My Career as a Dental Hygienist

Aside from my at-home, full-time job as a mom, I work outside the home as a dental hygienist. My responsibilities as a dental hygienist entail cleaning teeth, taking x-rays, and instructing patients in the proper care of their teeth and gums. I love my career in the dental field because it provides me with the means to support my children on my own and with a salary that is comparable with one that might come with a job that requires a bachelor's degree or higher.

I was a secretary before returning to college in 1994. I attended my local community college, Pensacola Junior College part-time, at night to start. By this time, I had two children, and I knew that my job as a secretary in a saturated job market would not be sufficient if my rocky marriage didn't last. At first, I wasn't sure what career path I would take. I couldn't relocate; I knew that, so I had to choose a program that was available at PJC. I maintained my position at my secretarial job while working on my general education courses.

As I neared the end of those requirements, I knew that I would have to choose a direction to complete my education so I could graduate and move on. I studied the college catalog and decided I would pursue nursing or dental hygiene. I called the employment office of PJC and asked about salary projections, job descriptions, and other requirements of each career. The salaries were comparable, to my surprise, but nurses would be required to work shifts at one of the local hospitals during the internship. Because my children were small, I knew this could create a scheduling problem with my family. That was one of the major factors that prompted me to apply to the Dental Hygiene Program at PJC.

Programs in dental hygiene are intense and thorough. At the end, graduates receive an associate's degree, but in 49 states (only Alabama doesn't require dental hygienists to be college graduates) still must pass an intense national board exam and state board practical and written exams. Graduates, though, can count on a full-time, average starting salary of about $40,000 per year.

I graduated PJC's Dental Hygiene Program in 1998 and passed the national and state board exams later that year. Since then, I have worked in several dental practices, both large and small. I have found that smaller dental offices where patients receive more attention and I can spend more time with home care instruction and one-on-one care is more suited to my low-key style than large, hurried practices that urge workers to "get 'em in and get 'em out."

I now work in a small dental office in Dunedin, Florida where I have worked for four years. Even as a single parent, my career in dental hygiene supports my three children and me, though I only work four days per week. The long weekends are wonderful when the kids are on vacation and give me a day to myself when they are in school. I have at least two weeks of vacation per year, sometimes more, and I earn bonuses occasionally as well.

My story is not unusual in the field of dental hygiene. Licensed dental hygienists earn a salary comparable to that of registered nurses - more in some markets. Although money isn't everything, I sleep well at night knowing that my bills are paid and I don't have to rely on someone else to make that happen.