FAAID Certification

What the FAAID Credential Actually Is

FAAID stands for Fellow of the American Academy of Implant Dentistry. It is the authorized designation AAID grants to licensed dental practitioners who demonstrate surgical and prosthetic competence in implant dentistry through a rigorous case-based examination. If you are new to the terminology, our explainers on what FAAID is and what FAAID stands for cover the basics; this article focuses on the certification path itself.

Unlike a multiple-choice licensing test, the Fellow examination is a peer-evaluated oral and case examination. You do not simply recall facts. You present, explain, and defend real treatment you personally provided. That distinction shapes everything about preparation: your raw material is your own clinical record, and your skill is articulating the reasoning behind every decision. For a deeper look at the designation's meaning, see what FAAID certification is.

How the Virtual Oral/Case Examination Works

The Fellow examination is administered virtually by AAID examiner teams. According to the AAID credentialing guide, the session runs approximately three hours, and candidates should budget up to four hours once equipment testing is included.

The two halves of the examination

• Five standardized clinical cases: You discuss cases presented by the examiners, demonstrating diagnostic and treatment-planning judgment.
• Five submitted cases: You defend cases from your own practice, each on a different patient, in front of the examiners.

Technical and language requirements

You need an Internet-capable computer with a webcam, plus a cellular device, and you are expected to complete an equipment check before exam day. The examination is conducted in English. An AAID-supplied interpreter may be arranged, but at the candidate's expense, so raise that early rather than the week before.

Who Qualifies to Sit for the Fellow Examination

The Fellow path is built for experienced clinicians. The core requirements are:

• A license as a dental practitioner.
• Either current standing as an AAID Associate Fellow in good standing, or a passing result on Associate Fellow Part 1 plus satisfaction of the Fellow eligibility criteria.
• At least five years of experience in implant dentistry.
• At least 400 hours of implant continuing education, including 75 participatory or hands-on hours.
• Demonstrated surgical and prosthetic competence, with the candidate having provided surgical and/or prosthetic treatment for each submitted case.

A qualifying full-time program in implant dentistry, periodontics, oral and maxillofacial surgery, or prosthodontics lasting at least one year satisfies the educational requirement. Confirm exactly how your training maps to this language before you invest in case documentation. Our FAAID requirements guide walks through the eligibility checklist in more detail.

The Five Submitted Case Types

The submitted-case portfolio is the heart of your application, and the categories are prescribed. Each case must have a final prosthesis in function for at least one year by the examination period, use implants at least 3 mm in diameter, and include a narrative, diagnostic photographs and radiographs, and patient releases.

The Four Case-Report Headings

Preparation is organized around the principal headings of the Fellow Examination Case Report Outline, found on pages 18 to 19 of AAID's guidebook, Demystifying the AAID Credentialing Examinations (2024 copyright). Be clear about what these are: required case-report preparation headings, not an official exam-domain count and not an exhaustive blueprint of everything an examiner might ask. No weights are published for them. For a heading-by-heading walkthrough, see our FAAID exam domains guide.

Be aware that AAID's FAQ page still contains an older submitted-case and rating scheme. The current five-case requirements take precedence, so do not plan from the legacy FAQ.

Fees, Windows, and the Current Cycle

Fee mechanics, and a discrepancy to resolve

AAID's published fee information is not fully consistent, so verify your route before paying. The live AAID fee schedule lists USD 1,085 for the Fellow examination, USD 599 for the alternative route after Associate Fellow Part 1, and USD 400 for re-examination. The linked 2024 guide instead lists USD 1,185, USD 699 for substitution, and USD 500 for re-examination. Because these official schedules conflict, confirm the applicable figure with AAID directly. The guide describes substitution as an alternative fee, not an additional charge.

For budgeting beyond the exam fee, including case-preparation costs, see our FAAID certification cost breakdown.

Timeline for this cycle

As of October 7, 2026, the next application window opens in November 2026 and closes February 1, 2027. The Fellow oral/case examination is scheduled virtually for April 3, 2027. Work backward from the February deadline: your case narratives, images, and releases should be essentially complete before the window opens. More scheduling detail is in our FAAID exam dates guide.

Sequencing Your Preparation

Generic study habits matter less here than the order in which you assemble your case material. A practical sequence, tied to the four report headings, looks like this:

The oral rehearsal phase deserves the most time you can give it, because defending a case under questioning is a different skill from writing it up. For broader planning ideas, our FAAID study guide expands on structuring the months before the exam, and the FAAID cheat sheet condenses the key facts into a single review page.

After the Exam: Election, Induction, and Maintenance

Passing the oral examination is not the final step. Election to Fellowship follows approval by the Admissions and Credentials Board and a vote of the Board of Trustees. Successful candidates must then attend an Annual Business Meeting for induction within two years.

Maintaining the credential requires active AAID membership. Regular Fellow dues are USD 695 annually, payable January 1. Membership governance is set out in the AAID Bylaws, most recently amended November 15, 2025.

What Is and Is Not Publicly Known About Scoring

Candidates often ask about difficulty and passing standards. No current numeric passing threshold or pass-rate statistic has been verified for the Fellow examination, so any specific percentage you see quoted elsewhere should be treated with caution. What we can say is that the difficulty comes from the format: a prolonged, live defense of your own work, assessed by experienced examiners. Our articles on how hard the FAAID exam is, the FAAID pass rate, and the FAAID passing score explain what is and is not documented.

Where the Credential Fits in Your Career

The Fellow designation signals peer-validated competence in both the surgical and prosthetic sides of implant dentistry. It is most relevant to general dentists, periodontists, oral and maxillofacial surgeons, and prosthodontists who place or restore implants and want a credential built on their own documented cases rather than a written test alone. It may support referral relationships, practice positioning, and professional standing. We do not publish earnings figures for it because no verified data supports specific numbers; see our discussion of whether the FAAID certification is worth it and the FAAID salary guide for a qualitative treatment, and FAAID jobs for how the designation relates to practice roles.

If you are still orienting yourself, FAAID training outlines the educational routes that lead toward eligibility. For general exam-readiness resources, you can also explore the FAAID Exam Prep practice test site.

Frequently Asked Questions