Ohio·Healthcare Support Occupations·SOC 31-9091

Best Dental Assistant programs in Ohio, ranked by enrollment

Perform limited clinical duties under the direction of a dentist.

34 schools in Ohio run programs that feed this job, graduating 463 people a year. The job pays a median of $47,970 in Ohio across about 12,150 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledDental Assistant (DA)Certified Dental Assistant (CDA)Registered Dental Assistant (RDA)Expanded Duty Dental Assistant (EDDA)Dental AideDental NurseDental SpecialistDentist Attendant
Graduates / yr
463
in Ohio
Median pay · Ohio
$47,970
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
12,150
people employed
Schools
34
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
62%
across those schools
Median net price
$23,910
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Ohio that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

1 programs in Ohio that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Ohio (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Ohio page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1
CIP 51.0601In Ohio
463
100.0%
34$28,924$10,782

Top 25 schools in Ohio

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 17 of the 34 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1Stark State College
North Canton, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
37Dental Assisting/Assistant$32,02323%
2Ross Medical Education Center - Cincinnati
Cincinnati, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
34Dental Assisting/Assistant$24,41159%$22,624
3Dental Assistant Pro LLC - Columbus
Westerville, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
30Dental Assisting/Assistant
4Dental Assistant Pro - Lebanon
Lebanon, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
29Dental Assisting/Assistant
5Remington College - Cleveland Campus
Cleveland, OH Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
29Dental Assisting/Assistant$21,72155%$23,910
6Owens Community College
Perrysburg, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
19Dental Assisting/Assistant$46,02135%
7Ross College - Sylvania
Sylvania, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
19Dental Assisting/Assistant$23,95753%$28,241
8Fortis College - Centerville
Centerville, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
18Dental Assisting/Assistant$26,55044%$26,852
9Fortis College - Cincinnati
Cincinnati, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
18Dental Assisting/Assistant$24,56450%$26,155
10Ross Medical Education Center - Niles
Niles, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
18Dental Assisting/Assistant$25,35261%$22,399
11Ross Medical Education Center - Dayton
Fairborn, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
17Dental Assisting/Assistant$24,41156%$25,467
12University of Cincinnati - Blue Ash College
Blue Ash, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
16Dental Assisting/Assistant$57,21716%
13Central Ohio Technical College
Newark, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
13Dental Assisting/Assistant30%
14Sinclair Community College
Dayton, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
13Dental Assisting/Assistant$53,09141%
15Stautzenberger College - Maumee
Maumee, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
13Dental Assisting/Assistant55%$21,788
16Eastland - Fairfield Career and Technical Schools
Groveport, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
11Dental Assisting/Assistant$23,38281%
17Ross Medical Education Center - Elyria
Elyria, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
11Dental Assisting/Assistant$23,40269%$20,027
18Wayne County Schools Career Center
Smithville, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
11Dental Assisting/Assistant70%
19Ashland County - West Holmes Career Center
Ashland, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
10Dental Assisting/Assistant86%
20Madison Adult Career Center
Mansfield, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
10Dental Assisting/Assistant85%
21Ross College - Canton
Canton, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
10Dental Assisting/Assistant$23,95746%$32,206
22East Ohio College
East Liverpool, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
9Dental Assisting/Assistant$22,92074%$17,868
23Buckeye Joint Vocational School
New Philadelphia, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
8Dental Assisting/Assistant88%
24EHOVE Career Center
Milan, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
8Dental Assisting/Assistant96%
25Medina County Career Center
Medina, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
8Dental Assisting/Assistant79%

All 34 schools in Ohio

Every school in Ohio with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in Ohio that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
Stark State CollegeNorth CantonPublic371
Ross Medical Education Center - CincinnatiCincinnatiPrivate for-profit341
Dental Assistant Pro LLC - ColumbusWestervillePrivate for-profit301
Dental Assistant Pro - LebanonLebanonPrivate for-profit291
Remington College - Cleveland CampusClevelandPrivate not-for-profit291
Owens Community CollegePerrysburgPublic191
Ross College - SylvaniaSylvaniaPrivate for-profit191
Fortis College - CentervilleCentervillePrivate for-profit181
Fortis College - CincinnatiCincinnatiPrivate for-profit181
Ross Medical Education Center - NilesNilesPrivate for-profit181
Ross Medical Education Center - DaytonFairbornPrivate for-profit171
University of Cincinnati - Blue Ash CollegeBlue AshPublic161
Central Ohio Technical CollegeNewarkPublic131
Sinclair Community CollegeDaytonPublic131
Stautzenberger College - MaumeeMaumeePrivate for-profit131

What dental assistants earn in Ohio

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Ohio
$47,970
Mean annual
$52,370
Jobs in state
12,150
What the range looks like
10th pct$36,870Median$47,97090th pct$78,000
Versus the national median
-0.2%

U.S. median $48,070. Ohio pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
0.88×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in Ohio

Cleveland, OH
$47,800median
2,540 jobs
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN
$49,590median
2,440 jobs
Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH
$48,710median
840 jobs
Columbus, OH
$48,760median
2,560 jobs
Springfield, OH
$45,660median
100 jobs
Akron, OH
$48,230median
740 jobs
Toledo, OH
$46,580median
700 jobs
Sandusky, OH
$46,260median
90 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+6.4%
Faster than average
Openings per year
52,900
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
24,400
381,900 → 406,300
Typical entry education
Postsecondary nondegree award

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Dental Assistants page.

How to become a Dental Assistant

Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0
Typical entry education
Postsecondary nondegree award

Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.

Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.

Top skills

Active ListeningSpeakingReading ComprehensionActive LearningMonitoringWriting

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Ohio

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 1 majors mapped to Dental Assistants1 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 51.0601Dental Assisting/Assistant

Common questions

Answers for people weighing dental assistants programs in Ohio.

What degree do you need to become a Dental Assistant?+

Postsecondary nondegree award is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Dental Assisting/Assistant, which awarded 463 degrees in Ohio in 2024-25, 100.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Dental Assistant?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 1 programs to this occupation. The largest are Dental Support Services and Allied Professions. Together they graduate about 463 people a year in Ohio.

How much do dental assistants earn in Ohio?+

The median is $47,970 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 0.2% below the U.S. median of $48,070. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for dental assistants growing?+

BLS projects a +6.4% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, faster than average, with roughly 52,900 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Ohio?+

34 institutions in Ohio reported graduates from at least one of the 1 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do dental assistants work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Dental Assistant (DA), Certified Dental Assistant (CDA), Registered Dental Assistant (RDA), Expanded Duty Dental Assistant (EDDA) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 31-9091.

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

  • BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

    May 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.

  • IPEDS Completions

    2024-25 (provisional)

    Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.

  • College Scorecard, Field of Study

    2020-21 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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