Dental assisting program at Albany Technical College ranked No. 3 in Georgia

ALBANY — The dental assisting diploma program at Albany Technical College was recently ranked the No. 3 dental assistant school in Georgia for the 2019-20 academic year.

The ranking was established through nursingprocess.org after evaluating all dental assistant schools across the state.

The dental assisting program can be completed in three to four semesters, depending on whether a student has completed their core curriculum or how many hours the student can manage per semester. The program takes students any semester, but a cohort of students starts each fall and works through a curriculum together to reach the same academic degree together.

There are currently 44 dental assisting majors at Albany Tech with 18 in the current cohort. After these students graduate, they are certified in dental radiography and Georgia Expanded Functions, meaning that a person who has completed the courses can perform specific tasks legally in the state of Georgia.

The role of dental assistants is governed by the Georgia State Board of Dentistry, and it has expanded over time.

“In the last three years, our students have placed in the top three at the state level Skills USA competition,” Ivey Spears, department chairwoman of the program at Albany Tech, said. “Last year, one of our students received the bronze medal in dental assisting at the National SkillsUSA Competition.”

At that level, the competition includes more than 19,000 students, teachers, education leaders and representatives from 600 national corporations, trade associations, businesses and labor unions. The final competition was the annual SkillsUSA Championships on June 26-27, with hands-on skill and leadership contests.

SkillsUSA is recognized by the U.S. departments of education and labor as a verified talent pipeline and skills-gap solution provider. With more than 360,000 members in 4,000 schools in all 50 states, SkillsUSA graduates more than 100,000 students each year who are job-ready on the first day, prepared for employment or higher education.

The Dental Assisting National Board Inc. states that a dental assistant in Georgia may perform basic supportive dental procedures specified by the State Dental Practice Act and the rule of the board under the direct supervision of a licensed dentist. A dental assistant must acquire appropriate training before performing phlebotomy and venipuncture procedures.

To use rubber cup prophy on primary dentition, a dental assistant must complete a curriculum approved by the Georgia Board of Dentistry or a minimum of eight hours of on-the-job training in the provision of rubber cup prophies by a dentist licensed to practice in Georgia. To perform expanded functions under the direct supervision of a licensed dentist in Georgia, a dental assistant must earn status as an expanded function dental assistant.

Students at Albany Tech also have an option to take the dental assisting national board exam. The state does not require this, but it is an option to advance credentials.

Employment of dental assistants is projected to grow 19 percent from 2016 to 2026. Population growth, greater retention of natural teeth by middle-aged and older people, and an increased focus on preventative dental care for younger generations, will fuel demand for dental services.

Older dentists, who have been less likely to employ assistants or have employed fewer, are leaving the occupation and will be replaced by recent graduates who are more likely to use one or more assistants. Also, as dentists’ workloads increase, they are expected to hire more assistants to perform routine tasks so that they may devote their own time to more complex procedures.

The median annual wage for dental assistants was $38,660 per year in May 2018. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $26,940, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $54,800, the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics said.

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