Overview of responsibilities

Assistants greatly increase the efficiency of the dentist in the delivery of quality oral health care and are valuable members of the dental care team. If you have strong communication skills, enjoy working with your hands, as well as your mind, and want a career with responsibility, dental assisting is for you.

In addition to assisting the dentist during a variety of procedures, dental assistants have other specific tasks to perform including (but not limited to):

• Taking and developing dental radiographs (X-rays)
• Sterilizing instruments and equipment, coronal polishing
• Taking impressions of patients' teeth
  
   

Education

Most dental assisting programs take nine to eleven months to complete. Check with the school of your choice to see if they offer accelerated training, part-time education programs or training via distance education. Some dentists may provide hands on training as well.

Wage data

Source: Wisconsin's WORKnet, 2005

Dental assisting schools in Wisconsin 

Blackhawk Technical College
Janesville, WI
www.blackhawk.edu

Concordia University Wisconsin
Mequon, WI
www.cuw.edu

Fox Valley Technical College
Appleton, WI
www.fvtc.edu

Gateway Technical College
Kenosha, WI
www.gtc.edu

Lakeshore Technical College
Cleveland, WI
www.gotoltc.com

Madison Area Technical College
www.matcmadison.edu

Milwaukee Area Technical College
Milwaukee, WI
www.matc.edu

Northeast Wisconsin Technical College
Green Bay, WI
www.nwtc.edu

Waukesha County Technical College
Pewaukee, WI
www.wctc.edu

Western Technical College
La Crosse, WI
www.westerntc.edu

For more information

For more information about dental assisting write to or call:

American Dental Assistants Association (ADAA)
203 North LaSalle Street
Suite 1320
Chicago, Illinois 60601-1225
312-541-1550
FAX: 312-541-1496
http://www.dentalassistant.org

More information on a career in dental assisting can also be found on-line at www.ada.org.