Program description
Dental hygienists enjoy exciting and challenging employment opportunities and excellent compensation. The future is bright for the profession, as the need for preventive dental care services continues to grow.
The Dental Hygiene program at Century College began preparing students for dental hygiene licensure and practice in 1994. Our graduates work in dental offices, community clinics, schools and health departments, providing direct care to patients.
The program is perfect for registered dental assistants who want to continue their education and become dental hygienists. In addition to having a background in dental assisting, you should have completed specific general education courses in English, psychology, sociology, speech, and human disease, with a GPA of 2.5 or higher. In addition, you are required to complete four college-level science courses: chemistry, anatomy, physiology and microbiology, with a GPA of 2.75 or higher.
Opportunities are available for graduates of our program to pursue a baccalaureate degree in Dental Hygiene (BSDH) from Metropolitan State University or Mankato State University (online) through an articulation agreement. Both of these colleges will accept the undergraduate credits earned at Century as the first two years of the four-year degree.
Program points of pride
Century Dental Hygiene students are able to practice their skills in a bright, spacious and well-equipped, modern 12 chair clinic on campus as well as in several off-campus locations.
Each year since 2005 the faculty, staff and students have participated in Give Kids a Smile day. This is when we take care of almost 200 children who might not otherwise see a dentist at all.
Century College's graduating classes routinely rank in the top 25% in the U.S. on the Dental Hygiene National Board Examination. (One of the "board exams" required for licensure)
In addition to the dental hygiene student clinic, we operate a Community Dental Clinic on site. Volunteer dentists from the community come to Century to provide dental care in our clinic and they are assisted by other volunteers from faculty, staff and students.
Student points of pride
In 2007 two Century dental hygiene students traveled to the Ukraine on a mission trip and provided dental care to children in several orphanages there. They earned letters of commendation from the college for going above and beyond the normal expectations for service learning.
Century Dental Hygiene Students have their own student club. It is a student chapter of the American Dental Hygienists' Association (ADHA). Their activities revolve around professional development and fundraising to defray the cost of some of their school expenses. The club also funds one lucky student each year to go to the ADHA's Annual Session during the summer as a student representative to their professional association.
Awards
AAS Degree in Dental Hygiene is awarded
Occupational trends
Typical starting pay for a dental hygiene graduate in 2007 is between $28 – 32 per hour. Most graduates report back to the program they are able to find part-time jobs at first and then by one year after graduation, they are more likely to be employed full time in one place.
Benefit packages are often provided for full time work and include uniforms, paid vacation, continuing education costs, health insurance, free or reduced fee dental care, 401k, and paid sick leave.
It is anticipated that a baccalaureate degree will be needed for entry into the dental hygiene profession at some point in the near future (2012?). For this reason, the faculty is revising and updating the curriculum so that articulation into baccalaureate programs will be a seamless as possible. Metropolitan State University and Mankato State University have already agreed to accept Century's undergraduate credits in articulation toward a baccalaureate degree in dental hygiene.