Are a dental assistant and a dental hygienist the same thing?

No, a dental assistant and a dental hygienist are not the same occupation. Many people make that mistake. A dental hygienist has to be licensed but a dental assistant does not. A dental hygienist usually has to have at least a 2-year degree and many have a 4 year degree. A dental assistant will go to school for 9 to 11 months. Many of the dental assistant’s and hygienist’s job duties are the same but the hygienist’s duties vary with the education and removal of hardened substances on the patient’s teeth.

Do dental assistants have to be licensed?

No, a dental assistant does not have to be license in order to work in a dentist office. Many dentist offices will train their assistants. If you are not a certified dental assistant and cannot afford to take the time to attend classes you can still be a dental assistant. You may not get the same initial rate of pay but you can still learn the trade.

Will I have a degree or will it be a certificate?

That depends on whether or not you are going to school to be a dental assistant or a dental hygienist. Dental assistants typically get certified whereas a hygienist gets a diploma from a two or four year college. You will have to decide which career path before you can make plans for a degree or a certificate.

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This entry was posted on Monday, April 7th, 2008 at 11:49 am and is filed under Career & Education. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.