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digital dentistry

What digital dentistry Majors Need to Know

Programs in digital dentistry build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that digital dentistry graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in digital dentistry emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Education and Training — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 5.9 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 5.7 / 7.
• Biology — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 5.2 / 7.
• Medicine and Dentistry — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.

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

Skills

Skills emphasized by a digital dentistry program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to digital dentistry careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.8 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4 / 5; level 5 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, digital dentistry graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.6 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.6 / 7
Getting Information	4.5 / 7
Working with Computers	4.4 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.3 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.2 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.2 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.1 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.0 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by digital dentistry professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Adobe Presenter	Computer based training software	—
DOC Cop	Information retrieval or search software	—
Medical procedure coding software	Medical software	—
Blackboard Learn	Computer based training software	—
Desire2Learn LMS software	Computer based training software	—
Learning management system LMS	Computer based training software	—
Turning Technologies TurningPoint	Multi-media educational software	—
Medical condition coding software	Medical software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
Geographic information system GIS software	Geographic information system	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for digital dentistry graduates include:

• Professor
• Clinical Professor
• Occupational Therapy Teacher
• Clinical Full Professor
• Urology Teacher
• Physiology Teacher
• Educational Therapy Teacher
• Music Therapy Teacher
• Gynecology Teacher
• Therapy Teacher
• Nutrition Professor
• Adjunct Instructor
• Speech Therapy Teacher
• Podiatry Professor
• Clinical Instructor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to digital dentistry graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Master’s degree	35.9%
Doctoral degree	24.9%
Post-doctoral training	19.1%
Bachelor’s degree	12.5%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	4.6%
Postsecondary certificate	2.9%

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

How Much Do digital dentistry Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of digital dentistry 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	$209,489
4 years	$191,956
5 years	$225,886

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $225,886 — roughly 8% above the 1-year mark.

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

Is a Degree in digital dentistry Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, digital dentistry graduates earn a median of $191,956 four years after completion — roughly 405% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{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	CIP Code
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences	51.05
Advanced General Dentistry	51.0502
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences, Other	51.0599
Dental Clinical Sciences, General	51.0501
Dental Materials	51.0505
Dental Public Health and Education	51.0504
Endodontics/Endodontology	51.0506
Geriatric Dentistry	51.0513
Implantology/Implant Dentistry	51.0514
Oral Biology and Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology	51.0503
Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery	51.0507
Orthodontics/Orthodontology	51.0508

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.