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Dental Hygiene

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Program Overview

The Dental Hygiene program prepares you to provide educational, clinical, and therapeutic disease prevention, health promotion, and oral hygiene services under the supervision of a licensed dentist. You will gain knowledge and skills in:

  • Medical terminology
  • Oral and dental anatomy
  • Digital dental radiography
  • Dental procedures
  • Oral disease and health
  • Computerized charting and record keeping
  • Dental equipment and materials
  • Infection control
  • Oral and dental hygiene practices
  • Patient education
  • Dental pharmacology
  • Pain control techniques
  • Public health systems

Hands-On Learning Opportunities

  • Dental Clinic: Train in the state-of-the-art clinic featuring 25 patient chairs, computerized patient record software, and a complete 6-chair digital radiology center under the supervision of licensed dentists and dental professionals.

  • Clinical: Gain 528 hours of real-world work experience ensuring you have the skills you need to succeed in your future career.

Licensure and Certification

Registered Dental Hygienist (RDH) is the designation for a licensed professional in the State of Iowa. Graduates of the program are eligible to take the national written and state/regional clinical examinations for licensure, required to practice in any state. A social security number is required in order to take exams and apply for licensure.

See our State Licensure Google Sheet to identify the states in which Hawkeye's Dental Hygiene program requirements fulfill the state guidelines for professional licensure and certification.

Licensure and Certification Disclosure

Accreditation

The Dental Hygiene program is accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation. The Commission is a specialized accrediting body recognized by the United States Department of Education. Allied Dental Professions graduates are eligible to take necessary Examinations of their choice. Successful completion of board examinations is required to receive a license to practice in the State of Iowa.

Commission on Dental Accreditation
American Dental Association
211 East Chicago Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611
312-440-4653

www.ada.org/en/coda

Policy on Third Party Comments [pdf]

Board Pass Rates

* No report yet available

Examination

Dental Board Hygiene National Exam

(ADA NBDHE)

(Required by Iowa)

 Attempted 1st Try 16
Passed 1st Try 14 (88%)
Attempted 2nd Try 2
Passed 2nd Try 2 (100%)

Central Regional Dental Testing Service (CRDTS) Exam

(Required by Iowa)

 Attempted 1st Try 16
Passed 1st Try 14 (88%)
Attempted 2nd Try 2
Passed 2nd Try 2 (100%)

Jurisprudence Exam for Iowa License

(Required by Iowa)

 Attempted 1st Try 16
Passed 1st Try 16 (100%)
Job Placement as of March 31, 2023 16/16 100%

Student Learning Outcomes

  1. Utilize foundational knowledge to learn dental hygiene care

  2. Be ethical and professional and follow established laws, policies, procedures, and regulations

  3. Endorse health maintenance and disease prevention within the office setting and the community

  4. Inspect, observe, and measure the patient's oral health

  5. Determine dental hygiene diagnoses related to, and congruent with, the diagnosis of the dentist and other health professionals

  6. Establish a mutually acceptable dental hygiene care plan

  7. Deliver and manage the planned dental hygiene evidence-based treatment and oral health education in sequence and accordance with accepted standards of care

Program Learning Outcomes / Program Goals

Upon successful completion of the program, the student will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate competency in basic sciences, oral sciences, and dental hygiene sciences.

  2. Internalize and exhibit the principles of ethics of the dental hygiene profession.

  3. Utilize interpersonal and communication skills to effectively interact with individuals and population groups emphasizing diversity.

  4. Adhere to the standards of dental hygiene practice and comply with the legal rules and regulations of dental hygiene care.

  5. Analyze current oral health literature and case-based studies and apply this information to the practice of dental hygiene.

  6. Provide preventive self-care oral health education to individuals and groups.

  7. Assess, diagnose, plan, implement, evaluate, and document the complete dental hygiene process of care for all patients.

  8. Research, implement, and evaluate community oral health programs targeted to specific population groups.

  9. Apply dental hygiene principles within the interdisciplinary approach to disease prevention and health promotion.

  10. Identify and manage appropriate procedures for infection control, radiation hygiene, occupational hazards, and medical emergency protocols.

Program Purpose Statement

The dental hygiene program empowers students to provide entry-level oral-systemic educational, clinical, and therapeutic disease prevention and health promotion services under the supervision of a licensed dentist. Upon successful completion of this program, students will strengthen surrounding businesses, enrich their communities, and improve the quality of life in the populations they serve.

At A Glance
Award
  • Associate of Applied Science
Length of Study 2½ years
Program Start Fall
Tuition-Free Eligible

This program qualifies for the Future Ready Iowa Last-Dollar Scholarship and will pay up to 100% of your tuition.

Students must apply for, be awarded, and meet the ongoing eligibility requirements for the Last-Dollar Scholarship.
 

Faculty Spotlight

Katie Gisleson, RDH, MHEA

Katie has been on faculty since 2013. She teaches a variety of didactic courses and labs, and spends many hours helping students in the clinic. Katie earned her bachelor's degree in Human Resource Management from the University of Northern Iowa in 2003, and then decided she had a different calling. She enrolled at Hawkeye and graduated in 2007 with a degree in Dental Hygiene. Katie worked in private practice in Manchester, Iowa, before serving as an adjunct instructor at Hawkeye for a semester—and was bitten by the education bug. This inspired her to earn her master’s degree in Higher Education Administration from Upper Iowa University in 2015.

In her spare time, Katie loves spending time with her family and friends. She's an avid quilter and sports fan who inspires her students to keep their chins up, work hard, and believe in themselves. The Iowa Dental Hygienists Association named her Hygienist of the Year in 2017.

"It's incredibly rewarding to foster individual growth and guide the transition from incoming students to phenomenal professionals."

Meet the Dental Hygiene Team

Graduate Spotlight:
Taylor Thede

Taylor Thede wanted to enter the dentistry field, and a job shadow during high school helped her land on Dental Hygiene. While at Hawkeye Community College, she not only fell in love with the dental field, but the Cedar Valley. Now, the Maquoketa native wants to make it her home.

"I fell in love with the Cedar Valley when I moved here," she said. "I want to work in a private practice around the area."

Graduate Spotlight
Brianne Martin

Brianne Martin knew she wanted to do something in the medical field, but it wasn't until she spent time shadowing a family friend that she decided dental hygiene was for her. She first completed her Dental Assisting degree, and now she’s finishing Dental Hygiene and a bachelor's in public health from Allen. "The most rewarding part is being able to get so much out of the five years I've been here," she said. "I was able to get three degrees in five years."

Graduate Spotlight
Alyssa Hertges

Alyssa Hertges did her research before coming to Hawkeye Community College. The Decorah native quickly learned Hawkeye was the place to go for Dental Hygiene. Seats in the program were in high demand, so she started in Dental Assisting, gaining many crossover skills that complemented both fields. Now a double Hawkeye graduate, she's already thinking about returning someday as an instructor. "I want everybody to experience something that they love doing."

Program Pathway

Prerequisite Coursework

Prerequisite Courses Details

Credits 18
Enrollment Full-time, Part-time
Program Start Fall, Spring, Summer
Number of Terms 1
Time to Complete 4 months

Prerequisite Courses

  • Human Anatomy and Physiology I
  • Human Anatomy and Physiology II
  • Introduction to General Chemistry
  • Medical Terminology
  • Microbiology

See the Suggested Sequence of Study for cost and additional course details.

Next step: Complete the Dental Hygiene program admission requirements then continue to Term 1 of the Dental Hygiene Associate of Science (AAS) degree program.

Dental Hygiene Associate of Science (AAS) Degree

Program Details

Award Associate of Applied Science (AAS)
Credits 68
Program Start Fall
Number of Terms 5
Time to Complete 2 years
Admissions Application Select Academic Program:
Dental Hygiene – AAS
See Program Admission

Suggested Sequence of Study and Cost

Program Courses

Term 1
  • Fundamentals of Clinical Dental Hygiene
  • Head and Neck Anatomy for Dental Hygiene
  • Oral Histology and Embryology
  • Oral Radiology
  • Tooth Morphology
Term 2
  • Biomaterials for the Dental Hygienist
  • Clinical Dental Hygiene II
  • Clinical Dental Hygiene II Seminar
  • Ethics and Jurisprudence
  • General and Oral Pathology
  • Introduction to Organic and Biochemistry
  • Introduction To Periodontology
  • Introduction To Periodontology
  • Special Needs Patient Education
Term 3 — Summer
  • Introduction to Psychology
  • Introduction to Sociology
Term 4
  • Clinical Dental Hygiene III
  • Clinical Dental Hygiene III Seminar
  • Community Oral Health I
  • Nutrition
  • Pain Control
  • Periodontology
  • Pharmacology
Term 5
  • Clinical Dental Hygiene IV
  • Clinical Dental Hygiene Seminar IV
  • Community Oral Health Service Learning Experience
  • Composition I
  • Fundamentals of Oral Communication
  • Independent Study Clinical Dental Hygiene
  • Interdisciplinary Health Care

Dental Hygiene students are required to complete background screenings, including a criminal background check, sex offender registry, child abuse registry, and dependent adult registry before participating in clinicals The outcome could possibly affect your opportunities to participate in the clinical setting.

Students are asked to produce their own patients for the completion of clinical competencies in three terms of the program.

See the Suggested Sequence of Study for the full list of courses, cost, and additional course details.

You have completed the Dental Hygiene Associate of Science (AAS) degree program. Check out the Health continuing education courses to keep up to date in your profession.

Careers

Positions

Our graduates can be employed in many dental areas, including:

  • Private dental practices
  • Specialty practices
  • HMOs
  • Long-term care/geriatric centers
  • Community outreach organizations

Example Careers and Average Wages
Entry Average Experienced
Dental Hygienists $68,100 $76,000 $80,000

Source: 2022 Iowa Wage Report, Iowa Workforce Development

Employers

The following is a partial list of employers who have hired graduates from this program:
Business Location
Delta Dental of Iowa Johnston, IA
Dental Associates of Manchester Manchester, IA
Henry Schein Dental Melville, NY
Iowa Department of Public Health Des Moines, IA
Kimball & Beecher Family Dentistry Waterloo, IA
Patterson Dental Supply, Inc. Des Moines, IA
Peoples Community Health Clinic, Inc. Waterloo, IA

Program Admission

In order to be considered for the Dental Hygiene program, students must provide the Admissions office with the appropriate documentation showing completion of all requirements. Appropriate documentation consists of:

  • Official high school or GED/HiSET transcript
  • Official college transcript (if applicable)

It is the student’s responsibility to:

  1. Monitor their progress towards meeting admissions requirements
  2. Notify the Admissions office when requirements have been met
  3. Provide the Admissions office evidence of meeting the requirements

  4. Keep their contact information up to date and to routinely check their Hawkeye email

Step #1: Apply at Hawkeye

  1. Apply for admission at Hawkeye.
  2. Send official transcripts to Admissions.
  3. Demonstrate college readiness.

You can check the status of your application by logging into your Admissions Account.

Hawkeye's Equal Opportunity Statement

Step #2: Prerequisite Coursework

Prerequisite coursework may be completed at Hawkeye Community College or at any accredited transfer institution. See the suggested sequence of study for a list of prerequisite courses.

Once all prerequisite coursework is completed, contact the Admissions office immediately.

Step #3: Dental Hygiene Program Admittance/Admission Processing

  • The Dental Hygiene program registers 25 students each fall.

  • Applicants who successfully meet all admission criteria and prerequisite coursework will be given an Eligible-Start Date to be Determined (ETBD) application status.

    • The Eligible-Start Date to be Determined status date is according to the student’s prerequisite completion date. If students share the same prerequisite completion date, the registration date for the final prerequisite course will be used.

    • Eligible-Start Date to be Determined (ETBD) application status does not guarantee program admittance. Program admittance is based on seat availability. It is not uncommon for students to remain on Eligible-Start Date to be Determined (ETBD) application status for two years.

  • The Admissions Office will request Eligible-Start Date to be Determined candidates to confirm their eligibility interest once a year in September/October.

  • The Admissions Office provides Eligible-Start Date to be Determined candidates with an anticipated start term update two times a year, November and February.

  • The Admissions Office begins the admittance process for the following fall in late January.

  • It is the student’s responsibility to keep their contact information up to date and to continually check their Hawkeye email.

Prior to the First Day of Classes

Prior to the first day of classes, admitted students must have a physical exam with immunization record on Hawkeye Community College form. Students must also attend a Mandatory Compliance Training session.

Changes are taking place within healthcare facilities nationally. These changes directly affect all health programs at Hawkeye Community College. The Joint Commission of Accreditation of Healthcare Organization (JCAHO), which accredits healthcare facilities across the country, enforced background screening September 2004 and has set requirements mandating that students in a healthcare field must now complete the same background check as hospital employees. As a Health student of Hawkeye Community College, you will be required to complete a criminal background check which includes fingerprinting that searches the following databases of sex offender, child abuse and dependent adult registry, and Medicare/Medicaid Fraud. The outcome could possibly affect your opportunities to participate in the clinical setting

Equal Opportunity Statement

Program Contacts
Admissions
Email Admissions 319-296-4000 Hawkeye Center 114
Dental Administrative Chair
Emily Boge Email Emily Boge 319-296-4302 Grundy Hall 124
Academic/College Success Advisor
Kelly Kobliska Email Kelly Kobliska 319-296-4014 ext.1624 Hawkeye Center 208F
Faculty Advisor
Last Names A – L
 Katie Gisleson Email Katie Gisleson 319-296-2329 ext.1359 Grundy Hall 135
Faculty Advisor
Last Names N – Z
 Tonya Obermire Email Tonya Obermire 319-296-2329 ext.1360 Grundy Hall 133
Administrative Assistant
Vickie Bogart Email Vickie Bogart 319-296-4010 Tama Hall 110
Dean
Troy Moran Email Troy Moran 319-296-4457 Tama Hall 110B

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