How Much Do Dentists Make?

What Do Dentists Do?

Dentists perform a variety of procedures on different kinds of patient needs.

Generally, a dentist’s job description involves the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of conditions and diseases of the teeth, gums, bones, and most parts of the mouth.

They also provide advice and instruction to patients on how to take care of their oral health, as well as prescribe and provide medication for pain and treatment of the diagnosed conditions.

Among a dentist’s duties are to remove decay, fill in cavities, clean teeth, repair cracked or fractured teeth, extract damaged and decaying teeth, perform x-ray procedures on the teeth, jaw, and gums, whiten teeth, correct crooked teeth, and administer anesthetics for minor and major oral surgical procedures.

Dentists also use a variety of equipment that allows them to perform their duties, such as x-ray machines, drills, forceps, scalpels, probes, mouth mirrors, lasers, digital scanners, and other tools and technology.

Dentists also employ a number of people, which include receptionists, dental assistants, dental hygienists, and laboratory technicians.

Dentist Specialty Areas

There are 9 types of specialists in dentistry, which are:

• Dental Public Health Specialists – dentists who promote dental health and prevent dental diseases;
• Endodontists – dentists who perform root-canal therapy;
• Orthodontists – dentists who straighten teeth through braces and other applications;
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons – those who operate on the mouth, teeth, gums, jaw, and head, such us repairing a cleft lip;
• Oral and Maxillofacial Radiologists – dentists who diagnose diseases in the neck and head;
• Oral Pathologists – dentists who diagnose conditions and diseases;
• Pediatric Dentists – those who specialize in children’s oral health, as well as individuals with special needs;
• Prosthodontists – dentists who replace missing or damaged teeth;
• Periodontists – dentists who treat gums and the bones that support the teeth.

How do You Become a Dentist?

In order to obtain a dentist career, you must acquire a bachelor’s degree before proceeding to dental school.

Though it is not required that you study in the field of the sciences, your chances of getting accepted in an institution will be higher if you have a degree in the sciences such as in biology and chemistry.

Those who intend to proceed to dental school right after college can take the DAT or the Dental Acceptance Test during their junior year. The test results, grade point average, and other requirements will be needed for acceptance to dental schools.

For those who want to specialize in a specific field, 1 to 2 years of residency in the program related to the specialty is required. For those who want to teach and/or do dental research full time, an additional 2-5 years of training is a requirement.

Dentists must be licensed in all states, but requirements vary from state to state.

Dentists Career Outlook

Employment in dentistry is predicted to rise by from the years 2016 to 2026. With this likely increase in dentist employment, an increase in other dental professions is also likely to occur, such as an increase in the demand for dental assistants, dental hygienists, and other related professions.

The projected development of new technologies in the field of dentistry is also seen to lower the time it needs to complete certain dental procedures, resulting to more patients being able to be handled by dentists.

Projected increases of cosmetic dental services are also seen to occur, due to the popularity of whitening and other less invasive procedures.

Dentist Salary by State

Flag	State	Employment per 1000 Jobs	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage
	Alabama	0.514	$83.28	$173,220
	Alaska	0.66	$98.98	$205,880
	Arizona	0.885	$68.22	$141,890
	Arkansas	0.681	$77.17	$160,520
	California	0.799	$74.65	$155,270
	Colorado	0.895	$75.98	$158,050
	Connecticut	0.759	$88.20	$183,460
	Delaware	0.684	$108.09	$224,830
	Florida	0.74	$78.64	$163,570
	Georgia	0.594	$91.64	$190,620
	Hawaii	0.718	$80.51	$167,470
	Idaho	0.702	$81.42	$169,360
	Illinois	0.619	$68.26	$141,980
	Indiana	0.675	$69.12	$143,780
	Iowa	0.559	$83.89	$174,480
	Kansas	0.544	$83.52	$173,720
	Kentucky	0.453	$72.57	$150,950
	Louisiana	0.452	$71.27	$148,240
	Maine	0.521	$98.02	$203,890
	Maryland	0.977	$76.84	$159,830
	Massachusetts	1.058	$84.27	$175,280
	Michigan	0.904	$77.42	$161,040
	Minnesota	0.623	$93.12	$193,690
	Mississippi	0.604	$73.31	$152,490
	Missouri	0.643	$81.08	$168,650
	Montana	1.004	$62.69	$130,390
	Nebraska	0.473	$72.66	$151,130
	Nevada	0.831	$69.60	$144,770
	New Hampshire	0.682	$104.92	$218,230
	New Jersey	0.624	$75.31	$156,640
	New Mexico	0.936	$90.35	$187,920
	New York	0.943	$78.86	$164,030
	North Carolina	0.75	$98.95	$205,820
	North Dakota	0.491	$88.27	$183,600
	Ohio	0.657	$89.47	$186,100
	Oklahoma	0.821	$71.07	$147,820
	Oregon	0.717	$81.31	$169,110
	Pennsylvania	0.647	$80.14	$166,690
	Rhode Island	0.735	$88.07	$183,180
	South Carolina	0.795	$88.05	$183,150
	South Dakota	0.946	$79.13	$164,590
	Tennessee	0.362	$83.10	$172,850
	Texas	0.632	$89.31	$185,760
	Utah	0.968	$54.32	$112,990
	Vermont	0.562	$98.44	$204,760
	Virginia	0.798	$76.34	$158,780
	Washington	0.776	$85.53	$177,890
	West Virginia	0.548	$81.53	$169,590
	Wisconsin	0.703	$85.66	$178,180
	Wyoming	0.837	$88.22	$183,490

Top paying metropolitan areas

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas