Dental hygienist schools offer highly specialized training.
Phoenix, Arizona, is home to a number of colleges and universities. These schools run the gamut from enormous universities like Arizona State to small specialty schools like American Indian College. Many of these schools offer programs for dental assistants, though few provide dental hygienist specialty programs. Luckily for aspiring dental hygienists of the Phoenix area, two schools of the Maricopa Community Colleges network offer dental hygienist programs in the city.
Schools
Phoenix College and Rio Salado College offer dental hygiene programs in Phoenix, Arizona. Phoenix College is located on Thomas Road, just north of downtown Phoenix. Rio Salado College is based in Tempe, Arizona, but runs a School of Dental Hygiene in downtown Phoenix. Both of these schools are part of the Maricopa Community College network, a group of 10 public colleges and two skill centers serving Phoenix and the surrounding area. Maricopa colleges maintain a transfer alliance with Arizona State University, allowing students to apply credits earned toward a bachelor's degree at ASU.
Programs
Phoenix College's four-semester dental hygiene program is accredited with The Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association. Rio Salado College's 15-month dental hygiene program has the same accreditation and is administered in partnership with the Arizona Dental Association and Delta Dental Insurance. These programs boast identical curricula, including courses such as dental anatomy, embryology and histology, oral pathology, periodontics, practice management, emergency medicine, head and neck anatomy, dental anesthesia and dental hygiene theory. Both schools award associate in applied science in dental hygiene degrees. Course prerequisites include biology and chemistry classes.
Extracurricular Activities
Phoenix and Rio Salado provide opportunities for students to partake in career-related extracurricular activities. Students at Phoenix are eligible to take part in the school's Dental Hygiene Clinic, which offers preventive and therapeutic services and dental hygiene screening to the local community. Students at Rio Salado are offered a similar opportunity at that school's dental clinic. Rio Salado also operates a program with Central Arizona Shelter Services through which students provide free dental cleanings to homeless residents of Phoenix.
Cost and Aid
Phoenix College estimates the total cost of its dental hygiene program to be $13,202 in 2011. This cost includes $8,278 in tuition and fees and $4,924 in additional fees to cover requisite drug testing, immunizations, uniforms, CPR certification, all examinations required to receive a triennial Arizona Dental Hygiene License and the license itself. Phoenix College awards some scholarships and provides financial aid to students participating in community service programs. Estimated cost of the Rio Salado dental hygiene program is $16,243. The school provides similar financial aid opportunities as Phoenix College.
Tags: Phoenix College, dental hygiene, dental hygiene program, hygiene program, dental hygiene
