The UT Health Science Center College of Dentistry was founded in Nashville, Tennessee in 1878. It is the oldest dental college in the South, and the third oldest public college of dentistry in the United States.

The programs in dentistry are accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation, a specialized accrediting body recognized by the Council on the Recognition of Postsecondary Accreditation and by the United States Department of Education. This accreditation is the direct result of extensive periodic evaluation by the commission every seven years. Accreditation permits qualified graduates of the college to make application for all state and regional board examinations in the United States.

As an institution of higher education, the College of Dentistry is fully accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools as part of the regular accreditation process of The University of Tennessee Health Science Center. In addition, the college is a member of the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) and the American Association of Dental Research.