Dentistry & Oral Science
Types of Degrees Dentistry & Oral Science Majors Are Getting
The following table lists how many advanced dentistry & oral sciences graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.
Education Level | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Graduate Certificate | 923 |
Master’s Degree | 839 |
Doctor’s Degree | 41 |
Bachelor’s Degree | 41 |
Associate Degree | 1 |
What Dentistry & Oral Science Majors Need to Know
O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to dentistry & oral science and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.
Knowledge Areas for Dentistry & Oral Science Majors
This major prepares you for careers in which these 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.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Skills for Dentistry & Oral Science Majors
The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to dentistry & oral science:
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- 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.
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Abilities for Dentistry & Oral Science Majors
As you progress with your dentistry & oral science degree, there are several abilities you should pick up that will help you in whatever related career you choose. These abilities include:
- Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
- Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
- Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
- Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
What Can You Do With a Dentistry & Oral Science Major?
People with a dentistry & oral science degree often go into the following careers:
Job Title | Job Growth Rate | Median Salary |
---|---|---|
Dentists | 14.1% | $146,970 |
Dentists, General | 19.4% | $151,850 |
Health Educators | 14.6% | $54,220 |
Health Specialties Professors | 25.9% | $97,370 |
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons | 19.1% | $208,000 |
Orthodontists | 18.2% | $208,000 |
Prosthodontists | 22.2% | $176,540 |
Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Dentistry & Oral Science?
Racial-Ethnic Diversity
At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of dentistry & oral science majors is as follows:
Race/Ethnicity | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Asian | 4 |
Black or African American | 2 |
Hispanic or Latino | 6 |
White | 27 |
International Students | 0 |
Other Races/Ethnicities | 2 |
Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Dentistry & Oral Science
Some degrees associated with dentistry & oral science may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.
How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to dentistry & oral science have obtained the following education levels.
Education Level | Percentage of Workers |
---|---|
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) | 0.4% |
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) | 0.5% |
Some College Courses | 1.6% |
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 11.1% |
Bachelor’s Degree | 6.5% |
Master’s Degree | 8.3% |
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession. | 3.1% |
Doctoral Degree | 29.7% |
Post-Doctoral Training | 39.9% |
Online Dentistry & Oral Science Programs
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) | 1 | 0 |
Certificate (2-4 Years) | 0 | 0 |
Associate’s Degree | 1 | 0 |
Bachelor’s Degree | 33 | 1 |
Post-Baccalaureate | 0 | 0 |
Master’s Degree | 144 | 2 |
Post-Master’s | 188 | 0 |
Doctor’s Degree (Research) | 34 | 0 |
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) | 1 | 0 |
Doctor’s Degree (Other) | 0 | 0 |
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Majors Related to Dentistry & Oral Science
You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to dentistry & oral science.
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
More about our data sources and methodologies.