When it comes to INBDE prep, we have first hand experience. Our team has purchased a half dozen different bundles of study material, including three full prep courses, and put them to the test. After a thorough review of each, we rank the top three resources here. Fortunately, none of the winners break the bank, and all offer unique strengths. Find out more below.
To help navigate this lengthy post, we’ve included jump-to links above.
In the video above, team member John dissects each prep package that made our list. Please keep reading for more detail.
In this post, we are only focusing on the three highest-rated prep resources that we’ve looked at and reviewed. We don’t want to overwhelm you with options. And of all the tools we’ve evaluated, our highest-rated course comes from INBDE Bootcamp.
This company just does everything incredibly well. I will give you a quick break down of how this course works before dissecting the major advantages of using their program.
Bootcamp is an asynchronous course—meaning you learn on your own schedule. There are no live classes, workshops, or anything of that nature. Everything is housed in the Bootcamp online portal, and you work through the material in a self-paced fashion.
As for the content itself, there are a few different features, including video lessons, cheat sheets, a question bank with practice problems, short quiz questions called Bites, and one full-length, 500-question mock exam.
All of this content is generally broken out by INBDE subject area into buckets of study material. You access it all from the dashboard in the portal in conjunction with your study plan. Without any direct instructions, this structure would give the program a sort of unorganized feel. However, overarching everything in the course is the study schedule.
Bootcamp provides a 45-day study schedule that guides you through all of their INBDE study material in a very particular order. It’s a checklist-style guide that gives you a day-by-day breakdown of exactly what you need to be completing and when.
For planning purposes, I would venture that an average day takes about 3 to 4 hours to study depending on how fast you move, as well as what topic happens to fall on your schedule that day.
That’s the Cliff Notes version of how this course works. You take it one day at a time for 45 days (assuming you follow their recommended plan) and complete all of the material in the course.
In terms of specific highlights, there are a few big reasons to use the INBDE Bootcamp course. The first reason is their practice material. It is highly realistic of what you’ll see on test day in terms of question difficulty, content, and structure.
You also get more practice problems with INBDE Bootcamp than any other prep provider. Thus, they’re a great option based on practice work alone.
Another reason to use Bootcamp is their video content. They have partnered with Mental Dental to integrate the Mental Dental videos into the Bootcamp program, which is a big value add as they are very good.
These video lectures dive deep into all of the need-to-know material on the exam. They focus on high-yield content and don’t waste your time with unnecessary fluff.
Next, circling back to practice work, it must be called out that Bootcamp has incredibly good problem explanations. Their problem solutions are incredibly clear and offer a ton of value to experiential learners. They’re detailed, yet understandable, and some even include a nice little explainer video.
Then finally, we must address the cost of this course. The main INBDE Bootcamp study package costs $299. This isn’t necessarily the cheapest course in the space (our #2-rated prep resource INBDE Booster is cheaper), but it is a very solid value.
For roughly $300, Bootcamp offers a lot of bang for your buck. Plus, I would just note that despite the pretty approachable price point, Bootcamp still frequently run sales and special promotions, and a lot of times you can find their course on sale, so make sure to check for coupons and codes before buying.
👉 Read Our Full INBDE Bootcamp Review
Our second highest-rated INBDE prep resource comes from INBDE Booster. To be honest, their prep course is a lot like Bootcamp’s bundle of study material, but priced about $60 or so cheaper. Let me break down how the Booster course works.
Like Bootcamp, all of the study material in the INBDE Booster course is generally broken out by topic. There are seven primary testable subjects, and the content is all bucketed into these groups. This means that there are modules for ethics & behavior, pharmacology, patient management, diagnosis & disorders, fields of dentistry, anatomy, and research.
Then, within each of these buckets there is some combination of study tools. This includes question banks, study notes, video lessons, cheat sheets, and flashcards. For example, under the anatomy bucket, you get a question bank, streamable video lectures, study notes, and some flashcards. That’s a pretty typical example.
As for the materials themselves, there are no real surprises there. They are more or less as described:
Plus, Booster also kicks in some case-based scenarios, one full-length mock exam, and a detailed study guide.
On that point of the study schedule, it’s a lot like INBDE Bootcamp’s, but rather being based on a 45-day schedule, it’s an 8-week study schedule. That is one big difference. In any event, it is a very thorough guide and even tells you when to rest. It’s kind of the glue that holds the program together.
In terms of expected study time, an average day can take anywhere from 2 hours to 6 hours depending on what is on the schedule, as well as how fast you’re studying. Thus, do make sure to check ahead each day to see what you have coming up as it does vary. That’s about it for a big picture overview though.
In terms of Booster’s highlight reel, there are four things worth discussing. The first is the Booster study notes and cheat sheets. In short, the Booster written study materials are awesome. Not only do they layer images and graphics into the materials for demonstrating key points, but the notes also find a really nice balance of detail and conciseness. We were big fans.
The second Booster advantage is the fact that most of the Booster practice problems come with two- or three-minute explainer videos which offer useful, digestible insights. These video breakdowns of problems offer a ton of value for reviewing practice sets, and we liked their short videos better than Bootcamp’s.
Third, Booster seems to have slightly better performance metrics and data analysis than others. The data comes from your question bank performance, and we found it really useful for identifying and targeting weak areas.
Then lastly, we have to mention course cost. As noted, the Booster INBDE course is more affordable than Bootcamp’s course. Booster’s one and only course option costs $239, while the comparable course from Bootcamp costs $60 more at $299.
It’s not a massive difference, but if you’re pinching pennies after dental school, it could be enough to change your mind. Plus, like Bootcamp, INBDE Booster is also pretty good about running sales, so make sure to check for discounts.
👉 Read Our Full INBDE Booster Review
The third company on our list of best prep resources and study materials is Kaplan. The thing to know about Kaplan’s prep offering though is that they don’t offer a full scale prep course. We have included them because they offer a really affordable and effective question bank.
If you’re one of those people that feels like you’re pretty well covered on the content side and mostly just need to work a bunch of practice problems to get yourself ready, Kaplan is a great option.
There are no video lectures, prep books, study notes, or cheat sheets with Kaplan; however, if you’re looking for a question bank of realistic problems, it’s a great option.
The Kaplan problems are just as good as the questions from INBDE Bootcamp and Booster. Plus, they also come with some nice detailed answer explanations with graphics.
Best of all perhaps though is that the Kaplan question bank product only costs $150 for one month of access ($200 for three months). Not to mention, a lot of times you can get it on sale, so for a little over $100, it’s a good practice-based study option.
If you just want a simple question bank to get access to practice problems before your exam, think about going with Kaplan. Their problems are very strong in terms of realism, and it’s a great value.
Alternatively, if you’re trying to prep on a budget but want more full scale review and instruction, we really like INBDE Booster. Their course is a lot like INBDE Bootcamp’s, but more affordable. They offer most all of the same features and functionality, but with a slightly better price tag.
Lastly, if you just want our top-rated prep course, that’s INBDE Bootcamp. It is a very good program. From their Mental Dental video lessons, to their problem explanations, to the quality of the practice work, it’s all smartly crafted and the program itself is super sleek. They get our Editor’s Choice pick and overall highest grade.
After using INBDE prep resources from around a half dozen different companies, our highest-rated study material is INBDE Bootcamp. Their prep course gives you everything you need and more. Their practice work is especially good.
Kaplan’s multi-part lecture note book series is by far the best we have found. These two books are incredibly deep and informative. Used in conjunction with the Kaplan question bank, they work well.
There are a number of INBDE study guides and INBDE study plans to be found on the internet, but our favorite is the INBDE Bootcamp study schedule.
Expect to spend 6 to 8 weeks studying for the INBDE exam. Some people can prep in less time, but given the depth and scope of material tested on the INBDE, it is advised to spend at least 45 days preparing yourself.
The best way to study for the INBDE is to commit yourself for one to months without distraction. Invest in a full INBDE prep course, or at the very least a question bank and INBDE book. You will need study material to survive this brutal exam.