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Dental Assistant Career Guide

If you are strong stomached, compassionate and understanding then you may thrive as a dental assistants.

Dental assistants are responsible for helping dentists and hygienists with patient care and administrative tasks. They are key members of any dental team and play a huge role in keeping dental practices running smoothly and efficiently by carrying out tasks such as scheduling appointments, sterilizing instruments or performing x-rays.

There are several paths to becoming a dental assistant. In some states, dental assistants are required to  graduate from an accredited program and pass and exam. In other states, there are no formal requirements and dental assistants can learn all their duties and skills on the job.

Being a dental assistant is so much more than assisting! I love the variety of each day, patient, and every case! Being chairside to make patients feel special is the best feeling in the world!

Dental Assistant Career Ratings

Income

Career
Growth

Personal Growth

Contribution

Influence

Job Profiles

Real-Life Dental Assistant Job Profiles

Below is a list of links to anonymous job profiles of REAL PEOPLE who have filled out our survey and offered to share their insights with our users about their job in the Dental Assistant field.
ID Job Title Gender Age Earnings City & State Date
33843 Expanded Functions Dental Assistant Female 42 $30,000 Levittown, PA 01/01/2010
33820 Dental Technician Female 31 $27,000 Petersburg, VA 01/01/2010
33398 Efda Dental Assistant Female 26 $20,000 Winter Garden, FL 01/01/2010
33084 Dental Assistant Female 35 $14,000 Bossier City, LA 01/01/2010
32625 Dental Assistant Female 44 $15,500 Jacksonville, NY 01/01/2010

Overview

What a dental assistant does

Dental assistants are responsible for helping busy dentists with patient care and administrative tasks. They are key members of any dental team and play a huge role in keeping dental practices running smoothly and efficiently. They have many tasks, including:

  • Ensuring that patients are comfortable in their dental chairs
  • Explaining procedures to patients 
  • Sterilizing instruments
  • Assisting dentists with treatments
  • Keeping records up-to-date
  • Scheduling appointments
  • Resolving any  billing issues

Furthermore, depending on state regulations, dental assistants may polish and clean teeth, apply sealant and fluoride, and administer topical anesthetics. Their job requires them to be knowledgeable about safety procedures and wear safety gear to protect them from germs and diseases.

Why they are needed

Dental assistants play an integral part in ensuring that every patient gets exceptional care and has the best experience. They take a huge strain of busy dentists by reassuring patients, performing administrative duties and keeping the practice tidy. Without dental assistants, dental surgeries would not be the calm and welcoming place that they often appear to be!

Pros and cons of a career as a dental assistant:

Pros:

  • You’ll never be bored as there is a lot of variety in the work of a dental assistant
  • You get to interact with lots of different people every day
  • Only a short amount of training is required
  • The predicted job growth is good, meaning that there should be plenty of job opportunities
  • There is good earning potential
  • Dental assistants tend to work in calm, clean and quiet workplaces
  • There are lots of career advancement opportunities

Cons:

  • Can be pretty gory, as dental assistants will need to clean up puss, saliva and even blood
  • Dental assistants might not always receive the recognition they deserve
  • Dental assistants may have to bend over or hold other awkward positions for long periods of time, which can cause headaches, backaches, neck pain or shoulder pain.
  • It can be a stressful, as dental assistants may be running around, working on multiple tasks and dealing with difficult people!

Employability

Job market

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment of dental assistants is projected to grow 7 percent from 2019 to 2029, which is faster than the average for all occupations. This growth in employment is expected because ongoing research linking oral health and general health will continue to increase the demand for preventive dental services. As the demand for dentists increases, so will the demand to hire dental assistants to complete routine tasks so that dentists can work more efficiently.

Furthermore, as people are expected to keep more of their original teeth than they did in previous generations, the need to maintain and treat teeth will lead to a continued increase in the need for dental care, and thus dental assistants.

Career paths

There are several paths to becoming a dental assistant:

  • Some states require dental assistants to graduate from an accredited program and pass and exam. These programs are offered at community colleges or at vocational or technical schools. These programs often take about 1 year to complete and lead to a certified diploma.
  • In other states, there are no formal requirements and dental assistants can learn all their duties and skills on the job. They will be taught by hygienists, dentists or other experienced dental assistants all the terminology they need to know. They will also learn how to interact with patients and other activities that are necessary to help keep the dental office running smoothly.

Example Job Titles for Dental Assistant

Below is a list of common job titles in the Dental Assistant field. Click the links below for more information about these job titles, or view the next section for actual real-life job profiles.

Benefits & Conditions

Income and benefits

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for dental assistants was $40,080 in 2019. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $27,980 and the highest 10 percent earned more than $56,930.

The top paying industry was the government, where the median annual salary was $42,960. This is followed by offices of dentists ($40,120) and then offices of physicians ($37,570).

Autonomy and Flexibility

The level of autonomy a dental assistant is not going to be particularly high. Ultimately, they are there to assist dentists and follow their instructions and decisions. Autonomy may increase slightly as dental assistants gain more experience and knowledge. Flexibility is likely to be slightly higher, as often dental assistants can work quite flexible hours.

Locations and commute

According to Zippia, the best states to be a dental assistant, based on salary and total number of jobs available, were:

  1. Oregon, where the average annual salary is $42,146
  2. Minnesota, where the average annual salary is $39,475
  3. Alaska, where the average annual salary is $40,515
  4. New Hampshire, where the average annual salary is $40,575
  5. Vermont, where the average annual salary is $40,194

The worst states for dental assistants are Oklahoma, West Virginia, New Mexico, Utah and Mississippi.

Work environment

90% of dental assistants in the United States were employed by offices of dentists. 2% were employed by offices of physicians and 2% by the government.

Often, dental assistants will work under the supervision of dentists or dental hygienists. They often wear safety glasses, surgical masks and protective gloves to protect themselves against infectious diseases they may receive from patients.

Career Satisfaction

Common Matching Personality Types

Which personalities tend to succeed and thrive in Dental Assistant careers? Based on our research, there is a relatively strong positive correlation between the following personality types and Dental Assistant career satisfaction. This doesn’t mean that there aren’t many exceptions, of course, but if you fit into one of the following personality types then we suggest you give strong consideration to a career in Dental Assistant.

16 Types (Myers-Briggs)

Big Five (OCEAN)

  • None

DISC

  • None

Enneagram

Holland Codes (RIASEC)

Personality types

Dental assistants are likely to be a Myers-Briggs ISFJ personality type. ISFJ’s, or otherwise known as the ‘protector’, are empathetic and gentle. They have a genuine interest in caring for others. Much of a dental assistants duties are focused around looking after others and ensuring they are safe, and therefore these qualities are very important.

Accomplishment and mastery

A career as a dental assistant is pretty easy to enter, in many states only a short period of on-the-job training is required. Therefore, the sense of mastery for dental assistants is often fairly high to begin with as they quickly gather duties and responsibilities. Similarly, throughout their career, dental assistants will help patients each and every day, meaning that the sense of accomplishment is likely to remain high. However, they are often always supervised by dentists or hygienists, so there is a limit to the accomplishment and mastery of dental assistants.

Meaning and contribution

As the demand for dental care is only set to increase over the coming years, the work of dental assistants is highly meaningful for the growing population. Dental assistant take the pressure off dentists and hygienists and help ensure that a dental surgery runs efficiently. They also work hard to ensure that all dental patients are cared for correctly.

Life fit

Most dental assistants are full-time employees. However, it is possible for assistants to obtain part-time work. Their hours can include weekends or evenings, although they typically work standard daytime shifts during weekdays.

Who will thrive in this career?

You will truly thrive as a dental assistant is are empathetic and compassionate. As I am sure you know, so many people dread going to the dentist. Dental assistants need to be on hand to lend a sympathetic, and understanding, ear. Similarly, you likely need to have a strong stomach in order to thrive as a dental assistant – blood, puss, saliva, bile… you’ll have to witness it all!

Thriving dental assistants are also likely to be highly organised. Often, they will need to keep a list of appointments and ensure patient records are kept neat and accessible. Thriving dental assistants are also likely to be natural communicators. They need to be able to work as part of a team and build trusting and strong relationships with both patients, and with dental assistants.

Who will struggle in this career?

Firstly, if you are not physically fit then you may struggle to keep up with the demands of job, which may involve bending over for long periods of time. Those who are afraid of blood and gore may also struggle as a dental assistant. Similarly, those who do not thrive off spending a whole day interacting with other people, either patients or work colleagues, will struggle in this career.

Requirements

Quick Glance

Skills and talents

Dental assistants will need skills and talents such as:

  • Interpersonal skills, as dental assistants must be able to form trusting relationships with patients, and with their coworkers
  • Teamwork skills, as dental assistants will work as part of a team with dentists or hygienists.
  • Physical stamina, as dental assistants may have to stand up or bend over in awkward positions for long periods of time
  • Patience, as working with people who are scared of the dentist can be frustrating at times
  • Listening skills, as dental assistants must be able to pay attention to patients and other healthcare workers. They may also need to follow directions from dentists and hygienists
  • Organizational skills, as dental assistants need to maintain patient records, schedules and help with the smooth running of a dental surgery

Education

There are several paths to becoming a dental assistant. In some states, dental assistants are required to  graduate from an accredited program and pass and exam. In other states, there are no formal requirements and dental assistants can learn all their duties and skills on the job.

Certifications

Licensing requirements vary by state. Most states requiring dental assistants to be certified. In some states dental assistants complete their education within a year and may need to pass the Certified Dental Assistant Examination. In other states, dental assistants are allowed to practice with only on-the-job training.

How to Become

Summary

Dental assistants are responsible for helping dentists and hygienists with patient care and administrative tasks. They are key members of any dental team and play a huge role in keeping dental practices running smoothly and efficiently by carrying out tasks such as scheduling appointments, sterilizing instruments or performing x-rays.

Immediate action

High school students who are interested in a career as a dental assistant should take courses in anatomy, biology, and chemistry.

Education and learning

There are several paths to becoming a dental assistant. In some states, dental assistants are required to  graduate from an accredited program and pass and exam. In other states, there are no formal requirements and dental assistants can learn all their duties and skills on the job.

Skill development

Dental assistants learn many of the skills they need through on-the-job training. As they progress through their career, they will further progress their skills and knowledge.

FAQs

Ask a Question

Have a question about Dental Assistant careers? If so, our mentors would love to help! Just click on a mentor’s profile below and then fill out the “Ask a Question” form on that page. Your question will then be emailed to the mentor, who can then email you a reply.

ID Job Title Gender Age Earnings City & State Date
33843 Expanded Functions Dental Assistant Female 42 $30,000 Levittown, PA 01/01/2010
33820 Dental Technician Female 31 $27,000 Petersburg, VA 01/01/2010
33398 Efda Dental Assistant Female 26 $20,000 Winter Garden, FL 01/01/2010
33084 Dental Assistant Female 35 $14,000 Bossier City, LA 01/01/2010
32625 Dental Assistant Female 44 $15,500 Jacksonville, NY 01/01/2010

Resources