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General Dental Clinical Sciences

An integrated or undifferentiated program that generally prepares dentists in one or more of the oral sciences and advanced/graduate dentistry specialties. Examples: [Dental Clinical Sciences, General (MS)], [Dental Clinical Sciences, General (PhD)]

Types of Degrees General Dental Clinical Sciences Majors Are Earning

People majoring in General Dental Clinical Sciences can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Master’s Degree	412
Doctor’s Degree	14

What General Dental Clinical Sciences Majors Need to Know

Studies in General Dental Clinical Sciences develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that General Dental Clinical Sciences graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing General Dental Clinical Sciences 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

The skill set developed in a General Dental Clinical Sciences program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 4 / 5; level 5 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to General Dental Clinical Sciences 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.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4 / 5; level 5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, General Dental Clinical Sciences 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 General Dental Clinical Sciences professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
InteractElsevier Netter’s 3D Interactive Anatomy	Medical software	—
Image scanning software	Optical character reader OCR or scanning software	—
Healthcare common procedure coding system HCPCS	Medical software	—
iParadigms Turnitin	Information retrieval or search software	—
Blackboard software	Data base user interface and query software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Material safety data sheet MSDS software	Compliance software	—
Electronic health record EHR software	Medical software	—
Collaborative editing software	Word processing software	—
Articulate Rapid E-Learning Studio	Computer based training software	—
Medical procedure coding software	Medical software	—
Turning Technologies TurningPoint	Multi-media educational software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for General Dental Clinical Sciences graduates include:

• Public Health Professor
• Otolaryngology Teacher
• Inhalation Therapy Teacher
• Clinical Instructor
• Virology Teacher
• Medical Assistant Instructor
• Lecturer
• Obstetrics Teacher
• Assistant Professor
• Adjunct Clinical Instructor
• University Faculty Member
• Professor
• Hospital Aides and Assistants Teacher
• Orthopedics Teacher
• Public Health Aides Teacher

What Can You Do With a General Dental Clinical Sciences Degree?

Graduates with a degree in General Dental Clinical Sciences commonly enter the following occupations:

Occupation	Job Growth	Median Salary	25th–75th Pctile
Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary	10.7%	$46,663	$40,304–$53,022

^{Job-growth = projected employment change for the parent occupation. Source: ONET / BLS Employment Projections.*}

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to General Dental Clinical Sciences 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.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in General Dental Clinical Sciences?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 57.3% women and 42.7% men among General Dental Clinical Sciences graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	244	57.3%
Men	182	42.7%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of General Dental Clinical Sciences graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	179	42.0%
Asian	81	19.0%
Hispanic or Latino	42	9.9%
Black or African American	20	4.7%
Two or More Races	14	3.3%
Race Unknown	14	3.3%
International Students	76	17.8%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do General Dental Clinical Sciences Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of General Dental Clinical Sciences 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.}

Online General Dental Clinical Sciences Programs

Distance learning is reported by IPEDS for General Dental Clinical Sciences. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Master’s	1	0

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in General Dental Clinical Sciences Worth It?

Strictly by the federal earnings tracker, General Dental Clinical Sciences 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	Annual Degrees Awarded
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions, Other	2,445
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences	1,981
Orthodontics/Orthodontology	323
Advanced General Dentistry	238
Oral Biology and Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology	187
Endodontics/Endodontology	157
Pediatric Dentistry/Pedodontics	154
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences, Other	150
Prosthodontics/Prosthodontology	95
Dental Public Health and Education	84
Oral/Maxillofacial Surgery	41
Dental Materials	—

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.