FAQs

When is the next session?

The Winter Saturday Session Starts January 11, 2025. The Saturday Session will run from 8am to 5pm every Saturday for 10 out of 11 consecutive Saturdays. Call us to schedule a time to come by during the week or on a Saturday and see if this program is right for you. You can meet the instructors, talk to current students and pick up a registration form and a catalog.

The Fall Evening Session Starts October 28, 2024. The evening session will be from 5:30pm - 9:30pm Mondays and Wednesdays (just 2 evenings per week). Like the Saturday classes, the evening session will run for 10 weeks and students will be able to do on-the-job training for 4 hours during the week during office hours (students will actually get paid for these on-the-job hours!).

START A NEW CAREER IN THE NEW YEAR!

Where are you located?

We are centrally located in Clairemont, just a few miles east of La Jolla. Our address is:

San Diego Dental Careers
4690 Genesee Avenue
San Diego, CA 92117

(858) 352-0077

Why is this program so much shorter and less expensive than the others I have seen?

There are two pathways to becoming a Registered Dental Assistant. The first is to take a very expensive course that takes 9 - 12 months. It is taught entirely in a classroom followed by a one month unpaid internship. You can take the RDA exam right after the program. The other pathway is through on-the-job training. Once you have 15 months of work experience you are also eligible to take the RDA exam. This is an on-the-job training program. Regardless of which pathway you choose, until you take the RDA exam you'll be classified as a Dental Assistant. Dental Assistants can possibly make $15-$17 per hour to start and RDAs can possibly make $19-$21 per hour to start. Our program has become so popular over the last few years because dental assisting is best learned on the job. We take you out of the classroom and into the dental office...where you earn $$$ while you learn. Many of our graduates get hired by offices before they finish their 10 week program. In a nutshell, we emphasize hours on-the-job instead of hours in a classroom. You do not need any training before you start and the setting is both classroom and actual office. 

How much can I possibly make?

On the job training $11.50 - per hour
Less than 1 year experience $18 - 20 per hour
1 - 2 years experience $20 - 22 per hour
3 - 5 years experience $23 - 25 per hour
5+ years experience $25+ per hour
*many offices offer paid vacations, medical and dental benefits, bonuses and retirement

Will I be able to find a job?

Look in the paper. The demand for dental assistants in San Diego is high. Upon graduation from San Diego Dental Careers you will receive a certificate in Dental Assisting, a COMDA approved Radiation Safety Certificate (x-ray license) and a CPR certification. You will be well prepared to start your new career. Though we cannot guarantee placement, historically our graduates have done very well finding employment. In fact, many interview and are hired even before they graduate.

I'm waiting to get into Hygiene School is this the best program for me?

Absolutely. Our program offers job experience actually working with dentists. We also have some of the best hygienists in San Diego to work with and learn from. The more experience you have working in the dental field, the better your chances of being accepted into hygiene school and the more successful you will be once you are accepted. Get a head start on your career today. Often our graduates will work as assistants while waiting to start hygiene school because they realize how much on the job training will help them in the long run. Come and tour the school or even sit in on one of our classes and see if it is right for you.

How does this compare to an RDA program?

This course is shorter, less expensive and more hands-on. In RDA programs you are not involved in patient care until you have finished the entire course. If you discover it's not what you thought, you will have wasted a lot of time and money. If you want the security of treating patients for the first time in an office familiar to you with your instructors by your side for support and encouragement then this is the course for you. If you want to be paid for on the job training and can't afford to volunteer your time for one month like you will if you take an RDA course, then this is the course for you. This course is designed to prepare you quickly and inexpensively for an entry level position as a dental assistant. RDA programs are not the best option for everyone and with this course, now you have a choice.

Will I be able to go on to become an RDA after I graduate?

Hundreds of dental assistants go on to become Registered Dental Assistants every year. Regardless of which program you graduate from you will need to pass the RDA exam to become an RDA. There are multiple one and two day prep courses throughout Southern California that will specifically prepare you to pass the RDA exam. To be eligible to take the exam all you need is 15 months of experience.

How do I apply?

To hold a spot for you in one of our upcoming classes we need a paper registration form and a $200 deposit. To print out the registration form click here. Please return the registraion form and the deposit to: SDDC 4690 Genesee Avenue, San Diego, CA 92117 or e-mail to info@SanDiegoDentalCareers.com. You can pay your deposit online. Click here to pay online. If you would like to make monthly payments for your tuition you must complete the arrangements ahead of time. Please click here to print out the loan application.

Privacy Notice

This privacy notice discloses the privacy practices for www.SanDiegoDentalCaeers.com and www.SanDiegoDentalCareers.org. This privacy notice applies solely to information collected by this web site. It will notify you of the following:

1) What personally identifiable information is collected from you through the web site, how it is used and with whom it may be shared.
2) What choices are available to you regarding the use of your data.
3) The security procedures in place to protect the misuse of your information.
4) How you can correct any inaccuracies in the information.

Information Collection, Use, and Sharing We are the sole owners of the information collected on this site. We only have access to/collect information that you voluntarily give us via email or other direct contact from you. We will not sell or rent this information to anyone.

We will use your information to respond to you, regarding the reason you contacted us. We will not share your information with any third party outside of our organization, other than as necessary to fulfill your request.

Unless you ask us not to, we may contact you via email in the future to tell you about specials, new products or services, or changes to this privacy policy.

Your Access to and Control Over Information You may opt out of any future contacts from us at any time. You can do the following at any time by contacting us via the email address or phone number given on our website:

See what data we have about you, if any.
Change/correct any data we have about you.
Have us delete any data we have about you.
Express any concern you have about our use of your data.

Security We take precautions to protect your information. When you submit sensitive information via the website, your information is protected both online and offline.

Wherever we collect sensitive information (such as credit card data), that information is encrypted and transmitted to us in a secure way. You can verify this by looking for a closed lock icon at the bottom of your web browser, or looking for "https" at the beginning of the address of the web page.

While we use encryption to protect sensitive information transmitted online, we also protect your information offline. Only employees who need the information to perform a specific job (for example, billing or customer service) are granted access to personally identifiable information. The computers/servers in which we store personally identifiable information are kept in a secure environment.

If you feel that we are not abiding by this privacy policy, you should contact us immediately via telephone at (858) 352-0077 or info@SanDiegoDentalCareers.com.