Are the Ads for 10 Week Dental Assistant Training Classes Legitimate?
Finish Your Dental Assistant Training in 10 Weeks?
Starting your dental assistant training may be the first step in beginning your bright new career, but what about those 10 week dental assistant training classes? Can they provide you with enough education to actually secure a position after your dental assistant training is complete?
Are Fast Track, 10 Week Dental Assistant Training Courses Legitimate?
Here’s a familiar scenario that is occurring in every field, not just dental assistant training. Industries with careers that require certification or licensing as opposed to college degrees are being taken advantage of, by schools that offer the “too good to be true” fast track to career success.
These so-called training programs take advantage of the fact that individuals desiring to enter the field are often more interested in the fastest way to employment, instead of making sure they receive the proper dental assistant training in order to truly qualify for the position. If you are considering a 10 week course (or any dental assistant training), be sure the dental assistant school is accredited by The American Dental Association (ADA). Their website can be found at ADA.org.
Disturbing Findings Online for Dental Assistant Training
Although we can’t pinpoint every education scam (and there are plenty), we can provide you with sound advice for choosing the right dental assistant training. First of all, if the school or training program is not approved by the American Dental Association, you shouldn’t take the course. So, how do schools that advertise and provide dental assistant training that aren’t actually accredited get away with it? Bottom line, it comes down to clever marketing and even more clever wording. Anyone can offer a training program. If you like to cook, for instance, you are more than welcome to offer private cooking classes. You may advertise in your community newspaper or even on your local cable station. If you follow sanitary regulations and obtain proper licensure, you can even charge for the training you provide. Now, if an individual decides to take your courses, pay your fees, but then isn’t qualified to become a gainfully employed chef, is that your fault? I think you understand the loophole in the system through this example.
Here is something disturbing we recently found online:
Question found in Yahoo Search – Are the 10 week dental assistant training courses a scam?
The individual asking the question went further to explain, “I’m debating whether to take a 10 week dental assistant training course. It is offered by a dentist in my area, along with other individuals who work in the field. They say that I can use their dental assistant training to get a job anywhere in our area? Is this actually good enough?”
Answer from same Yahoo Search – The individual who responded to the question advised to check out the credentials of the program before enrolling.
Although the advice given by the responder is true, it is extremely alarming to think that dentists or professionals who currently work in the field of dentistry are offering dental assistant training programs and passing them off as being sufficient to work in the field.
If you see something like this offered in your area, the first thing you should do is check with the ADA.org website. The second thing you should do is report the “dental assistant training program” to your local or state dental board or at least to the Better Business Bureau. Any program that is teaching skills that have to do with the medical field should be scrutinized by proper associations and organizations, to prevent potential students from being duped by their claims.
Most accredited dental assistant training programs take anywhere from 9-12 months to complete. Many are offered by junior colleges.
Bottom line here? Don’t waste your money on dental assistant training courses that will not, and CAN not offer the certification or licensing necessary to start your career as a dental assistant.
A rewarding career as a dental assistant begins with the right dental assistant training.