Dental secretary vs dental technician

The differences between dental secretaries and dental technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a dental secretary and a dental technician. Additionally, a dental technician has an average salary of $68,232, which is higher than the $33,630 average annual salary of a dental secretary.

The top three skills for a dental secretary include scheduling appointments, patients and patient appointments. The most important skills for a dental technician are patients, dentures, and dental care.

Dental secretary vs dental technician overview

	Dental Secretary	Dental Technician
Yearly salary	$33,630	$68,232
Hourly rate	$16.17	$32.80
Growth rate	-8%	2%
Number of jobs	36,708	45,536
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 33%	Associate Degree, 28%
Average age	49	44
Years of experience	2	2

Dental secretary vs dental technician salary

Dental secretaries and dental technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Dental Secretary	Dental Technician
Average salary	$33,630	$68,232
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $42,000	Between $40,000 And $115,000
Highest paying City	-	Columbia, MD
Highest paying state	-	Maryland
Best paying company	-	Private Practice
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between dental secretary and dental technician education

There are a few differences between a dental secretary and a dental technician in terms of educational background:

	Dental Secretary	Dental Technician
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 33%	Associate Degree, 28%
Most common major	Business	Dental Assisting
Most common college	-	University of Southern California

Dental secretary vs dental technician demographics

Here are the differences between dental secretaries' and dental technicians' demographics:

	Dental Secretary	Dental Technician
Average age	49	44
Gender ratio	Male, 11.3% Female, 88.7%	Male, 51.6% Female, 48.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 70.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 7.2% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 21.9% Asian, 9.5% White, 57.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	9%	5%

Differences between dental secretary and dental technician duties and responsibilities

Dental secretary example responsibilities.

Manage Eaglesoft system thereby maximizing and balancing the calendar of appointments to drive practice revenue while maintaining optimal practice productivity.
Bill charges to patients and insurance companies and process cash/credit and insurance check payments; make financial arrangements for patients.
Check patients in and out for appointments, billing, filing and pulling medical records, phone calls.
Provide technician support to psychologists and urologists by accurately and efficiently transcribing a wide range of medical conditions onto patient records.
Perform therapeutic treatments including: electric stimulation, ultrasound therapy, and lumbar and cervical decompression therapy.

Dental technician example responsibilities.

Utilize 3-D scanning and printing software and hardware to create zirconia dental appliances.
Take impressions and seat Invisalign aligners.
Wax and/ or finish implants and substructures.
Specialize in Invisalign but also apply braces when necessary.
Fit and finish of FMC and PFM crowns and frameworks.
Draft bridge superstructures, substructures and design precast concrete and structural steel bridges.

Dental secretary vs dental technician skills

Common dental secretary skills

Scheduling Appointments, 40%
Patients, 36%
Patient Appointments, 3%
Insurance Forms, 3%
Insurance Claims, 3%
Check-In, 2%

Common dental technician skills

Patients, 38%
Dentures, 17%
Dental Care, 17%
Prosthetics, 12%
Dental Lab, 3%
Cad Cam, 2%