2. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

3. Overview: Dental hygienists remove soft and hard deposits from teeth, teach patients how to practice good oral hygiene, and provide other preventive dental care. They examine patients’ teeth and gums and record the presence of diseases or abnormalities. They use an assortment of tools to complete tasks. Hand and rotary instruments and ultrasonic devices are used to clean and polish teeth, including removing calculus, stains, and plaque. They use digital and traditional x-ray machines to take and develop dental pictures. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center

4. Overview (continued): Dental hygienists help patients develop and maintain good oral health. They may explain the relationship between diet and oral health or inform patients how to select toothbrushes and show them how to brush and floss their teeth. Hygienists sometimes make a diagnosis and other times may prepare clinical and laboratory diagnostic tests for the dentist to interpret. In some states, hygienists are licensed to administer local anesthetics using syringes. Hygienists sometimes work chair side with the dentist during treatment. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

5. Preparation: Prospective dental hygienists must become licensed in the state in which they wish to practice. Dental hygienists must be licensed by the state in which they practice. Nearly all States require candidates to graduate from an accredited dental hygiene school and pass both a written and clinical examination. In addition, most States require an examination on the legal aspects of dental hygiene practice. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

6. Preparation (continued): The American Dental Association's Commission on Dental Accreditation is the nationally recognized accrediting authority for dental education accreditation. There are hundreds of dental hygiene programs currently accredited in the United States. Most dental hygiene programs grant an associate degree, although some also offer a certificate, a bachelor’s degree, or a master’s degree. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

7. Preparation (continued): A minimum of an associate degree or certificate in dental hygiene is generally required for practice in a private dental office, so working toward an associate degree is recommended over a certificate program. A full list of accredited programs is on the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center website. Sloan Career Cornerstone Center OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

8. Day in the Life: Dental hygienists work in clean, well-lighted offices. Important health safeguards include strict adherence to proper radiological procedures and the use of appropriate protective devices when administering anesthetic gas.Dental hygienists also wear safety glasses, surgical masks, and gloves to protect themselves and patients from infectious diseases. Flexible scheduling is a distinctive feature of this job. Full-time, part-time, evening, and weekend schedules are widely available. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

9. Day in the Life (continued): Dentists frequently hire hygienists to work only 2 or 3 days a week, so hygienists may hold jobs in more than one dental office. More than half of all dental hygienists worked part time, or less than 35 hours a week. Dental hygienists should work well with others because they work closely with dentists and dental assistants as well as dealing directly with patients. Hygienists also need good manual dexterity, because they use dental instruments within a patient’s mouth, with little room for error. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

10. Earnings: According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, median annual wages of dental hygienists is $66,570. The middle 50 percent earned between $55,220 and $78,990. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $44,180, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $91,470. According to a 2009 survey conducted by the American Dental Hygienist Association, about half of all hygienists reported receiving some form of employment benefits. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

11. Employment: Dental hygienists hold about 174,100 jobs in the United States. Because multiple job holding is common in this field, the number of jobs exceeds the number of hygienists. Almost all jobs for dental hygienists were in offices of dentists. A very small number worked for employment services, offices of physicians, or other industries. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

12. Career Path Forecast: According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, dental hygienists rank among the fastest growing occupations, and job prospects are expected to remain excellent. Employment of dental hygienists is expected to grow 36 percent through 2018, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. This projected growth ranks dental hygienists among the fastest growing occupations, in response to increasing demand for dental care and more use of hygienists. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

13. Career Path Forecast (continued): The demand for dental services will grow because of population growth, older people increasingly retaining more teeth, and a growing emphasis on preventative dental care. To help meet this demand, facilities that provide dental care, particularly dentists' offices, will increasingly employ dental hygienists, often to perform services that have been performed by dentists in the past. OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist

14. Resources: More information about a career as a Dental Hygienist is available at the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center, including accredited university programs, suggestions for precollege students, a free monthly careers newsletter, and a PDF summarizing the field.Dental HygienistSloan Career Cornerstone Center precollege students newsletterPDF summarizing the field Associations:  American Dental AssociationAmerican Dental Association  American Dental Education AssociationAmerican Dental Education Association  American Dental Hygienists’ AssociationAmerican Dental Hygienists’ Association  Student American Dental Hygienists’ AssociationStudent American Dental Hygienists’ Association OverviewOverview – Preparation – Day in the Life – Earnings – Employment – Career Path Forecast – ResourcesPreparationDay in the LifeEarningsEmploymentCareer Path ForecastResources Developed by the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.Sloan Career Cornerstone Center Dental Hygienist