Degree Description

Clinical dental assistants are directly involved in patient care, working with dentists, and as expanded functions dental assistants, who provide certain intraoral procedures. Michigan requires both education and licensure for those persons performing expanded functions on patients. Graduates of this program will complete requirements that qualify them to take the Michigan State Board Examination for licensure as a Registered Dental Assistant (RDA) and the National Board Examination to be a Certified Dental Assistant (CDA). This program is accredited by the Commission of Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association and the State of Michigan.

Career Possibilities

A degree in Dental Assisting offers many career opportunities. Career Coach allows you to explore different career options for the degree you are pursuing. You can even take a look at each job title to see an in-depth overview, salary, job growth, and live job postings.

Explore the Career Coach for Dental Assisting

Program of Study Requirements

Loading...

Degree Pathway

Degree Pathways outline one possible sequence of courses students may complete to fulfill their degree requirements as full-time students over the course of two years.

Additional Information

Admission Requirements, Process & Eligibility

To enter the dental assisting program applicants must:

  1. Be admitted to MCC and declare intent to enter the Dental Assisting Program.
  2. Demonstrate College level reading comprehension on the ACCUPLACER placement test within the last 5 years, OR a minimum score of 20 on the reading portion of the ACT within the last 5 years. A satisfactory grade in RDNG 030 or ENGL 100 will also meet this requirement.
  3. Provide proof of high school graduation or GED
  4. Submit a current CPR card. The card must be either the BLS Health Care Provider (American Heart Association) or the Professional Rescuer (American Red Cross)
  5. Maintain an overall GPA of 2.5 in eligibility requirement courses
  6. Complete the following Prerequisite courses, with a "C" (2.0) grade or better
    • ENGL 101 or 103 (English Composition)
    • BIOL 150 (The Human Body) for Certificate of Achievement or
    • BIOL 151 and BIOL 152 (Human Anatomy and Physiology) for AAS Degree
    • COMM 131 (Fundamentals of Communication)
  7. Submit a Supplemental Application for the Dental Assisting Program after all the Eligibility Requirements have been completed
  8. Courses in addition to the Certificated in Dental Assisting to achieve the Associates Degree include:
    • COMG 153
    • ENGL 102 or 104
    • PSYC 281 ( General Psychology)
    • MATH: Place into MATH-130 or complete MATH-118 or MATH-120

Conviction of a criminal offense may make graduates of the Dental Assisting Program ineligible to take their licensure (RDA) examination. All applicants for a health profession license or registration in Michigan are required to submit fingerprints and undergo a criminal background check. In addition, some clinical sites require students to complete criminal background checks and submit to drug screening procedures prior to the clinical experience. All background checks and drug screenings are at the student's expense

Externship Information

During the dental externship experience students are in community dental offices. The student is expected to work the hours of the office and to provide their own transportation to and from the office.