Dental Assistant Resume (Tips, Template, Examples)

dental assistant resume example
Created by CakeResume

If a dentist is a captain, a dental assistant is his or her right-hand man(woman). Dental assistants’ duties vary, due to various settings in a dental clinic and state regulations; major responsibilities, however, include providing assistance in treatment, dental radiographs, patient management, and communication procedures. 

How to make a dental assistant resume?

Step 1: Dental Assistant Resume Headline

A resume headline is a 1-sentence paraphrase of a candidate’s accomplishment and professional profile. Headline becomes the best hashtag and personal brand for a candidate's dental assistant resume.

As a headline appears at the very top of the resume, it carries tremendous weight to one’s first image. Be sure the content aligns with the dental assistant job description for your resume. 

Dental assistant resume headline samples: 

  • Orthodontic assistant resume: Certified assistant with 5+ years experience in the orthodontic field 
  • Pediatric dental assistant resume: Dental professional adept at treating children patients of all ages 
  • Inexperienced dental assistant resume: Well-driven dental graduate with 250+ hours of real-field dental office assistance from internships

Step 2: Craft a Dental Assistant Professional Summary

A dental assistant profile summary refers to a candidates’ major achievements and skills.

Instead of a title like what a headline offers, a professional dental assistant summary is the short-bio that provides a more extensive explanation and credit to a candidate’s profile.  

Unlike other formal writing, fragmented sentences are encouraged in a dental assistant resume (on the premise that the language is comprehensible and well-structured).

Adjectives that fit the dental assistant job descriptions are the best ingredients to one’s dental assistant resume summary.

Samples of professional summary for dental assistants

  • Registered dental assistant resume: Knowledgeable dental professional with 20+ experience in four-hand procedures, 5+ years history in regular patient check-ups and treatments. 
  • Resume for dental assistant with no experience: Compassionate dental graduate from Michigan’s School of Dentistry, with 250+ hours of experience in the orthodontic dental field. Knowledgeable about dental instruments,  sterilization methods, and safety regulations. 
  • Entry-level dental assistant resume: Dedicated dental assistant with 1+ years experience. Adept expertise focused on four-hand procedures, hygiene assistance, communication, and reception.

Step 3: Skills on a Dental Assistant Resume

Skills are the highlights of one’s professional expertise and knowledge. While it’s crucial to show a wide range of knowledge, beware to stay on topic.

That being said, there’s no need to mention one’s fashion interest if one is writing a dental assistant resume.

One may worry about their own capabilities. For those focusing on a beginner dental assistant resume or crafting a dental assistant internship resume, it’s perfectly suitable to limit the length of the skill sections and instead draw attention to available studies, education background, and research.

Examples of common dental assistant skills on a resume

  • Digital Full Mouth Radiographs/X-ray 
  • Patient Engagement/Patient Care 
  • Dental Equipment Maintenance & Operation 
  • Procedure Documentation
  • Record Keeping

Orthodontic assistant resume skills: 

  • Four-handed dentistry
  • Dental Hygiene Consultation
  • Invisalign Preparation 
  • Orthodontic White Gypsum Preparation

Dental assistant resume soft skills;

  • Communication
  • Customer Care
  • Interpersonal Skill
  • Empathy and Compassion
  • Dexterity
  • Team Building

Step 4: Tailor the Dental Assistant Resume

Recruiters wish to find the perfect fit: the candidate’s job is to tailor one’s professional profile in the dental assistant resume to the expected role.

Step 5: Proofread

Proofreading helps prevent silly mistakes (spelling, grammar) and can often come with great inspiration of spicing up one’s dental assistant resume.

What is the best resume format for a dental assistant?

The 4 major types of resume format are: chronological, targeted, functional, and hybrid.

📝 Chronological Resume Format:

  • Follows a reverse chronological time order and lists the experiences from latest to earliest. 
  • The most common resume format in dental assistant resume template. Applicable for most requirements of dental assistant employment description for resume.
  • The safe choice for most (if not all) dental assistant resumes.

📝 Targeted Resume Format:

  • Customized for 1 specific role (especially crucial if one’s writing for a dream dental assistant externship resume or dream dental assistant internship resume) 
  • Takes especially more time and effort. 
  • Shows the candidate as the perfect candidate for the particular role opening. 
  • Those writing new dental assistant resumes or dental assistant student resumes should focus on this resume format as much as possible, as they probably lack skills and working experiences relatively to other job applicants.

📝 Functional Resume Format:

  • Focus on skills the applicants’ own in related fields. 
  • Qualifications and accomplishments are key. 
  • A very popular format in resumes for dental assistants with no experience, as it “conceal” and package the candidate’s lack of experience.

📝 Hybrid Resume Format:

  • Combination of chronological and functional version resume format. 
  • Skills and accomplishment serve first, then comes employment history. 
  • Those who are writing a dental assistant resume with experience can consider this resume format as their go-to choice, as it shows both skills and employment history, maximizing one’s accomplishment and expertise.

How to make a dental assistant resume template?

Crafting a dental assistant resume template is not a difficult task. The go-to steps by steps guide to how to write a resume template for a dental assistant job is below.

📌 Option 1: Microsoft Word/Pages

  • Refer to online dental assistant resume samples and extract the components/qualities the candidate loves (layout, format, language). 
  • Include mandatory sections such as Contact Info, Skills, Working History. 
  • Optimize layout and design and ensure it’s ATS-friendly. 
  • Bullet points and concise language will be the candidate’s best friend. 
  • Optimize Font size and layout
    • Times New Roman / Georgia / Calibri / Arial / Helvetica / Cambria
    • 12 points is the ideal size. 10-16 points are also applicable for adjustable content (headings, titles, etc).

📌 Option 2: Online Resume Builders

Not only not everyone owns the design and layout skills, but finding the right language in packing oneself is also an extremely difficult task.

An online resume builder can definitely fuel up the process, as they provide various dental assistant resume examples, dental assistant resume templates, and styles.

Cakeresume allows talents to create the best dental assist resume with a simple drag-and-drop editor and offers resume templates. Sign up and start building your dental assistant resume.

Top 10 dental assistant resume dos and don'ts

✅ Dos: 

  1. Only include applicable information & craft the dental assistant resume specifically for the role (if a candidate has the time to tailor it for a specific company, even better!) 
  2. Quantified (data-oriented) achievements are concrete and preferred. (some examples for certified dental assistant resumes could include patient satisfaction ratings, number of patients, times of surgery assistance, etc.) 
  3. Be sure the layout and design of the dental assistant resume are ATS-friendly (no intricate design. Or else the resume might be viewed as spam).
  4. The right resume format will pave the wave for the final interview (check Part 2 of the article)
  5. Active verbs in dental assistant resumes show initiative and the candidate’s willingness to take up responsibilities.

🚫 Don’ts: 

  1. Beware that a dental assistant resume differs from a dental assistant CV. While the former one is a 1-page synopsis targeted for a particular job application, the latter is used more in academia setting and its contents are more extensive. 
  2. Adopting an old-fashioned career objective for dental assistant might fail the candidate’s expectation. It may imply incompatibility with current industry terms and lack of training or qualifications for the position. 
  3. Any disclosure about former employers or intellectual rights is prohibited. Not only will it damage a candidate’s credibility, but may also lead to legal troubles.  
  4. Redundant and unnecessary personal details in one’s dental assistant resume may incite discrimination and show the candidates as professionally unfit for the role. Include unnecessary personal details that might lead to discrimination.
  5. Word document is not the preferred document format.

Dental assistant resume sample

Maximilliam Wayne

Dental Assistant at YYY Smile Clinic

Mobile: (+2) 001-110012
Email: [email protected]
linkedin.com/in/maximilliamwayne

Summary

Detail-oriented dental assistant with 5+ years of experience in pediatric dental field

Work Experience

Dental Assistant, YYY Smile Clinic

Sep 2018 - Present

  • Maintain good and compassionate patient care.
  • Receive a 98% patient satisfaction rate. 
  • Responsible for instrument sterilization, Invisalign application materials, and patient documentation. 
  • Prepare and process dental radiographs.
  • Assist with patient engagement, scheduling, and education.

Dental Assistant Intern, Chicago X123 Hospital

May 2017 - May 2018

  • Assisted senior dentists and hygienists in dental practices with impaction, fillings, and tooth removal.
  • Performed digital X-rays and fluoride applications. 
  • Prepared orthodontic equipment and materials for dental procedures. 
  • Consulted with patients regarding treatment plans, scheduling, and appointments. 

Skills

  • Patient Education & Care 
  • Dental Radiographs 
  • Orthodontics Understanding 
  • Pediatric Dentistry
  • Procedure Documentation
  • Model Casting
  • Operatory Preparation
  • Oral Health Examination
  • Four-handed Surgery
  • Instrument Sterilization & Maintenance

Education

Louisiana State University Health Science Center School of Dentistry

2019 - Present

Bachelor of Science in Cell Biology
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

2017

--- Originally written by Julia Chu ---

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