33100 – Dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants
TEER 3Occupations usually requiring a college diploma or apprenticeship of less than 2 years, or more than 6 months of on-the-job training
Lead statement
Dental assistants assist dentists, dental hygienists and dental therapists during the examination and treatment of patients and perform clerical functions.
Main duties
- Prepare patients for dental examination and assist the dentist during examinations and dental treatments
- Sterilize and maintain instruments and equipment
- Prepare dental instruments, fillings, compounds and various dental materials
- Take and develop X-rays
- Polish teeth and clinical crowns and apply fluoride and sealant
- Take preliminary impressions for diagnostic casts
- Educate patients concerning oral hygiene
- Perform clerical duties such as prepare invoices, process payments, schedule patient appointments, record dental procedures performed and order dental and office supplies
- May perform intra-oral duties such as remove sutures, take and record vital signs, apply desensitizing agents, topical anaesthetic, anticariogenic agents and coronal whitening, fabricate, place, and remove temporary crowns and restorations, and apply and remove rubber dams
- May also perform pulp vitality testing as well as periodontal screening and recording.
- Prepare plaster models and moulds from dental impressions
- Prepare wax bite-blocks and impression trays
- Cast gold or metal alloys for bridges and denture bases
- Pack plastic material in moulds to form full or partial dentures
- Mould wax over denture set-up to form full contours of artificial gums
- Make orthodontic bands from gold, silver, stainless steel or other metals
- Finish metal framework of dentures and polish and buff dentures to obtain natural finish.
Employment requirements
- Dental assistants require completion of an eight-month to one-year college or other program in dental assistance orcompletion of secondary school with on-the-job training.
- Registration with a regulatory body is required in all provinces except Quebec and Ontario.
- Certification by the National Dental Assisting Examination Board is required to perform intra-oral duties in all provinces except in Quebec, where intra-oral duties are not performed by dental assistants.
- Dental laboratory assistants usually require secondary school and up to two years of on-the-job training.
Example job titles
certified dental assistant · certified intra-oral dental assistant · dental assistant · intra-oral dental assistant · dental laboratory assistant · dental technician assistant · dental laboratory bench worker · dental laboratory technician assistant · ceramic denture moulder · ceramic denture caster · denture trimmer-polisher · denture wax pattern former · occlusion rim former - dentures
Wages (per hour)
| Province / territory | Low | Median | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | $21.00 | $27.00 | $35.00 |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | $18.00 | $22.00 | $30.00 |
| Nova Scotia | $20.00 | $25.00 | $32.00 |
| New Brunswick | $22.00 | $25.00 | $30.00 |
| Quebec | $21.00 | $26.00 | $30.16 |
| Ontario | $20.00 | $26.00 | $34.00 |
| Manitoba | $22.00 | $26.50 | $33.76 |
| Saskatchewan | $22.00 | $30.00 | $37.00 |
| Alberta | $24.00 | $32.00 | $38.00 |
| British Columbia | $24.00 | $31.00 | $36.00 |
Source: Job Bank wages, 2025 release (ESDC). Low and high are the 10th and 90th percentiles.
Occupation details: ESDC OaSIS 2025, based on NOC 2021.