The National Dental Assistant Program:

The National Dental Assistant Program is one of the Health Academy programs in the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties. This Dental Program is a national program which aims at qualifying national cadres in the profession as dental assistants. It is noteworthy that the UQU's College of Dentistry obtained the accreditation of the Health Academy as a center that provides training for the students in the program.

The program offers training in the clinical and administrative fields of dentistry, with the students being trained to assist the dentist in managing patients’ information, preparing medical tools and equipment, and providing support during the treatment of dental patients.

Duration:

One year divided into four units. The duration of each unit is three months.

Vision:

To provide training for qualified dental assistants to become part of the workforce in dentistry. This is in order to cover the need in this regard in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Mission:

Boosting the dental assistant profession by establishing a unified national training network. This is in order to cover the need for dental assistants in the dental workforce by graduating highly qualified national cadres, in line with the Saudi Vision 2030.

Objectives:

Providing high quality education and training capable of boosting student's capacity to become a professional dental assistant and a productive and skilled member in the dental team.

Requirements for Admission:

• Obtaining a bachelor's degree in one of the following majors: Physics, biology, chemistry, biochemistry, microbiology, and biotechnology.
• The applicant must obtain a score of at least 4 in the IELTS test or its equivalent in TOEFL or STEP.

The Student Will Study the Following:

1. Professionalism and a team spirit.
2. Communication skills and professional ethics.
3. Dealing with patients.
4. Dealing with dental equipment.
5. Infection control and professional safety.
6. Radiology in dentistry.
7. Terminologies of dentistry and oral and maxillofacial anatomy.
8. Dental materials and their uses.
9. Anesthesia in dentistry.
10. Dealing with emergencies in dentistry.
11. Preventive dentistry.