How do I become a dental assistant w/out attending a school. Don't any dentist hire assistants w/out?

experience? For the assistants out there. did you go to school to be an assistant? I want to pursue being a hygientist, but I think it's pointless to go to school to be an assistant? It seems like you could pretty much be trained on the job??
Answer:
As a denitst I can tell you that most dentists are always looking for someone who has attended school and has had the formal training, this causes less time the dentist has to train and more time being focused on patient care itself. Good luck with your future career and check around in your area, there may be a dentist willing to let you train on the job.

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Usually they want an experianced assistant with an education cuz think of it this way sometimes when u are at the dentist if he is really busy his assistant will do some of the work if u were at the dentist would u want somebody screwing with your teeth who had no clue what they were doing.

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Unless you know someone that knows someone you are SOL. In this day and age YES, you have to go to school. For almost everything. I am a medical Asssistant and since I haven't done the job in well over 20 years in order for me to become gainfully employed I have to retrain. Go to school. There is money it that field also. But, you must be a people person. And like your work.

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yes you can be trained on the job but the state will not allow you to do xrays, impressions, polishing, etc. about the only thing you can do is clean and sterilize or suction spit. i don't pay too much per hour to an assistant unless she can do these extra duties.i couldn't agree with you more on going on to become a hygienist. you make more than double (upwards of $40 an hour) and you don't clean up after anyone other than yourself. go for it!

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I started working at a dental office five days after I graduated high school and I had no experience. I stayed there 6 years. There are some dentists that are willing to train you. We hired a girl that had gone to school for assisting and she said that I knew more than she did when it came to assisting. It is better to have the hands on training.

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