Dental Assistant Diploma
Kaplan Career Institute is the only college in Nashville to offer an American Dental Association-approved dental assistant program.‡
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As the population grows and ages, dentists’ workloads are expected to increase, driving a need for dental assistants with the skills to perform routine tasks so dentists may devote more time to complex procedures. In fact, dental assisting is projected to be among the fastest-growing occupations in the nation through the year 2020.* At Kaplan Career Institute in Nashville, TN, you could acquire the relevant education and hands-on training to help start your career in dental assisting.
If you want to become part of a dental practice, our Dental Assistant Diploma program can provide you with the relevant training, knowledge, and skills. You could develop the skills to perform duties such as instrument sterilization, tray setups, four-handed dentistry, equipment maintenance, impressions, model trimming, charting, and dental reception duties. We offer flexible class schedules so you could meet the demands of your family, work, and education. At Kaplan Career Institute in Nashville, TN, you can get the education and hands-on training to help start your career in dental assisting.
Dental Assistant Program Features
Our curriculum offers hands-on training to help you develop the skills to succeed on the job as soon as you graduate. In addition to office management and communications, records management and ethics, and an introduction to basic computer skills, study includes the following:
- Chairside assisting, including handling dental instruments, controlling infection, and planning treatment in the eight specialty areas of dentistry
- Handling dental emergencies, such as an abscessed tooth, alveolitis, or a broken tooth or prosthesis
- Identifying structures of the oral cavity, the different types of teeth, and universal codes for each tooth
- Performing dental radiology (if certified)† and safety procedures
- Preventive dentistry
Dental Assistant Education
Kaplan Career Institute is proud to offer a Dental Assistant Diploma program that is market-driven with curriculum designed to serve local employment needs. When you earn your diploma at Kaplan Career Institute, you have the opportunity to gain not only dental assistant knowledge and skills, but also professional skills that you could apply to your everyday life. The objective of the dental assistant program is to prepare you to pursue positions as a member of a dental health team and to perform chairside assisting and related office and lab procedures under the direct supervision of a dentist. Before you graduate, you will be required to complete an externship at a general dental office, clinic, or other dental facility where you can actively participate in patient care.
What Does a Dental Assistant Do?
The duties of a dental assistant are diverse and designed to support the dentist and include performing a range of daily activities such as:
- Caring for patients in the treatment room
- Taking impressions of patients' teeth
- Demonstrating preventive dentistry to patients
- Assisting with oral surgery
- Performing oral evacuations
- Infection control and sterilization
Administrative Skills Training
Dental assistants often perform administrative responsibilities to help maintain an efficient, productive dental office. Your training will include classes in dental office procedures such as taking inventory, managing patient records, and communicating verbally and through written correspondence.
Potential Dental Assistant Career Opportunities
As a graduate of the dental assistant program at Kaplan Career Institute in Nashville, TN, you may apply for an entry-level positions in dental group practices, public health institutions, clinics, dental insurance agencies, and for dental product distributors. Dental assistants can continue to grow in their careers and become office managers, enter dental sales positions, or obtain positions at research facilities or insurance companies.
Tuition and Fees
Find current tuition and fees for the programs at Kaplan Career Institute, Nashville campus, in our Online Catalog under Financial Information.
Kaplan Integrated Technology (KIT) provides a digital learning platform to blend the advantages of learning through new media technologies with the personalized attention, student-teacher interaction, and peer support available in classroom-based education. Media-based activities and exercises include short educational videos and simulations, collaborative class discussions, and interactive activities.**
For more information about our program with Kaplan Integrated Technology, please contact us by filling out the form below.