Dental secretary vs front office clerk

The differences between dental secretaries and front office clerks 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 front office clerk. Additionally, a dental secretary has an average salary of $33,630, which is higher than the $31,051 average annual salary of a front office clerk.

The top three skills for a dental secretary include scheduling appointments, patients and patient appointments. The most important skills for a front office clerk are patients, check-in, and data entry.

Dental secretary vs front office clerk overview

	Dental Secretary	Front Office Clerk
Yearly salary	$33,630	$31,051
Hourly rate	$16.17	$14.93
Growth rate	-8%	-5%
Number of jobs	36,708	163,789
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 33%	Associate Degree, 28%
Average age	49	47
Years of experience	2	2

Dental secretary vs front office clerk salary

Dental secretaries and front office clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Dental Secretary	Front Office Clerk
Average salary	$33,630	$31,051
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $42,000	Between $25,000 And $37,000
Highest paying City	-	Minneapolis, MN
Highest paying state	-	Alaska
Best paying company	-	Limbach
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between dental secretary and front office clerk education

There are a few differences between a dental secretary and a front office clerk in terms of educational background:

	Dental Secretary	Front Office Clerk
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 33%	Associate Degree, 28%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	University of Pennsylvania

Dental secretary vs front office clerk demographics

Here are the differences between dental secretaries' and front office clerks' demographics:

	Dental Secretary	Front Office Clerk
Average age	49	47
Gender ratio	Male, 11.3% Female, 88.7%	Male, 13.9% Female, 86.1%
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, 10.8% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 24.3% Asian, 7.0% White, 52.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	9%	6%

Differences between dental secretary and front office clerk 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.

Front office clerk example responsibilities.

Manage front office check-in, insurance verification and certifications from doctors.
Maintain a high knowledge level of regulations on the confidentiality of medical records (HIPAA).
Verify releases of information according to HIPPA regulations.
Maintain confidentiality of patient information; abiding by HIPPA guidelines.
Register all patients per registration protocols, schedule appointments, and provide appointment reminder calls.
Respond to routine technical questions regarding patients' right and responsibilities and medical eligibility for care.

Dental secretary vs front office clerk skills

Common dental secretary skills

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

Common front office clerk skills

Patients, 34%
Check-In, 8%
Data Entry, 8%
Customer Service, 7%
Front Desk, 4%
Appointment Scheduling, 4%