Purpose: This study aimed to determine how the general course experiences of dental students in Chile and the satisfaction or frustration of their basic psychological needs influenced their passion for studying, and how passion influenced students’ study strategies. Methods: A correlational cross-sectional study was conducted at 3 Chilean dental schools between April and June 2018, in which 935 undergraduate students participated. Students responded to Spanish-language versions of 4 psychological scale tools: the Course Experience Questionnaire, the Basic Psychological Needs Satisfac¬tion and Frustration Scale, the Passion Scale, and the Revised Study Process Questionnaire. Data were analysed with bivariate correlations and structural equation modelling, controlling for age, gender, year of study, and type of university. Results: Students’ general course experiences (i.e., good teaching, clear goals and standards, appropriate assessment, and appropriate workload) positively predicted basic need satisfaction and negatively predicted need frustration. Need satisfaction positively predicted passion in students, with stronger scores for harmonious passion. Basic need frustration positively predicted obsessive passion and negatively predicted harmonious passion. Harmonious passion positively predicted deep study strategies and negatively predicted surface study strategies, while obsessive passion positively predicted both deep and surface study strategies. Conclusion Dental students’ optimal course experiences positively influenced the satisfaction of their basic psychological needs, which favoured harmonious over obsessive passion. In turn, harmonious over obsessive passion positively influenced deep study strategies. Therefore, efforts should be made to provide course experiences that support students’ basic needs and harmonious passion for studying, both in classroom and chair-side teaching.