Working as a Dental Assistant in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Dental assistants are valuable participants in the care of dental patients, assisting dentists with several different tasks. Some of the duties you’ll have if you become a dental assistant include scheduling appointments, taking x-rays and keeping accurate records.
Located in western Pennsylvania, the city of Pittsburgh was once the steel-making capital of the world. Today it thrives as home to historic attractions and riverfront trails. When you become a dental assistant in Pittsburgh, you’ll find that there are many growing dental practices and your skills will be in high demand.
Schools for Dental Assistants in Pittsburgh
What’s required to become a dental assistant varies from state to state. To learn more about what it takes to become a dental assistant in Pennsylvania, please click here.
You can work as a dental assistant without formal education, but becoming an Expanded Function Dental Assistant in Pennsylvania requires graduating from a two-year college or other Pennsylvania Board-approved institution. Schools in Pittsburgh that offer excellent dental assistant training programs include the following:
- Institute of Medical and Business Careers offers a 6-week dental assistant training program that prepares you to sit for the Pennsylvania Dental Radiology exam. You’ll participate in an internship in a dental setting with professional supervision.
- Pittsburgh Career Instutute offers a 10-month diploma program in which students are exposed to dental laboratory and office administration procedures. The program concludes with an externship which consists of supervised experiences in a clinical environment, requiring the student complete competencies, logs, and evaluations.
- Bradford School is now closed
Expected Salary and Job Outlook for Pittsburgh Dental Assistants
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that dental assistants in Pittsburgh were making an average of $17.55 an hour and $36,510 a year as of 2017. Dental assistants in Pittsburgh who were the highest paid were earning an average of $50,460 annually the same year.
According to Career One-Stop, there were 11,770 dental assistants working in Pennsylvania in 2016, with 1,940 of those employed in the city of Pittsburgh. The number of dental assistants working in Pennsylvania is predicted to rise by 8 percent to 12,750 by the year 2026.
Dental Assistant Opportunities in Pittsburgh
Dental assistants will find most of their work in dental or orthodontic offices and clinics. Pittsburgh is ranked #22 in population compared to other cities in the United States, so there are likely to be plenty of employment opportunities in the dental assisting field in this city. If you’re looking for a career in the healthcare field, dental assisting is a great option for stability and opportunity in the city of Pittsburgh.