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Hi everyone! I’m a foreign-trained dentist, and I recently took the INBDE on Feb 2 and Feb 4, 2026. I passed my exam! I wanted to share my study breakdown in case it helps anyone preparing for the exam.
Study timeline:
I studied for about 3 months with a consistent daily schedule. Most days, I studied from 6:00 AM to 11:30 AM, then again from 1:00 PM to 5:30 PM. Most of my main studying and question solving was done during these hours.
I usually started my mornings with the Booster daily warm-up questions, which helped me get into the study mindset and quickly review high-yield concepts before starting the main study session.
After dinner, I usually spent some time reviewing the Booster cheat sheets of the topics I studied that day. This helped reinforce the key points without doing heavy studying late at night.
Main study resource:
INBDE Booster
What I used the most:
Study strategy:
My main strategy was doing as many practice questions as possible and carefully reviewing the explanations for both right and wrong answers. If I didn’t understand something, I went back to the Booster notes or videos to review the topic again.
I also used mnemonics to help memorize difficult pathology syndromes and pharmacology concepts, which made it easier to recall information during practice questions and on the exam.
Some topics I focused on more were:
The exam felt very case-based, and many questions required clinical reasoning rather than memorization. I felt that practicing questions beforehand really helped with understanding how questions are asked.
Like many people, I walked out of the exam feeling unsure because you tend to remember the questions you think you got wrong. But try not to stress too much afterward.
Advice:
Study timeline:
I studied for about 3 months with a consistent daily schedule. Most days, I studied from 6:00 AM to 11:30 AM, then again from 1:00 PM to 5:30 PM. Most of my main studying and question solving was done during these hours.
I usually started my mornings with the Booster daily warm-up questions, which helped me get into the study mindset and quickly review high-yield concepts before starting the main study session.
After dinner, I usually spent some time reviewing the Booster cheat sheets of the topics I studied that day. This helped reinforce the key points without doing heavy studying late at night.
Main study resource:
INBDE Booster
What I used the most:
- Booster study notes
- Booster practice questions
- Booster mock exams
- Booster videos
- Booster cheat sheets
Study strategy:
My main strategy was doing as many practice questions as possible and carefully reviewing the explanations for both right and wrong answers. If I didn’t understand something, I went back to the Booster notes or videos to review the topic again.
I also used mnemonics to help memorize difficult pathology syndromes and pharmacology concepts, which made it easier to recall information during practice questions and on the exam.
Some topics I focused on more were:
- Oral pathology
- Pharmacology
- Patient management and ethics
- Case-based clinical scenarios
The exam felt very case-based, and many questions required clinical reasoning rather than memorization. I felt that practicing questions beforehand really helped with understanding how questions are asked.
Like many people, I walked out of the exam feeling unsure because you tend to remember the questions you think you got wrong. But try not to stress too much afterward.
Advice:
- Do lots of practice questions
- Read explanations carefully
- Focus on understanding concepts
- Stay calm and manage your time
