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Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery

Types of Degrees Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Master’s Degree	41

What Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery Majors Need to Know

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

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Medicine and Dentistry — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 5.7 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Biology — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 5.2 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set developed in a Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Judgment and Decision Making — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Complex Problem Solving — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Inductive Reasoning — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.6 / 7
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.3 / 7
Assisting and Caring for Others	4.2 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.2 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.2 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.2 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.1 / 7
Performing for or Working Directly with the Public	4.1 / 7
Analyzing Data or Information	4.1 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
DSN Software Oral Surgery-Exec	Medical software	—
Dolphin Imaging & Management Solutions Dolphin Management	Medical software	—
Kodak Dental Systems Kodak Cosmetic Imaging Module	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Operating system software	Operating system software	—
Apteryx Imaging Suite	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
DecisionBase TiME for OMS	Medical software	—
Planmeca Oy Dimaxis	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Sirona SIDEXIS XG	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Ada	Development environment software	—
DentalEye	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Gendex Dental Systems VixWin PRO	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Adobe Presenter	Computer based training software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery graduates include:

• Surgeon
• Oral Surgeon
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon (OMS)
• Dental Surgeon
• Maxillofacial Surgeon
• Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS)
• Clinical Assistant Professor
• Podiatry Teacher
• Health Assessment and Treatment Teacher
• Public Health Teacher
• Medical Pathology Teacher
• Pathology Laboratory Aides Teacher
• Home Care and Home Health Aides Teacher
• College Faculty Member
• Anesthesiology Teacher

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Post-doctoral training	50.3%
Doctoral degree	21.9%
Master’s degree	14.8%
Bachelor’s degree	5.2%
First professional degree	4.7%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	1.9%
Postsecondary certificate	1.2%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly male, with men earning 75.6% of Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	10	24.4%
Men	31	75.6%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	17	41.5%
Asian	4	9.8%
Hispanic or Latino	5	12.2%
Black or African American	1	2.4%
Race Unknown	8	19.5%
International Students	6	14.6%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Wages typically rise 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 Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery Worth It?

Strictly by the federal earnings tracker, Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery 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
Digital Dentistry	51.0512
Endodontics/Endodontology	51.0506
Geriatric Dentistry	51.0513
Implantology/Implant Dentistry	51.0514
Oral Biology and Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology	51.0503
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.