Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between surgical dental assistants and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a surgical dental assistant, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a surgical dental assistant has an average salary of $40,006, which is higher than the $38,859 average annual salary of a certified medical technician.
The top three skills for a surgical dental assistant include patients, vital signs and CPR. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Surgical Dental Assistant | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $40,006 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $19.23 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 52,478 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 32% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 38 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 12 |
Surgical dental assistants and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Surgical Dental Assistant | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $40,006 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $55,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | - | Alaska |
| Best paying company | - | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | - | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a surgical dental assistant and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Surgical Dental Assistant | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 32% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Dental Assisting | Nursing |
| Most common college | - | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between surgical dental assistants' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Surgical Dental Assistant | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 38 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 8.7% Female, 91.3% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 23.6% Asian, 7.4% White, 54.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 8% |