Frequently Asked Questions

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About CDAs

What is the difference between a dental assistant and a certified dental assistant (CDA)?

In the Rules Made Under the Dentists Act, formal education is not required in order to work as a dental assistant. The dentist employer may train the dental assistant. The range of skills that may be delegated to the dental assistant is limited to extra oral procedures. Dental assistants are not regulated or licensed.

Certified dental assistants complete formal education and their skills are examined using a standard testing mechanism. CDA skills and patient care procedures encompass all the skills of the dental assistant, plus intra oral procedures. CDAs are regulated and licensed to practise by the College of Dental Surgeons of BC. Because more skills may be delegated to the CDA there are more employment opportunities available.

Wages

What is the wage for a CDA?

The average annual salary for a CDA is $38,000. You must inquire as to whether an office offers a medical/dental benefits package. (Note: the CDABC Employment Survey Report has detailed salary information; it is available to members at no cost.)

Education

I am interested in becoming a certified dental assistant. What schools offer the program?

For a list of CDA programs in BC see "A Career as a CDA" at the top of the page and click on CDA Programs on the left side, or click here.

What is the difference between an accredited CDA program and a non accredited CDA program?

An accredited CDA program is accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC). CDAC accreditation is the nationally recognised standard for evaluating the quality of the educational process for dentistry. Each CDA program must apply for accreditation and meet CDAC standards in order to become an accredited CDA program.

When you ask a school if their CDA program is accredited, you must indicate that you are referring to accreditation by CDAC, because there is a different level of accreditation that a school has: accreditation by the Private Career Training Institutions Agency (PCTIA) (a provincial government agency). Their website is http://www.pctia.bc.ca. The PCTIA accredits a school to run as an educational institution. This accreditation has no bearing on your CDA program being accredited.

Visit the CDAC website for the most current listing of accredited programs: http://www.cda-adc.ca

What happens if I graduate from a CDA program that is not accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC)? What happens if I graduate from a program that is accredited by the CDAC?

The majority of CDA programs in BC are accredited by the CDAC.

The following information is provided to you here as a service. The information is from the regulatory body for CDAs in BC, the College of Dental Surgeons of BC (CDSBC).

In order to become licensed as a CDA in BC, graduates of both accredited and non-accredited schools in BC are required to sucessfully complete the National Dental Assisting Examining Board's (NDAEB) Written Exam.

In addition to sitting the NDAEB Written Exam, graduates of non-accredited programs are also required to successfully complete the NDAEB's Clinical Practice Evaluation (CPE).

If you will be graduating from a non accredited program and you have questions, contact Linda Spouler at the CDSBC: lspouler@cdsbc.org or call 604.736.3621 or 1.800.663.9169.

If you will be graduating from an accredited program and you have questions contact Liz Milne at at the CDSBC: lmilne@cdsbc.org or call 604.736.3621 or 1.800.663.9169.

If you have questions about the status of your program's application for accreditation with CDAC.

There are a number of colleges offering CDA programs. How do I decide which college to attend?

Here are some questions to consider:

Are the theory and practical lessons held at the same location or different location? Will you need to travel between campuses?
Is the course accredited by the CDAC? If not, how will you get licensed and what are the additional costs involved?
Do you need to purchase your own equipment? If so, how much will this cost?
How many other people are registered for the course?
How long is the program?
How much is the tuition?

It may be a good idea to visit the campuses to view the educational facility prior to making your decision. It may also help to talk to dental employees in your community to ask their opinions on graduates from various colleges.

Which colleges offer CDA refresher courses? Why don’t more colleges hold the refresher course?

At this time, University College of the Fraser Valley (UCFV) and Okanagan College (OC) offer CDA refresher courses. For contact information please click here.

If you would like a local college to offer the CDA refresher course, contact the Dental Continuing Education departments of the community colleges to suggest they offer refreshers. The more demand in an area, the more likely the CE departments are to put such courses on.

I contacted the College about a BC licence, and I was informed that I need to take a specific course to become licenced. Where can I take that course?

Please contact Vancouver Community College, Distance Delivery Program, at 604.443.8521, or daddp@vcc.ca. If you require further assistance, please contact us.