Dental Assistant Resume Example and Writing Tips

Average Salary for Dental Assistant Job

***Data are taken from payscale.com

We have prepared some important tips about Education, Certification, Skills, etc. that can help you improve your Dental Assistant Resume.

Dental Assistant Education and Certification

If you want to have the opportunity to work in 39 states you should obtain a national dental assisting certification of the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB).

DANB’s CDA certification is made up of three component exams: General Chairside Assisting (GC), Radiation Health and Safety (RHS) and Infection Control (ICE).

You can be admitted to pass DANB’s CDA certification exams in the following cases:

1. You have a formal education.
2. You hold a high school diploma or equivalent and have a minimum of 3,500 hours of approved work experience.

You can also have dental assistant certification online. Download a CDA application packet on the DANB website and take the exam at a Pearson VUE test center, which are located nationwide.

10 Best Dental Assistant Schools

• College of Southern Nevada, Las Vegas, NV
• Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC
• Florida State College at Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL
• Daytona State College, Daytona Beach, FL
• University of Alaska Anchorage, Anchorage, AK
• University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
• Indian River State College, Fort Pierce, FL

10 Online Dental Assistant Schools

Nowadays many career schools and colleges have begun to offer distance-based and online dental assisting degrees. Some of the best Dental Assistant education programms are in the next universities: 

• Indiana University – Purdue University – Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN
• Rutgers University – New Brunswick, New Brunswick, NJ
• University of Georgia, Athens, GA
• The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL
• Hudson Valley Community College, Troy, NY
• Southeast Community College Area, Lincoln, NE
• Eastern Iowa Community College District, Davenport, IA
• California State University – San Marcos, San Marcos, CA
• Madison Area Technical College, Madison, WI
• Sinclair Community College, Dayton, OH

Dental Assistant Job Description

The dental assistant’s role is to help the dentist prepare the necessary tools and equipment, assist during surgery, prepare patients for the procedures, inform them as well as documentation and scheduling.

Dental Assistant Job Duties

• Performs instrument exchange procedures for operative dentistry (including general dentistry, pedodontics, prosthetics, orthodontics, periodontics and oral surgery).
• Prepares dental restorative and prosthetic materials.
• Assists in oral surgery as required.
• Ensures compliance with OSHA regulations on infection control.
• Takes digital x-rays to ensure correct diagnosis.
• Schedules appointments: prepares a variety of requests for patient diagnostic testing.
• Illustrates proper preventive dental hygiene to patients.
• Monitors oral sedation or general anesthesia procedures to ensure patient comfort.
• Plans the set-up of the instruments according to the scheduled procedures to maximize operations.
• Assists with sterilization and dispensing to ensure efficient operations.

Dental Assistant Job Requirements

• Knowledge of dental assisting operative procedures.
• Interpersonal skills.
• Ability to understand and carry out written and oral instructions.
• Successfully completed the Infection Control Examination (ICE).
• Successfully completed the Dental Radiation Health and Safety examination administered by the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB).
• Shall possess specialty training from a licensed dentist and/or certification from an accredited Dental Assistant school.
• Minimum of 2 years of experience.
• Ability to work cooperatively with colleagues and supervisory staff at all levels.

Dental Assistant Primary Responsibilities

• Assist the dentist during a variety of treatment procedures.
• Set up and breakdown operatory post treatment.
• Take dental radiographs (x-rays).
• Manage infection control – prepare and sterilize instruments and equipment.
• Provide patients with instructions for oral care following all dental treatment procedures.
• Educate patients on appropriate oral hygiene strategies to maintain oral health.
• Perform various office tasks as necessary.

Action Words for Dental Assistant Resume

Common Certificates for Dental Assistant Resume

• APTA
• CAPTE
• CCVT
• CFMT
• CPR and First Aid
• ECS
• FSBTE
• MPTE
• PTA

Elise (JobDiva)

Elise is a highly-skilled career writer with over 15 years of experience in resume writing and creating a story-telling cover letter. Her approach in creating compelling cv for each job seeker demonstrated 100% success as an invitation for an interview.