Course Dates
Temporary Arizona dental license — start early
Dentists treating live patients in this course who are not licensed in Arizona must obtain a temporary Arizona dental license before the course. Processing takes a minimum of 60 days and up to three months — so the practical registration deadline is two to three months before the course date. Start your application the day you register; we walk every registrant through the process. How the license process works →
Observation-seat registrants treat no patients and need no Arizona license.
The Step Most Implant Education Never Takes
Plenty of courses let you drill a model. Very few walk you to the operatory afterward. This live-patient dental implant course is built on a simple premise: the fastest way to become a safer implant surgeon is a structured progression — didactic education, simulation, cadaver surgery, digital planning — that ends with you placing implants on a live patient under direct instructor supervision.
How the three days build
The program opens with the science and judgment that underpin every case: wound healing, osseointegration, and bone physiology; patient selection and risk assessment; flap design and suturing; extraction-site management and ridge preservation; and the use of bone substitutes and membranes.
From there, the course moves into the digital workflow that modern implant practice runs on: CBCT diagnosis and interpretation, virtual implant planning, intraoral scanning versus analog impressions, and the fabrication of 3D-printed models and surgical guides — the same guided-surgery workflow you'll use on your own cases.
In the cadaver lab, you'll practice implant placement and bone grafting on human anatomy, consolidating flap, drilling, placement, and suturing skills in the most realistic simulation available.
Then comes the difference-maker: qualified attending dentists perform implant surgery on live patients under the direct supervision of our instructors, with case presentation and review built around the surgical sessions. Restorative considerations are addressed throughout, so you leave thinking about the crown, not just the fixture.
Taught small, on purpose
This is boutique, high-touch surgical education. Live surgical participation is capped at six dentists per course, with up to three additional observation seats — and during the live surgical portion, the course runs one instructor for every two operating dentists. An instructor is beside you during your cadaver work and during your live surgery. That proximity is the product.
What to know before registering
Live-patient surgery makes two requirements non-negotiable. First, all non-Arizona U.S.-licensed dentists must obtain a temporary Arizona dental license through the Arizona dental board before the course; the process may take two to three months, so register early and start the application immediately. Second, patient circumstances vary: Implant Education Company does not guarantee the number of implants or procedures each attending dentist will complete.
A dental assistant may attend with you at no charge, and up to three observation-only seats are available per course for dentists who want the full educational experience without the surgical participation.
If you've completed foundational training — ours or anyone's — and you're ready for supervised live surgery, this is the course that gets you there. Dates fill in order of registration; secure your seat below.
Why Dentists Choose This Course
- Perform implant placement on live patients under direct instructor supervision, at one instructor for every two operating dentists — the experience that separates this program from model-and-lecture CE.
- Rehearse first on cadaver specimens: implant placement and bone grafting on human anatomy before any live-patient session.
- Take home a complete guided-surgery workflow: CBCT diagnosis, virtual implant planning, intraoral scanning, and 3D-printed models and surgical guides.
- Ground every clinical step in the biology — wound healing, osseointegration, bone physiology — and the case-selection judgment that keeps early cases safe.
- Bring your dental assistant at no charge, so your clinical team learns the workflow with you.
- Earn 24 CEUs in a course with live surgical participation capped at six dentists, with instructor feedback at every stage from planning through surgery.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, attendees should be able to:
- Discuss wound healing, osseointegration, and bone physiology as they relate to implant treatment.
- Assess implant candidates using structured patient-selection and risk-assessment criteria.
- Plan flap designs and demonstrate suturing techniques appropriate to implant surgery.
- Apply extraction-site management and ridge-preservation principles, including selection of bone substitutes and membranes.
- Interpret CBCT imaging for implant diagnosis and treatment planning.
- Plan implant positions using virtual implant-planning software.
- Differentiate intraoral scanning and analog impression workflows for implant cases.
- Apply 3D printing to the fabrication of models and surgical guides.
- Practice implant placement and bone grafting on cadaver specimens.
- Perform implant placement on live patients under direct instructor supervision, where qualified.
- Present and evaluate implant cases, including restorative considerations, in a structured case review.
- Integrate a planning-to-surgery guided implant workflow into their own practices.
Who Should Attend
This program is for licensed dentists ready to progress from simulation to supervised live-patient surgery. The ideal attendee has foundational implant education — such as our Level 1 dental implant cadaver course — or equivalent clinical exposure, and wants to consolidate planning, digital workflow, and surgical skills in one immersive program. General dentists adding implant placement to their practices are the core audience; implant dentists, prosthodontists, and periodontists seeking a structured guided-surgery and live-patient experience also benefit.
One logistical prerequisite matters: dentists not licensed in Arizona must obtain a temporary Arizona dental license before the course. The process may take two to three months, so plan your registration around it. Live surgical participation is limited to six dentists per course; up to three observation-only seats are available for dentists who prefer to experience the full program without live-patient participation. Overall level: foundational-to-intermediate, with live surgical participation for qualified attendees.
The Course Experience
Didactic and Lecture Education
Wound healing, osseointegration, and bone physiology; patient selection and risk assessment; flap design and suturing; extraction-site management and ridge preservation; bone substitutes and membranes; restorative considerations.
Hands-On Model Training
Implant placement exercises on models, building drilling and placement protocol fluency before cadaver and live sessions.
Cadaver Surgical Training
Implant placement and bone grafting performed on cadaver specimens under instructor guidance.
Digital Planning and 3D Printing
CBCT diagnosis, virtual implant planning, intraoral scanning versus analog impressions, and hands-on work with 3D-printed models and surgical guides.
Supervised Live-Patient Surgery
Qualified attending dentists perform implant placement on live patients under direct instructor supervision, at a ratio of one instructor to every two operating dentists, with surgical participation capped at six dentists per course. (Patient circumstances vary; the number of implants or procedures per attendee is not guaranteed.)
Case Review and Instructor Mentorship
Case presentation and structured review around the surgical sessions, with individualized feedback throughout.
Who Teaches It
Led by Dr. Blake Adams
Implantologist · Main Instructor
Dr. Blake Adams, DDS, is the main instructor. A 2008 graduate of the University of Oklahoma College of Dentistry, he practiced general dentistry for a decade before dedicating his career to implantology — training with Dr. Arun Garg and the Spear Institute and completing a Masters of Implantology through UNLV and the California Implant Institute. That general-practice-to-implantology path shapes how the course is taught: it is built for the working dentist adding surgery to a real practice.
Dr. Barry Hillam serves as an additional instructor, extending supervision capacity across the cadaver stations and live surgical sessions — where the course maintains one instructor for every two operating dentists — so attendees are individually guided during the moments that matter most.
Ready to Operate? Reserve Your Surgical Seat
Tuition is $9,750, with the option to split it into 3 monthly payments of $3,250 (all payments completed before the course start date), and includes 24 CEUs across the didactic, digital, cadaver, and live surgical sessions. Your dental assistant attends at no charge, and an observation-only registration is available for $3,500. Non-Arizona dentists: start your temporary Arizona license application at registration — it can take two to three months. Travel and hotel details are on our Travel page.
Six surgical seats. Three observation seats. A 60-day license runway.
The February 2026 session sold out — and because non-Arizona dentists need a temporary license that can take two to three months, the practical registration deadline is far earlier than the course date.
Or call or text (602) 730-1676
Live-Patient Course FAQs
Do I actually place implants on live patients in this course?
Yes — qualified attending dentists perform implant placement on live patients under direct instructor supervision, after progressing through the didactic, model, digital, and cadaver phases. Surgical participation is capped at six dentists per course, with one instructor for every two operating dentists. Patient circumstances vary, so Implant Education Company does not guarantee the number of implants or procedures each attending dentist will complete.
I'm not licensed in Arizona. Can I still attend?
Yes, but all non-Arizona U.S.-licensed dentists must obtain a temporary Arizona dental license through the Arizona dental board before treating patients in the course. The process may take two to three months — start the application when you register. See how the license process works.
Can my dental assistant attend?
Yes. One dental assistant may attend with you at no charge — valuable if your team will support implant workflows in your practice.
Is there an option that doesn't involve performing live surgery?
Yes. Up to three observation-only seats per course are available at $3,500 for dentists who want the complete educational experience — lectures, planning, and surgical observation — without live-patient participation. Observation registrants earn the same full 24 CEUs.