Four Concorde Career College campuses, located in California, offer nine-month dental assistant programs. Students can earn a diploma at colleges in North Hollywood, San Bernardino, Garden Grove and San Diego. The dental assistant program encompasses both clinical and administrative training. Students learn clinical duties, such as taking vital signs, sterilizing instruments, preparing instrument trays, proper oral inspection methods, x-ray processing and how to administer fluoride treatments. Administrative dental assistant duties include scheduling appointments, creating patient charts, maintaining records and supplies, collecting fees and managing insurance forms.
The National School of Dental Assisting in Stockton, California offers students a 12-week dental assisting program for a certificate of completion in basic dental assisting. Instruction takes place in a working dental office, located in Galt, California. Students receive 144 hours of class time plus one eight-hour externship in a dental office, for a total of 152 hours. Coursework in this program includes identifying parts and surfaces of the teeth, wiping down treatment rooms, performing mouth rinses, taking and developing x-rays, and identifying hand instruments, burs and hand tools. Students learn how to assist with oral surgeries, root canals, scaling, root planing and removing sutures. In the last unit of the course, students learn about custom impression trays, pouring and trimming casts, night guards and bleaching trays.
Summit Career College, with campuses located in Anaheim and Colton, offers a 37-week dental assisting program to enable students to gain entry-level employment. Students complete administrative and clinical courses, including receptionist duties, patient scheduling, record keeping, oral health and nutrition, dental radiology, dental specialties, restorative materials, laboratory techniques and chair-side assistance. Students who successfully complete the required classroom training participate in a four-week externship at an approved facility, working under the direct supervision of qualified personnel. Supervisory personnel evaluate the work performance of the student, and the evaluation forms remain in the permanent records of each student.
Twelve California United Education Institute (UEI) campuses offer an eight-month dental assistant diploma program. Campus locations include Anaheim, El Monte, Chula Vista, Huntington Park, San Diego, Fresno, Gardena, Ontario, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Marcos and Van Nuys. Students enrolled in this course do not need a high school diploma or GED for eligibility in the program. This dental assistant course teaches students how to prepare and place dental instruments for procedures, prep patients, sterilize and disinfect instruments and equipment, assist dentists during procedures and manage patient records. Students also learn how to educate patients on proper dental care practices and techniques.