No, 40 is not too old for dental school.
There's no age limit for dental school admissions and many non traditional dental school students begin dental school in their 40s and even 50s.
Although you must also weigh the financial costs, physical demands and substantial time it takes to go through dental school.
You must be willing to commit to the time and study for dental school.
For the Prerequisites and school, expect 7 years to 8 years total if you still need undergraduate prerequisites, the (DAT) Dental Admission Test, and 4 years of dental school.
If you start dental school at age 40, you will likely graduate dental school by age 47 to 48 years old.
And many dentists still practice their dentistry well into their 60s and 70s, which give you a 20 to 30 year dentistry career after graduation.
For the financial factors of dental school you also need to factor in the high debt and retirement timeline.
Dental school tuition and living expenses also often exceed $250,000.00 to $500,000.00 total.
And starting dental school later means less peak earning years to pay off large student loans while also simultaneously saving for retirement.
Working in dentistry also has physical and personal demands that you must also take into consideration.
Dentistry requires intense manual dexterity and can also cause chronic neck strain, back strain and hand strain over time.
And balancing family or financial obligations in your 40s alongside of rigorous dental coursework is also harder than doing it in your 20s.
And mature dental schools students also often possess superior discipline, time management skills and real world communication skills that patients and admissions committees value.
Dentists will always remain in demand so it can be a great career to get into even at age 40.