Becoming a Dental Hygienist in Wisconsin

Dental hygiene is a growing field that offers a well-paying, rewarding career track for those who like to work with their hands and with patients on a daily basis. In Wisconsin, numerous school and training options for dental hygiene are available to those who wish to enter the field.

Dental hygienists in Wisconsin generally perform tasks such as cleaning teeth or applying bandages to sutures in the mouth. To become a licensed dental hygienist in Wisconsin, it’s necessary to complete training and take licensure exams, which will certify you as a licensed or Registered Dental Hygienist (RDH).

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Requirements for Dental Hygienist in Wisconsin

Anyone who wants to become a dental hygienist in Wisconsin must train in an accredited dental hygiene program and pass a standardized licensure exam. Only schools that are accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) can give students eligibility to take the national dental hygiene exam. Most dental hygiene programs are two-year associate’s degrees, though other degree options are available.

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Dental Hygienist Schools in Wisconsin

Ideally, study in a program accredited by CODA so that you gain eligibility to take your licensure exams upon graduation. The Wisconsin Technical College System offers a number of Associate Degree in Dental Hygiene options across the state. Here are examples of a few available programs:

Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC). Located in downtown Milwaukee, this school offers an accredited Associate Degree in Dental Hygiene. Like many dental hygiene programs, you may need to have completed certain prerequisites. For MATC, it is required that students finished high school or earned their GED with a cumulative GPA of at least 2.5, and took at least one year of biology and one year of chemistry classes in high school.
Madison Area Technical College. This school’s Truax campus offers an Associate Degree in Applied Science for Dental Hygiene. The school’s website states that most students must attend classes full-time. The only prerequisites for this school are the completion of a high school diploma, GED or associate’s degree. The cumulative GPA for these school records must be at least 2.0.

Dental Hygienist Licensure in Wisconsin

After graduating from school, Wisconsin dental hygienists must pass the National Board Examination as well as a regional licensing exam. Acceptable licensing exams in Wisconsin can be accredited by:

Commission on Dental Competency Assessments (CDCA)
The Council of Interstate Testing Agencies, Inc. (CITA)
Central Regional Dental Testing Service, Inc. (CRDTS)
The Southern Regional Testing Agency (SRTA)
The Western Regional Examining Board, Inc. (WREB)

Dental Hygienist Salary in Wisconsin

A good number of Wisconsinites worked as dental hygienists in 2018, with the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reporting that 5,040 dental hygienists were employed that year throughout the state. They earned a strong mean hourly income of $34.18, similar to the national mean income for this field. The BLS also predicts that employment in this field in Wisconsin will grow 7 percent by the year 2028.

Area	Total Employed	Mean Hourly Wage	Mean Annual Salary
Appleton, WI	240	$29.60	$61,570
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	6,320	$36.77	$76,490
Duluth, MN-WI	280	$29.42	$61,190
Eau Claire, WI	170	$33.23	$69,120
Fond du Lac, WI	60	$31.83	$66,210
Green Bay, WI	320	$30.95	$64,380
Janesville-Beloit, WI	100	$31.70	$65,930
La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN	180	$31.48	$65,480
Madison, WI	680	$31.92	$66,400
Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI	1,390	$31.15	$64,790
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	3,360	$35.13	$73,070
Oshkosh-Neenah, WI	120	$30.66	$63,770
Racine, WI	60	$30.81	$64,090
Sheboygan, WI	90	$30.23	$62,880
Wausau, WI	190	$29.47	$61,300

Working as a Dental Hygienist in Wisconsin

By far, the best place to find a job in Wisconsin as a dental hygienist is the Milwaukee area, which employed 1,340 dental hygienists in 2017. The highest-paid dental hygienists in the state were in Eau Claire and Sheboygan. Even if you don’t stay in Wisconsin forever, with a nationwide projected career outlook of 6 percent, a career in dental hygiene is bound to offer opportunities well into the future.

College Listings

Showing 9 of 9

School	Type	Tuition and fees per year	Net price per year	Dental Hygiene programs
Blackhawk Technical College Janesville, WI(608) 758-69006004 South County Road GAccredited by Higher Learning Commission	Public	$4,2672024-25	$8,256 to $15,082by family income, 2022-23. Calculate your own net price	Dental Hygiene/Hygienist (Associate degree)
Chippewa Valley Technical College Eau Claire, WI(715) 833-6200620 W Clairemont AveAccredited by Higher Learning Commission	Public	$4,8442024-25	$9,656 to $15,979by family income, 2022-23. Calculate your own net price	Dental Hygienist (Associate degree)
Fox Valley Technical College Appleton, WI(920) 735-56001825 N Bluemound DrAccredited by Higher Learning Commission	Public	$5,0402024-25	$8,559 to $15,456by family income, 2022-23. Calculate your own net price	Dental Hygienist (Associate degree)
Madison Area Technical College Madison, WI(608) 246-61001701 Wright StreetAccredited by Higher Learning Commission	Public	$4,9772024-25	$10,392 to $17,037by family income, 2022-23. Calculate your own net price	Dental Hygienist (Associate degree)
Marian University Fond Du Lac, WI(920) 923-760045 S National AveAccredited by Higher Learning Commission	Private nonprofit	$33,0002023-24	$20,296 to $24,866by family income, 2022-23. Calculate your own net price	Dental Hygiene (Bachelor's degree)
Milwaukee Area Technical College Milwaukee, WI(414) 297-6282700 W State StAccredited by Higher Learning Commission	Public	$5,1842024-25	$8,129 to $16,973by family income, 2022-23. Calculate your own net price	Dental Hygiene (Associate degree)
Northcentral Technical College Wausau, WI(715) 675-33311000 Campus DrAccredited by Higher Learning Commission	Public	$4,8892024-25	$10,143 to $15,346by family income, 2022-23. Calculate your own net price	Dental Hygienist (Associate degree)
Northeast Wisconsin Technical College Green Bay, WI(920) 498-54002740 W Mason StAccredited by Higher Learning Commission	Public	$4,9602024-25	$7,816 to $15,267by family income, 2022-23. Calculate your own net price	Dental Hygienist (Associate degree)
Waukesha County Technical College Pewaukee, WI(262) 691-5566800 Main StreetAccredited by Higher Learning Commission	Public	$4,8722024-25	$6,866 to $13,013by family income, 2022-23. Calculate your own net price	Dental Hygienist (Associate degree)

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Tuition and fees are from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS) for the year shown. Net price is the range of the average net prices each school published for different family incomes, from CareerSpy; it covers first-time, full-time students who received federal aid, so yours may differ. Schools that have closed are not listed. Programs shown without a link were added from federal completions data: the school awarded this program in 2022-23 or 2023-24. We have not yet recorded its own page for the program.