How to become a dental hygienist in Australia
Dental Hygienists carry out preventative dental procedures under the direction of a Dentist.
Pay and growth are for the wider dental hygienists, technicians and therapists group, which is as fine as the data goes. The all-jobs median is $1,852 a week. Jobs in the dental hygienists, technicians and therapists group are projected to grow 20.6% between May 2025 and May 2035, faster than the 13.3% projected for all jobs. Projections are indicative, not forecasts, and JSA says they don't yet reflect generative AI.
What the job involves
- Provides educational programmes to motivate children, parents and the community in matters relating to oral health.
- Provides fluoride therapy by applying re-mineralising solutions and desensitising agents.
- Removes deposits from teeth.
How to get there
What it usually takes. A bachelor degree, or sometimes a diploma or advanced diploma. This is the skill level Jobs and Skills Australia gives the dental hygienists, technicians and therapists group, and some roles differ.
What people in the job have. Highest qualification held: 42% a degree or higher, 54% a diploma, 1% a Certificate III or IV.
Many jobs also need registration, a licence or a specific accredited course. Check the professional body or regulator before you choose.
Courses that can lead here
Estimate your ATAR and this page shows the gap to each course. Your marks stay on your device.
Victoria5 matches
VTAC lowest selection ranks, December 2025 offer round.
Oral Health Science (Regional Entry) · La Trobe, Bendigo98.30 Oral Health · Melbourne, Parkville94.15 Oral Health (Therapy and Hygiene) · Charles Sturt, Holmesglen (Chadstone)90.65NSW and ACT3 matches
UAC lowest selection ranks, December Round 2, 2025-26 admissions.
Bachelor of Oral Health · Sydney96.50 Bachelor of Oral Health (Therapy and Hygiene) · Charles Sturt95.35 Bachelor of Oral Health Therapy · Newcastle95.25Queensland2 matches
QTAC course pages, ATAR/Selection Rank profile for semester 1, 2026.
Bachelor of Dental Hygiene · Griffith, Gold Coast98.55Western Australia1 match
TISC Course Search: lowest ATAR offered for 2026 entry and guaranteed offer ATARs.
Bachelor of Science (Oral Health Therapy) · Curtin, Perth93.20Matched on course names, 11 across four admissions centres. A lowest selection rank includes adjustment points and moves every year. Check prerequisites and whether the course is accredited for this job.
Graduate outcomes, national
Undergraduates surveyed about four to six months after finishing, in 2025, across all providers. Full-time work is among those available for it. All graduates: 75.4% and $77,000. These are national figures for the study area, not for this course or uni, and a first-year salary says little about later pay. Source: QILT Graduate Outcomes Survey 2025.
Does it fit your interests?
Strongest interest areas for this kind of work: Social, Realistic, Investigative.
From O*NET ratings for "Dental Hygienists", the closest US occupation in JSA's correspondence (a good match). US ratings are a guide to Australian jobs, not a measurement of them.
Careers with similar interests
Radiation therapist$2,360 Chiropractor Paramedic$2,852 Exercise physiologist$1,848 Anaesthetist$8,293Done this job, or studied for it?
Tell Year 12s the one thing you wish you'd known. First name only, and we read every story before it goes up.
Share your storyJob data: © Commonwealth of Australia, Jobs and Skills Australia occupation profiles, February 2026 and Employment Projections, May 2025 to May 2035 (Victoria University), CC BY 4.0. Jobs and Skills Australia, ANZSCO 2013 Version 1.2 to O*NET-SOC 2019 Taxonomy correspondence.
Graduate outcomes: QILT Graduate Outcomes Survey 2025, National Report Tables (Social Research Centre, for the Australian Government).
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Curve ATAR has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.