with limited facilities under the able guidance of Dr. Sunder J. Vazirani, who nurtured the college during its teething stages. The institution was small then in every sense with one dental chair, forty students, and a faculty comprising of clinicians (many of them retired), who came to Manipal to weave academics into the fabric of their lives. Since then, we have been steered by extremely accomplished professionals, beginning with Dr. K. L. Shourie, Dr. Kamalamma G. Pillai, Dr. S. S. Khera, Dr. K. S. Bhat, Dr. Shobha Tandon, Dr. Nirmala N Rao, Dr Keerthilatha M Pai, and presently Dr Monica Charlotte Solomon who is now at the helm.
The lineage is truly stupendous and their sterling efforts in shaping this institution are even more colossal. The college has metamorphosed through time and stands tall both nationally and internationally.
Moving from the original school building to the Biochemistry block and then to what now serves as the outpatient department of the Kasturba Hospital, we are currently situated in two buildings, the clinical wing housed adjacent to the Kasturba hospital and the pre-clinical wing at the Centre for Basic Sciences.
MCODS, Manipal, has several peripheral clinics that include centres at Dr. T.M.A. Pai Hospital, Udupi; dental clinics at Hebri and Saligrama, Sharada Residential School, Udupi; Besides these, the mobile dental unit caters to the dental treatment needs to patients in and around Udupi.
Academically, College of Dental Surgery, Manipal was affiliated with the Mysore University (1965 - 1980) and then to Mangalore University (1980 - 1993). However, our founder’s dream of setting up an independent university became a reality with the naissance of Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) in the year 1993 under the able stewardship of Dr. Ramdas M. Pai, Chancellor of the esteemed deemed to be university. With winds of change sweeping across the country in the field of education, much faster than ever before and Manipal Academy of Higher Education leaped forward to keep pace with newer materials, equipment, academic and technological advancements.
Today our infrastructure proudly supports more than 340 dental chairs and state-of-the-art laboratories with an intake of 100 undergraduate students and 35 postgraduate students per year.
In addition to the Bachelor’s and Post Graduate courses in dental surgery, MCODS, Manipal also conducts advanced certificate courses in Oral Implantology, Aesthetic dentistry and LASER dentistry, Integrated dental photography. A postgraduate course in Dental Materials, the first of its kind in the country, is also a part of the institution’s academic progress. Diploma courses in Dental Hygiene, Dental Mechanics and Dental operatory room assistant are offered as well.
The Manipal College of Dental Sciences is an ISO-certified institution (ISO 9001:2015 and 14001:2015) and is NAAC accredited.
The Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Manipal has been ranked the number one private dental college in the country consistently over the past 10 years in surveys conducted by Outlook and The WEEK.
In an article published in Scientometrics journal, MCODS Manipal was ranked number one in the research publications output.
In a nutshell, Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Manipal, stands as one of the finest centers for higher learning, acclaimed internationally for its excellence in dental education as well as oral health care, complying with the institutional mission set forth.