Becoming a dental assistant--a professional who assists dentists in performing a variety of patient care, laboratory and administrative duties--usually does not require formal training. However, with perennial advances in dentistry, employers are increasingly showing preference to candidates who do have training. Thus, states like Indiana offer educational programs to equip people with the necessary skills to optimize their duties as dental assistants.
Types of Dental Assisting Schools
In Indiana, dental assisting programs are offered in a small collection of community colleges and four-year institutions. Ivy Tech Community College is perhaps the most prominent one, offering the dental assistant program at four of its 20-plus campuses throughout the state: Columbus, Anderson, Kokomo and Lafayette.
Prerequisite Requirements
Indiana dental assisting programs usually require prerequisite courses. Students must pass these courses in order to gain permission to take the core dental assisting courses. Numbering no more than three classes, the prerequisites are usually in subjects such as English/communication, mathematics and medical terminology.
Main Coursework
Typical core courses offered in Indiana dental assisting programs include Dental Office Management, Dental Radiography, Preventative Dentistry and/or Pharmacology. There is also a clinical component, implemented to give students practical experience in a dental practice environment.
Type and Length of Program
Dental assisting programs in Indiana, upon completion, usually lead to the school awarding a certificate. The programs are designed to last up to a year. In some cases, such as the USI, students have the choice to take an extended program that results in an associate's degree; this can take up to two years to complete.
Accreditation and Certification
The Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA)--the certifying board of the American Dental Association or ADA--approves of more than 200 dental-assisting training programs as of August 2010. Graduating from a CODA-accredited program in Indiana qualifies people to earn a Certified Dental Assistant (CDA) credential from the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB). Although the certification is voluntary, it can give a huge advantage to candidates since it indicates that they adhere to a certain set of dental-field standards. The aforementioned schools--Ivy Tech and USI--are CODA accredited as of August 2010, while others such as Indiana University South Bend are not.
