Dental Assisting
The Dental Assisting program trains the student in all phases of dental assisting and was established under the guidelines of the Council on Dental Education of the American Dental Association in cooperation with the Nueces Valley District Dental Society.
The program in dental assisting is accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association, 211 East Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL 60611, (312) 440-4653, www.ada.org.
A Dental Advisory Committee assists College officials in the implementation of the curriculum under the standards established by the Commission.
The program is offered in cooperation with local dental offices. These offices provide clinical education in association with the Joint Review Committee and the Commission on American Dental Association Accreditation.
Upon successful completion of the Dental Assisting courses, the student will earn a Certificate of Achievement and is eligible to take the certification examination given by the Dental Assisting National Board and the Registered Dental Assistant (RDA) exam administered by the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners (TSBDE). To earn an associate degree, the student must complete the additional education requirements.
In addition to the admission requirements of the College, applicants must submit:
- a Dental Assisting data sheet to the Dental Assisting Program office before July 15 of the year of admission
- to College Registrar, official high school or GED transcripts and official transcripts to the Dental Assisting program office
- to College Registrar official college transcripts and official transcripts to the Dental Assisting program office
- official ACT, SAT, or TSI college entrance examination scores to College Registrar and official examination scores to the Dental Assisting program office
Applicants will be invited to an orientation and tour of the facilities. The Dental Assisting program begins only in the fall semester and continues through both summer sessions of the academic year of enrollment. Any or all of the general education courses in the curriculum can be taken prior to admission to the program.