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Dental Hygiene/Hygienist

Types of Degrees Dental Hygiene/Hygienist Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Dental Hygiene/Hygienist may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	48
Associate’s Degree	5,949
Bachelor’s Degree	2,454
Master’s Degree	270

What Dental Hygiene/Hygienist Majors Need to Know

Studies in Dental Hygiene/Hygienist emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Dental Hygiene/Hygienist graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Dental Hygiene/Hygienist emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Medicine and Dentistry — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.3 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.1 / 5; level 3.2 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills built by a Dental Hygiene/Hygienist program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Active Listening — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.4 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Dental Hygiene/Hygienist careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Near Vision — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Problem Sensitivity — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Dental Hygiene/Hygienist graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.5 / 7
Assisting and Caring for Others	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.1 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.0 / 7
Performing for or Working Directly with the Public	4.0 / 7
Getting Information	4.0 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.0 / 7
Working with Computers	4.0 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Dental Hygiene/Hygienist professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Dental digital radiology software	Medical software	—
Dental clinical records software	Medical software	—
Dental charting software	Medical software	—
Voice-activated perio charting software	Medical software	—
Scheduling software	Calendar and scheduling software	—
Dental billing software	Billing and invoicing software	—
Henry Schein Dentrix	Medical software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Dental Hygiene/Hygienist graduates include:

• Hygienist
• Oral Hygienist
• Dental Nurse
• Registered Dental Hygienist (RDH)
• Dental Treatment Coordinator
• Pediatric Dental Hygienist
• Licensed Dental Hygienist
• Dental Hygienist
• Clinical Laboratory Science Professor
• Anatomy Teacher
• A&P Instructor (Anatomy and Physiology Instructor)
• Home Care and Home Health Aides Teacher
• Medical Assisting Instructor
• Correctional Therapy Teacher
• Inhalation Therapy Aides Teacher

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Dental Hygiene/Hygienist graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	57.0%
First professional degree	9.5%
Master’s degree	9.3%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	6.7%
Doctoral degree	6.4%
Bachelor’s degree	5.5%
Post-doctoral training	4.9%
Postsecondary certificate	0.7%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Dental Hygiene/Hygienist?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 94.1% of Dental Hygiene/Hygienist degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	8,281	94.1%
Men	521	5.9%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Dental Hygiene/Hygienist graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	4,884	55.5%
Asian	750	8.5%
Hispanic or Latino	1,755	19.9%
Black or African American	598	6.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native	49	0.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	20	0.2%
Two or More Races	285	3.2%
Race Unknown	354	4.0%
International Students	107	1.2%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Dental Hygiene/Hygienist Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Dental Hygiene/Hygienist graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. These numbers tend to grow steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$28,149
4 years	$30,974
5 years	$33,855

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $33,855 — roughly 20% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Dental Hygiene/Hygienist Programs

Fully online options are documented by IPEDS for Dental Hygiene/Hygienist. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	4	8
Bachelor’s	18	18
Master’s	5	5

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Dental Hygiene/Hygienist Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, Dental Hygiene/Hygienist graduates earn a median of $30,974 four years after completion — about 18% below the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000). On earnings alone, this program does not show an income premium over the baseline; non-financial outcomes (career interests, certification requirements, advancement potential) are typically the stronger argument for fields in this range.

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions	24,761
Dental Assisting/Assistant	15,557
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions, Other	2,445
Dental Laboratory Technology/Technician	295
Advanced General Dentistry	238
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences, Other	150
Dental Services and Allied Professions, Other	107

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.