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Medical

Dental nurse

Dental nurses support dentists in all areas of dental care.

Annual Salary

£23,000 to £35,000

Average UK salary in 2022 was £33,200
(source Office for National Statistics)

Working hours

37 to 40 a week

You could work: evenings / weekends; on a rota

5.4%
Future employment

There will be 5.4% more Dental nurse jobs in 2027.

Day to day tasks

In this role you could:

  • sterilise instruments and pass them to the dentist
  • prepare materials to make fillings
  • remove water and saliva from the patient's mouth during treatment
  • make sure the patient is comfortable
  • tidy the surgery and keep records about each patient

Working environment

You may need to wear protective clothing and a uniform.

You could work at a dental practice, at a health centre or in an NHS or private hospital.

You can get into this job through:

  • a college course
  • an apprenticeship
  • working towards this role
College

You could do a course at college that would give you the skills and knowledge to become a dental nurse.

Courses include a level 3 diploma in dental nursing and a T Level in Health.

The courses will usually be a mix of full-time study with work experience in a dental surgery.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, for a level 3 course
  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths for a T Level
For more information
Apprenticeship

You could do a dental nursing advanced apprenticeship. You'll need to be working in a dental surgery to do an apprenticeship.

Armed forces

You could also do a dental nursing advanced apprenticeship in the armed forces.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths, for an advanced apprenticeship
For more information
Work

You could start as a trainee at a dental practice. You could then study for a dental nurse qualification on the job. This is a common route to take to become a dental nurse.

Requirements and restrictions

You'll need to:

More information

Professional and industry bodies

You can join The British Association of Dental Nurses for professional development training.

Further information

You can find out more about how to become a dental nurse from Health Careers.

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With experience you could:move into a team leader, manager or dental practice manager position; serve in the armed forces as a dental nurse; become a dental hygienist or dental therapist with further training; become an orthodontic therapist to help dentists improve the look and position of patient's teeth

You can find information in all areas of dental medicine from Health Careers.

You can get more details about dental nursing from Health Careers.

Skills required and how your skills match up

What skills are required?

You'll need:

  • the ability to work well with others
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
  • sensitivity and understanding
  • knowledge of medicine and dentistry
  • customer service skills
  • excellent verbal communication skills
  • the ability to work well with your hands
  • knowledge of English language
  • to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device
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