Dental Hygiene Degree

The degree of Associate in Science with a major in Dental Hygiene is awarded upon successful completion of the program.

The Dental Hygiene program provides an extensive educational background for students seeking careers as Dental Hygienists. The program places a major emphasis on clinical work experience in the modern campus clinic as well as a variety of outside agencies and clinics. The clinical work is combined with classroom study in Dental Sciences, English, Biological Science, Nutrition and Social Sciences.

Graduates are able to find employment as hygienists or to continue their education at the baccalaureate level.

Students in the Dental Hygiene Program may be exposed to blood-borne pathogens and infectious diseases while providing clinical services. It is for this reason that students are provided with instruction on infectious diseases, mechanisms of disease transmission, and infection control procedures to reduce the risk of disease transmission, including those published by national public health agencies, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Background and Drug/Alcohol Testing
As a pre-clinical requirement, students will be required to undergo a criminal background check and drug and alcohol screening. No student will be exempt from this process. Students are provided with procedural and cost information subsequent to admission to the dental hygiene program and are responsible for all costs associated with these testing procedures.

Admission to the Dental Hygiene program is very competitive. Selection is determined by a cumulative point system that is based upon high school level prerequisite courses and grades, applicable college courses and grades (only those courses required in the dental hygiene program), and the NLN score.

College level science and technical courses required in the program (e.g., Anatomy and Physiology, Microbiology, etc.) taken more than five (5) years prior to the desired date of entry into the Dental Hygiene must be either repeated or challenged. Final decisions will rest with the Department Head of Dental Hygiene.

Prior to the start of the clinical dental courses, students are required to have on file in the Health Services Office (603)271-7153 documentation of: current medical insurance; a complete physical examination; current immunizations; and current CPR certification for one and two person adult, infant, and child. Professional liability insurance is arranged by the College and will automatically be charged to the student's account.

Transfer Information

• Transferring to other institutions
• Transfer (Articulation) Agreements
  specific to this program
• Transferring to NHTI

Dental Hygiene and Dental Assisting Mission, Goals & Competencies (PDF or contact (603) 271-7150.)

Facts About Our Dental Hygiene Program that Make it so Special

Program Quality

• Accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association
• Established in 1970
• High success rate in national and clinical board exams
• Excellent reputation in the dental community
• Low faculty/student ratios in clinics
• Modern, state of the art equipment

Curriculum Features

• Hours of clinical experience with individual instruction
• Varied opportunities in the public health settings
• Transferability of general education courses
• Updated information from guest speakers in the profession
• Integration of computer work into the programs

Specific Admission Requirements
Preference will be given to applicants whose applications are complete and received by the NHTI Admissions Office no later than January 28, 2011 for Fall 2011 admission (with the exception of the interview).

1. “Composite Percentile All” score of 50 or higher on the National League for Nursing Pre-Admission Examination-RN (NLN) must be presented. Priority consideration will be given to candidates who sit for the NLN exam no later than the January 22, 2011 testing date; applicants are permitted to take the NLN exam only once in any 6-month period; only NLN exams taken in the past three (3) years will be considered; NLN information is available here in PDF or contact the Admissions Office at (603) 271-7134).
2. College preparatory level courses in biology and chemistry, with labs, with grades of “C” or higher;
3. Algebra I with a grade of “C” or higher or NHTI's MT 103 and MT 104 with grades of “C” or higher;
4. An informational group interview with the Dental Admissions Committee; qualified candidates will be contacted after the deadline to arrange an interview;
5. Observe professional practices in a dental office for a period of not less than twenty (20) hours; please submit the completed Observation Form to the NHTI Admissions Office no later than January 28, 2011; the form is available on in PDF or by contacting the Admissions Office at (603) 271-7134.

Health, Character and Technical Requirements

Applicants must be in good physical and mental health in order to qualify for the program, to include:

1. Sitting at chairside for a sustained length of time with frequent reaching;
2. Manual dexterity to safely perform intraoral instrumentation;
3. Sufficient hearing to assess patient needs;
4. Sufficient eyesight to observe patients, operate equipment andÿevaluate radiographs; visual acuity (correctable) to work with small measurements, and to interpret small defects;
5. Sufficient writing skills to record medical and dental data and communicate with other dental professionals; ability to express ideas to educate the client and exchange information with other health professionals.

# Indicates major field courses.
* Students may elect to take a higher level math course; MT 103 - MT 113 do not meet this requirement.
** Dental Hygiene Specialty Clinic will be offered in the fall semester and completed in the Spring semester.

Please Note: All students enrolled in a clinical course will be charged a $350/per semester clinical surcharge. The following courses carry this charge: DN 113, DN 114, DN 212 and DN 221.

A grade of “C” or higher is required in BI 195, BI 196, BI 202 and CH 110 to progress in the Dental Hygiene Program.

Revised: 17 Aug 2010

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