Dental Assistants: where your skills can take you
Perform limited clinical duties under the direction of a dentist. Clinical duties may include equipment preparation and sterilization, preparing patients for treatment, assisting the dentist during treatment, and providing patients with instructions for oral healthcare procedures. May perform administrative duties such as scheduling appointments, maintaining medical records, billing, and coding information for insurance purposes.
Usual study level (from US data): Cert IV or Diploma (TAFE; if you have experience, recognition of prior learning can shorten it) · Health employers usually ask for a National Police Check
Job names and descriptions on this page come from the US government's job list (O*NET). Some use American words, for example "elementary school" for primary school.
Three moves that use what a dental assistant already knows
Ranked by how much of the job's skills and knowledge carries over. Each one says what the move usually costs in study.
Dental Hygienists
🧰 Your current job already uses looking after customers and clients, teaching other people, watching gauges and readings and listening properly.
🎓 A certificate or diploma. This job has its own registration and qualification, even at your level of study. The most common level in the US is some college, a certificate or an associate degree (75%).
🪪 AHPRA registration as a dental hygienist (Dental Board)
🔎 Find courses for this job on training.gov.au ↗
Administer oral hygiene care to patients. Assess patient oral hygiene problems or needs and maintain health records. Advise patients on oral health maintenance and disease prevention. May provide advanced care such as providing fluoride treatment or administering topical anesthesia.
Ophthalmic Medical Technicians
🧰 Your current job already uses looking after customers and clients, listening properly, reading people and working in step with other people.
🎓 A certificate or diploma. The most common level in Australia is a certificate or diploma (43%).
🔎 Find courses for this job on training.gov.au ↗
Assist ophthalmologists by performing ophthalmic clinical functions. May administer eye exams, administer eye medications, and instruct the patient in care and use of corrective lenses.
Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers
🧰 Your current job already uses looking after customers and clients, teaching other people, reading people and working in step with other people.
🎓 No more study. Your current level of study is usually enough. The most common level in the US is high school or less (85%).
🔎 Find courses for this job on training.gov.au ↗
Feed, water, and examine pets and other nonfarm animals for signs of illness, disease, or injury in laboratories and animal hospitals and clinics. Clean and disinfect cages and work areas, and sterilize laboratory and surgical equipment. May provide routine postoperative care, administer medication orally or topically, or prepare samples for laboratory examination under the supervision of veterinary or laboratory animal technologists or technicians, veterinarians, or scientists.
These are the three closest moves. The full list holds 24. Answer four quick questions — how much more study, which field, what you want more of, where you live — and the list fits you. Subscribers can plan any move.
See all 24 moves →Take the free testData sources and licences
O*NET 30.3 — This service incorporates information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JobMatcha has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
ABS ANZSCO 2022 Australian Update — Australian occupation tags are derived from the Australian Bureau of Statistics ANZSCO 2022 Australian Update correspondence tables (ABS, © Commonwealth of Australia, licensed under CC BY 4.0), bridged to U.S. occupations via U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics SOC crosswalks (public domain). Only high-confidence (>= 0.8) one-to-one chains are shown; other mappings are withheld as 'Australian data unavailable'.
Australian pay and shortage lines: Jobs and Skills Australia.