Ready to pursue a career as a registered dental assistant (RDA)? Howard Healthcare Academy is happy to help you accomplish your career goals. Thanks to our Registered Dental Assisting Scholarship Program, individuals can get the financing and training they need to become successful RDAs at dental practices across the United States.

How Does the Howard RDA Scholarship Program Work?

Howard Healthcare Academy will accept a total of 15 scholarship program submissions (five each month) in October, November, and December. Each scholarship program recipient receives a free Howard dental assistant education valued at approximately $16,000. Recipients are only responsible for the costs associated with school supplies, textbooks, and uniforms valued at approximately $1,950.

A scholarship program application can be submitted online. Each participant must provide his or her name, phone number, and email address. We also request an acceptance letter or copy of a student’s transcript, two letters of recommendation (family members excluded), and an essay question response.

For those who want to move one step closer to becoming an RDA, you should act quickly to submit your Howard scholarship program materials. Remember, the sooner you apply, the better your chances of earning one of our RDA scholarships and embarking on an exciting new career path.

What Is the Howard Dental Assistant Program?

With the Howard dental assistant program, an individual can take the first step toward a career as an RDA. The program teaches students how to perform a wide range of day-to-day dental assistant tasks, including:

• Interacting with patients and preparing them for dental treatments
• Teaching patients about good oral hygiene
• Assisting a dentist during patient procedures
• Using dental instruments and equipment
• Setting up, taking, and processing both traditional and digital X-rays
• Maintaining patient records
• Setting up patient appointments and responding to patient requests
• Keeping a dental office neat, tidy, and infection-free

All Howard Healthcare Academy dental courses are approved by the Dental Board of California and the Bureau for Private Post-Secondary Education. Our courses enable students to obtain the skills and insights they need to thrive as RDAs.

What Do I Need to Know to Work as a Dental Assistant?

Howard’s dental assistant program empowers students with the knowledge they need to succeed at dental practices nationwide. This knowledge extends across several areas, such as:

• Tooth surfaces, names, and numbers
• Basic muscle groups, veins, and bones of the neck and head
• Chemicals and cement used in assorted dental procedures
• Oral landmarks and structures

Howard dental assistant program participants also receive certifications in the following areas:

• Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR): Enables students to perform CPR in emergencies where a person’s breathing or heartbeat stops.
• Radiation safety: Ensures students understand how to safely take patient dental X-rays; radiation safety certification is a requirement for all licensed dental professionals who want to perform X-rays in a California dental office.
• Coronal polishing: Allows students to perform coronal polish; a coronal polishing procedure is commonly used to remove stains from a patient’s teeth.
• Pit and fissure sealants: Teaches students how to perform pit and fissure sealant procedures; sealants help patients safeguard their teeth against decay and strengthen tooth enamel.
• Infection control: Shows students how to develop and deploy infection control, sterilization, and housekeeping best practices in a dental office; the certification is mandatory for licensed dental professionals in California.
• California Dental Practice Act: Defines the everyday duties of dental assistants and other licensed dental professionals and the rules and regulations that must be followed at all times; this certification is a requirement for licensed and unlicensed dental professionals who work in a California dental office.

What separates Howard Healthcare Academy’s dental assistant training from others is our commitment to interactive learning. Whereas some dental assistant training programs focus exclusively on classroom sessions, we offer a combination of lectures and hands-on lessons. This enables our students to learn what it takes to perform the day-to-day duties of a dental assistant and apply their knowledge in real-world settings.

The dental assisting program helps students earn their dental assistant certification in as little as 10 months and become eligible to take the state exam to become an RDA.

For individuals who want to become RDAs, our program helps accelerate their career growth. Soon we will even offer a one-day RDA exam review class to prepare our students for the California written exam. Moreover, Howard Healthcare Academy is committed to student success and will even pay for students’ state board exam for the first time after graduating from the program.

Should I Pursue a Career as an RDA?

There are many reasons why people pursue careers as RDAs. These reasons include:

• Rewarding work: RDAs work with dental patients and help them improve their teeth, and as a result, can make a difference in the lives of patients every day.
• High demand: As people search for innovative ways to whiten and straighten their teeth, expect the demand for dental assistants in the United States to increase accordingly. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports the dental assistant field is projected to grow 19% between 2016 and 2026; this rate is “much faster than average,” BLS notes.
• Positive work environment: For people who want to avoid mundane office work, a career as an RDA may be ideal. RDAs work in dental practices nationwide, and they engage with patients and dentists regularly. They contribute to a dental practice’s culture, and ultimately, play a key role in transforming a dental practice into a positive work environment.
• Competitive salary: An entry-level dental assistant in the United States earns an average annual salary between $23,149 and $44,790, PayScale indicates. Comparatively, PayScale reports RDAs in the United States earn an average annual salary in the range of $26,741 and $52,399.
• Career advancement: Becoming an RDA opens the door to new career opportunities. For example, an RDA can earn an orthodontic assistant permit, which enables this professional to perform orthodontic procedures in addition to his or her dental assisting responsibilities. Or, an RDA can earn an extended functions certification so he or she can perform final dental impressions, permanent crown cementing, and other advanced dental procedures.
• Flexible work schedule: RDAs often have the flexibility to work part- or full-time at one or more dental practices. Some RDAs even work exclusively in the mornings or afternoons, or they work solely on weekends.

To find out more about our dental assistant program, please contact us today at 1 (619) ACADEMY.