Dentistry
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Types of Degrees Dentistry Majors Are Getting
The following table lists how many dentistry graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.
| Education Level | Number of Grads |
|---|---|
| Doctor’s Degree | 6,742 |
| Graduate Certificate | 28 |
What Dentistry Majors Need to Know
In an O*NET survey, dentistry majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.
Knowledge Areas for Dentistry Majors
Dentistry majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Skills for Dentistry Majors
The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to dentistry:
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Abilities for Dentistry Majors
Dentistry majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:
- Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
- Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
- Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
- Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
What Can You Do With a Dentistry Major?
Below is a list of occupations associated with dentistry:
| Job Title | Job Growth Rate | Median Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Dentists, General | 19.4% | $151,850 |
| Health Specialties Professors | 25.9% | $97,370 |
How Much Do Dentistry Majors Make?
Salaries According to BLS
Dentistry majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $122,320 to $175,840 (25th to 75th percentile). This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.
To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.
Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Dentistry
Some careers associated with dentistry require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.
Find out what the typical degree level is for dentistry careers below.
| Education Level | Percentage of Workers |
|---|---|
| Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production) | 1.2% |
| Some College Courses | 4.2% |
| Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 5.2% |
| Bachelor’s Degree | 5.2% |
| Master’s Degree | 18.4% |
| Doctoral Degree | 58.2% |
| Post-Doctoral Training | 8.0% |
Online Dentistry Programs
In the 2020-2021 academic year, 65 schools offered some type of dentistry program. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.
| Degree Level | Colleges Offering Programs | Colleges Offering Online Classes |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate (Less Than 1 Year) | 0 | 0 |
| Certificate (1-2 years) | 0 | 0 |
| Certificate (2-4 Years) | 0 | 0 |
| Associate’s Degree | 0 | 0 |
| Bachelor’s Degree | 0 | 0 |
| Post-Baccalaureate | 0 | 0 |
| Master’s Degree | 0 | 0 |
| Post-Master’s | 4 | 0 |
| Doctor’s Degree (Research) | 1 | 0 |
| Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) | 65 | 0 |
| Doctor’s Degree (Other) | 0 | 0 |
Is a Degree in Dentistry Worth It?
The median salary for a dentistry grad is $122,320 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.
This is 207% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,648,400 after 20 years!
Top Ranking Lists for Dentistry
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Majors Related to Dentistry
You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to dentistry.
References
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
- College Factual
- College Scorecard
- National Center for Education Statistics
- O*NET Online
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
- Image Credit: By Michal Jarmoluk under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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