Dental assistants help dentists deliver dental care to patients by taking on a mix of patient care and administrative duties. Their scope of practice depends on state regulations, but common responsibilities of a dental assistant include:
- Prepare patients for treatments and procedures
- Take x-rays
- Recordkeeping
- Scheduling appointments
- Assist patients in billing and payment
- Sterilizing instruments, and assisting dentists during procedures
- Taking medical history, blood pressure, and pulse before a procedure
- Talk to patients about proper oral hygiene
What dental assistants do on a daily basis depends on the specific roles and responsibilities included in the job description, which can vary by employer.
Learn more about our dental assisting program
* Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics 2022 / Occupational Outlook Handbook 2022. BLS estimates do not represent entry-level wages and/or salaries. Multiple factors, including prior experience, age, geography market in which you want to work and degree field, will affect career outcomes and earnings. Herzing neither represents that its graduates will earn the average salaries calculated by BLS for a particular job nor guarantees that graduation from its program will result in a job, promotion, salary increase or other career growth.