Hygienist Overview
Working as a Hygienist
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a hygienist. For example, did you know that they make an average of $38.61 an hour? That's $80,307 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 11% and produce 23,700 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does a Hygienist Do
There are certain skills that many hygienists have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed dexterity, critical thinking and critical-thinking skills.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be a hygienist, we found that a lot of resumes listed 22.1% of hygienists included dental procedures, while 15.1% of resumes included oral hygiene, and 13.0% of resumes included periodontal disease. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the hygienist job title. But what industry to start with? Most hygienists actually find jobs in the health care and hospitality industries.
How To Become a Hygienist
If you're interested in becoming a hygienist, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 30.8% of hygienists have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 4.8% of hygienists have master's degrees. Even though some hygienists have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a hygienist. When we researched the most common majors for a hygienist, we found that they most commonly earn associate degree degrees or bachelor's degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on hygienist resumes include master's degree degrees or high school diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a hygienist. In fact, many hygienist jobs require experience in a role such as dental hygienist. Meanwhile, many hygienists also have previous career experience in roles such as dental assistant or assistant.
What is the right job for my career path?
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Hygienist Jobs
Hygienist Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of dental hygienist you might progress to a role such as clinical instructor eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title registered nurse manager.
What is the right job for my career path?
Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the rights job to get there.
Average Salary for a Hygienist
Best Paying Cities
Recently Added Salaries
Job TitleCompany  | Company | Start Date | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
Interdent Service Corporation Hygienist | Milwaukie, or-2K ! Hygienist | Milwaukie, or-2K ! | Interdent Service Corporation Interdent Service Corporation | 11/25/2020 11/25/2020 | $83,48011/25/2020 $83,480 |
William J.K. Saiget, P.C. Hygienist | Kirkland, WA-2K ! Hygienist | Kirkland, WA-2K ! | William J.K. Saiget, P.C. William J.K. Saiget, P.C. | 11/25/2020 11/25/2020 | $98,08911/25/2020 $98,089 |
William Cox Dental Corporation Hygienist | Sunnyvale, CA *-2K ! Hygienist | Sunnyvale, CA *-2K ! | William Cox Dental Corporation William Cox Dental Corporation | 11/25/2020 11/25/2020 | $93,91511/25/2020 $93,915 |
Interdent Service Corporation Hygienist | Seattle, WA-2K ! Hygienist | Seattle, WA-2K ! | Interdent Service Corporation Interdent Service Corporation | 11/25/2020 11/25/2020 | $98,08911/25/2020 $98,089 |
Aspen Dental Hygienist-RDH Hygienist-RDH | Aspen Dental Aspen Dental | 11/18/2020 11/18/2020 | $73,04511/18/2020 $73,045 |
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Top Colleges for Hygienists
1. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI
2. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC
3. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA
4. University of Maryland - College Park
College Park, MD
5. Boston University
Boston, MA
6. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY
7. New York University
New York, NY
8. University of Washington
Seattle, WA
9. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
Minneapolis, MN
10. SUNY at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY
Entry Level Jobs For Becoming A Hygienist
Top Skills For a Hygienist
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 22.1% of hygienists listed dental procedures on their resume, but soft skills such as dexterity and critical thinking are important as well.
- Oral Hygiene, 18.8%
- Dental Procedures, 13.4%
- Patient Care, 12.2%
- Clinical Findings, 10.8%
- Aspen, 9.5%
- Other Skills, 35.3% See All Hygienist Skills
Best States For a Hygienist
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a hygienist. The best states for people in this position are California, Nevada, Oregon, and Arizona. Hygienists make the most in California with an average salary of $86,763. Whereas in Nevada and Oregon, they would average $84,365 and $82,662, respectively. While hygienists would only make an average of $82,599 in Arizona, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Nevada
$84,365
Avg. Salary
2. Arizona
$82,600
Avg. Salary
3. Oregon
$82,662
Avg. Salary