Dental Hygiene

Career Description

Dental hygienists are licensed health care professionals who promote oral health and wellness. Dental hygienists educate patients regarding oral hygiene and preventive oral care, remove soft and hard deposits from teeth, and provide other preventive dental care. Hygienists examine patients’ oral cavity—head, neck, lips, cheeks, tongue, teeth and gums—recording the presence of diseases or abnormalities. After assessing a patient’s conditions, they develop a dental hygiene diagnosis. Hygienists remove plaque, calculus, and stains from teeth, expose and develop dental X-rays, and apply cavity-preventive agents, such as fluorides and pit and fissure sealants. In some states, they also administer local anesthetics and nitrous oxide; place and carve filling materials, temporary fillings, and periodontal dressings; remove sutures; perform root-planning as a periodontal therapy; and smooth and polish restorations. Hygienists may not diagnose diseases, but they can prepare clinical and laboratory diagnostic tests for the dentist to interpret. Hygienists may also work chair-side with the dentist during treatment. Flexible scheduling is a distinctive feature of this job. Full-time, part-time, evening, and weekend schedules are widely available. Dentists frequently hire hygienists to work only two or three days a week, so hygienists may hold jobs in more than one dental office. Dental Hygienists make an average yearly salary of $72,330 (bls.gov).

Academic Factors for Dental Hygiene School Admission

There are various levels of certification for dental hygiene. The most common is the bachelor’s degree. As such, many students desiring to pursue a degree in dental hygiene will choose an undergraduate institution that has such a program, or transfer to one after completing some classes at another university. Students may choose any major, as long as they also complete the prerequisite courses for admittance to a dental hygiene program (either as a transfer student or as a postBaccalaureate). Some dental hygiene programs may require completion of the Health Occupations Aptitude Test. This is not always a requirement however, and should be investigated thoroughly before being pursued.

Sample Prerequisites

*Remember, this list is a sample and may not be adequate for every school. Consult with your selected schools for actual requirements and better accuracy. Pay close attention to lab requirements and specific credit hours required.

English WRTG 150 Freshman Writing
Psychology PSYCH 111 General Psychology
Social Sciences SOC 111 Introductory Sociology
Statistics STAT 121 Principles of Statistics
Microbiology MMBIO 221/222 General Microbiology with Lab
Chemistry CHEM 101 Introductory General Chemistry
Nutrition and Food Science NDFS 100 Essentials of Human Nutrition
Public Speaking STDEV 150 Public Speaking
Anatomy & Physiology
- PDBIO 220 Human Anatomy/Lab
- PDBIO 305 Human Physiology
- PDBIO 363 Adv. Physiology Lab

Application Process

There is no standardized application process for dental hygiene programs. Each program must be applied to individually. Most programs have a website with downloadable applications or instructions on how to apply. Be sure to include all elements of each application, as they may vary slightly from school to school.