Occupational Employment Statistics

DETAILED OCCUPATION DATA

31-9091 Dental Assistants

Occupational Description:
Assist dentist, set up equipment, prepare patient for treatment, and keep records.

Occupational Employment Statistics(OES) Wage Data
First Quarter 2024

Geography	Employment	Emp SE*	Percentiles
Geography	Employment	Emp SE*	Mean	10th	25th	Median	75th	90th
Northeast Minnesota	330	34	$27.42/hr	$23.06/hr	$24.21/hr	$28.27/hr	$29.53/hr	$30.57/hr

Leading Industries for Dental Assistants

Industry	OES Employment (Statewide)	OES Median Wage (Statewide)
Professional and Business Services	50	$34.21/hr
Education and Health Services	5,870	$31.22/hr
Public Administration	90	$28.80/hr

Other Regional Data for Dental Assistants

Geography	Employment	Median Wage	Projections % Change 2022-2032
Grand Forks ND-MN MSA	100	$28.27/hr	N/A
Northeast Balance of State	100	$26.55/hr	N/A
Mankato-North Mankato MN MSA	140	$29.30/hr	N/A
La Crosse WI-MN MSA	240	$22.81/hr	N/A
St Cloud MN MSA	250	$27.67/hr	N/A
Duluth MN-WI MSA	280	$27.17/hr	N/A
Rochester MN MSA	280	$30.31/hr	N/A
Southeast Balance of State	290	$28.82/hr	N/A
Southwest Balance of State	300	$29.51/hr	N/A
Northeast Minnesota	330	$28.27/hr	6.2%
Fargo ND-MN MSA	330	$25.09/hr	N/A
Southwest Minnesota	390	$29.30/hr	7.7%
Northwest Balance of State	500	$27.14/hr	N/A
Southeast Minnesota	520	$29.32/hr	7.1%
Northwest Minnesota	570	$27.14/hr	7.1%
Central Minnesota	610	$29.72/hr	6.9%
Seven County Mpls-St Paul, MN	3,570	$31.99/hr	7.4%
Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington MN-WI MSA	3,910	$31.98/hr	N/A
Minnesota	6,000	$31.16/hr	6.2%

Related Occupations

Occupations	Employment	Median Wage	Projections % Change 2022-2032
Dental Hygienists	4,990	$46.13/hr	6.6%
Radiologic Technologists and Technicians	4,120	$38.73/hr	5.4%
Surgical Technologists	1,600	$36.06/hr	5.3%

Task for Dental Assistants

Prepare patient, sterilize or disinfect instruments, set up instrument trays, prepare materials, or assist dentist during dental procedures.
Record treatment information in patient records.
Expose dental diagnostic x-rays.
Take and record medical and dental histories and vital signs of patients.
Clean teeth, using dental instruments.
Make preliminary impressions for study casts and occlusal registrations for mounting study casts.
Provide postoperative instructions prescribed by dentist.
Instruct patients in oral hygiene and plaque control programs.
Pour, trim, and polish study casts.
Make preliminary impressions for study casts and occlusal registrations for mounting study casts.