How To Become A Registered Dental Assistant: What It Is and Career Path

What is a registered dental assistant and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted Experts

Aaron Benitez CDA, RDA, RDHAP, MSDH,

Carol Donohue

Registered Dental Assistant do almost the job of a secretary. They are responsible for scheduling appointments, compiling a medical history, and supporting dental hygienists and dentists. They also help the dentist sterilize and prepare surgical equipment and explain post-procedure care instructions to patients. This is just a combination of administrative but with a blend of clinical responsibility.

To qualify as a registered dental assistant, you must be trained, then certified by your state's board. In the United States, the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) affliction with ADA has accredited approx. 270 dental assistants.

A comprehensive procedure for enrolling into the registered dental Assistant include Get your GED or high school diploma; It takes four years to complete, register for a Dental Assisting Program; It takes one to three years to complete, apply for RDA (AMT); It can take up to one to three weeks, and get ready for RDA (AMT) certification exam; timeline differs.

The salary of a Registered Dental Assistant stands at $32,391 annually. But it all depends on the country you work in and the organization. For example, in the United States, it is reported that they pay as high as $49,092 annually and $24,319 on the low.

What general advice would you give to a Registered Dental Assistant?

Aaron Benitez CDA, RDA, RDHAP, MSDH

Dental Assisting Faculty, Articulation Officer, Website

In California, it is an exciting time to be a Dental Assistant. The industry has been gradually adding more technologically advanced procedures like 3-D printing, intra-oral scanning, along with Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistance. A Dental Assistant needs to possess the traditional knowledge to be able to learn these new advanced procedures. In order to make themselves more competitive, the Dental Assistant must possess the knowledge and hands-on experience of these new procedures.
Also, since in California the minimum wage is increasing beyond the amount that a starting Dental Assistant could potentially earn, learning new advanced techniques is more relevant.

ScoreRegistered Dental AssistantUS Average

Salary

3.0

Avg. Salary $38,145

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

6.8

Growth Rate 8%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.73%

Asian 8.99%

Black or African American 6.13%

Hispanic or Latino 31.61%

Unknown 4.86%

White 47.68%

Gender

female 91.04%

male 8.96%

Age - 36

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 36

Stress Level

6.8

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

6.4

Complexity Level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

10.0

Work Life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a registered dental assistant

Explore registered dental assistant education requirements

Most common registered dental assistant degrees

Associate

32.8 %

Certificate

18.8 %

Bachelor's

17.5 %

Start to develop specific registered dental assistant skills

Skills	Percentages
Patients	26.09%
CPR	13.35%
RDA	9.54%
Treatment Rooms	5.64%
Oral Surgery	4.90%

Complete relevant registered dental assistant training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New registered dental assistants learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a registered dental assistant based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real registered dental assistant resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming a licensed registered dental assistant usually require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed registered dental assistant in most of states. 43 states require registered dental assistants to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License Url
Maryland	Degree required	Third-party exam required	DENTAL HYGIENIST
Alabama	-	-	Licensed Dental Hygienist
Alaska	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Dental Hygienist
Arkansas	Degree required	State exam required	Dental Hygienist
California	Degree required	Both state and third-party exams required	Dental Hygienist, Registered

Gain additional registered dental assistant certifications

Registered dental assistant certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific registered dental assistant certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for registered dental assistants include Dental Assistant (RDA) and Certified Dental Assistant - Coronal Polish (CP).

More About Certifications

Research registered dental assistant duties and responsibilities

Prepare patients for recording temperature and blood pressure, administering sedatives along with charting.
Participate with all continuing education classes and courses, including first aid and CPR updating.
Take full mouth x-rays, perform coronal polishing; provide flossing and oral hygiene instructions.
Fabricate temporary crowns; take final impressions, coronal polishing, and mixing and placement of cement.

Prepare your registered dental assistant resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your registered dental assistant resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a registered dental assistant resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Registered Dental Assistant Resume templates

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