Dental Assistant Resume Example and Advice from HR Pros

According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment of dental assistants will increase by up to 8% from 2021 to 2031 — which is substantially faster than most other professions. Over the next decade, over 56,400 openings per year are projected for dental assistants.

Building a career as a dental assistant can give you a stable income and lots of options for professional growth.

The average salary of a Dental Assistant in the United States is $44,741, according to Salary.com. Salaries can range from $39,942 to $49,273 and depend on your expertise and experience.

To get the job you want, you will need to have a powerful resume and cover letter combo. And this is what we are looking into today: how to write a dental assistant resume.

We will be covering the following points:

• What the standard job description for a dental assistant looks like
• What you should include in your dental assistant resume
• A dental assistant resume template for you to use as a base to create your own resume
• Tips for writing a strong resume — and more
• Let’s get started.

To learn more about how to write a dental assistant cover letter, check out our post on Dental assistant cover letter example and Advice from HR Pros.

Dental assistant job description

Dental assistants help dentists perform dental procedures. Some of the most common responsibilities of a dental assistant include:

• Sterilizing dental tools
• Performing X-rays
• Patient care
• Record keeping
• Scheduling appointments
• Assisting with patient billing and more

Your specific tasks and responsibilities as a dental assistant will depend on the dental office you work for.

To get a well-paying position as a dental assistant, you will need to prepare a strong resume. More on this below.

How to write a dental assistant resume?

Below, we will look into more detail how to write a dental assistant resume in the reverse-chronological format. This resume format emphasizes work experience and is most suitable for those who have worked at several dental offices prior to the new job application. If you are a recent graduate, you may prefer to use a skill-based resume. You can learn about the different resume format options here — Top Resume Formats: Tips and Examples of 3 Common Formats.

There are several sections a dental assistant resume should include to provide the hiring manager with all the necessary information. These include:

Name and contact details

Your resume should start with your contact information. This will let the hiring manager know whose resume they are reading and have your contact details in front of them if they need to get in touch with you for more information.

Here’s what to include in your resume contact details:

1. Full name and educational and/or professional credentials.
2. City of residence (optional), phone number and email. Make sure you use a professional email address such as name.surname@email.com instead of something more informal. If needed, create a separate email box for sending out job applications.
3. It’s also a good idea to add links to your website, online portfolio or professional social media like LinkedIn. This is a great way for your potential employer to get some additional information about you that they won’t find on your resume.

Professional summary

After your contact details, add a brief professional summary. This can include a short description of what you are best at and a list of your most valued skills that will be relevant to the job you are applying for.

Professional experience

Next, add your professional experience. List the places you’ve worked at in reverse- chronological order, starting from the most recent position. When describing each position, mention the name of the company that employed you, your title and your core responsibilities and professional achievements.

Education

This section should mention all relevant degrees, courses and other qualifications, starting with the highest degree or qualification. Thus, if you graduated from university, there’s no need to mention you finished high school.

You can also include any other relevant certification you’ve received. With that, keep this section short and don’t mention courses that you may have taken as a hobby that aren’t relevant to the job. Furthermore, if your list of courses and certifications is long, put it in the Additional information section, but if you took only one relevant to the job course, you can mention it in this section.

Additional information

This section is a great opportunity to add any other information that you believe might help your case. For instance, you can elaborate on additional skills you have that may be useful in your job as a dental assistant, mention internships you’ve done, foreign languages you speak and more.

Tips for writing a dental assistant resume

Now that we’ve covered the structure of your resume, let’s explore some best practices for making it the best it can be.

First and foremost, your resume should be tailored to the position you are applying for. Do not mass-send the same resume. While you can definitely have the base of your resume ready and unchanging, it’s always best to add a few tweaks to make sure it fits the job description you are applying for.
• Keep your resume short and to the point. Most HR managers agree that your resume shouldn’t be over a page long. If it is longer, there is a high chance the hiring manager will just scan through it and miss out on the important information you want to convey.
• Highlight the key points in your resume so that they “jump off” the page. To do so, you can use the bold font or bullet points. Don’t go overboard, though. Keep your resume simple and don’t use “informal” fonts, bright colors or excessive visuals.
• Keep your resume as specific as possible. This is not the place to generalize and write abstract ideas. Use numbers, references to specific projects and company names.
• Unless otherwise specified, you should use the PDF format for your resume. This is a standard resume and cover letter format that will be readable on most systems and devices.
• Before hitting “send” on your resume, make sure it’s free of spelling errors and typos. You can run your resume through one of the automated spell checkers online or simply go through the final document yourself very carefully.

Dental assistant resume example

Summing things up

• To apply for the position you want as a dental assistant, you will need a strong resume that highlights your best features, professional experience, skills and expertise.
• Your resume should include the following sections: contact details, professional introduction, experience, education and additional information (optional).
• Make your resume short and to the point. There is no need to add general information. Instead, try to be as specific as possible.
• Most importantly, your resume should be tailored to the position you are applying for. Re-read the job description you are responding to and pick out the main keywords used to describe the main requirements and responsibilities.

Learn about how to write a resume.

Recruitment specialist

Samantha Goode

Samantha Goode is an HR practitioner who also has a background in marketing. She specializes in diversity training in the workplace and wants to share her knowledge by writing meaningful and compelling blog posts. During the weekends, you’ll find Sam in hole-in-the-wall cafes.