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Admissions Process

Applicants will be admitted to the Lake Area Technical College Dental Hygiene program through a selection process. The following requirements must be met by the application deadline of Feb 1st to be considered for selection. Candidates currently enrolled in courses will have until July 31st to satisfy these criteria. Those who fail to complete these requirements will thereby forfeit their acceptance into the Dental Hygiene Program.

Candidates that apply after the Feb 1st deadline can complete the selection requirements and be placed on an alternate/waiting list. Late applicants may be selected based on points if an opening becomes available prior to the first day of the fall semester. Preference will be given to South Dakota residents.

  1. Complete the LATC admission process by submitting a high school transcript.
  2. Submit an official college (LATC or other) transcript with a GPA of 2.5 or higher. Required pre-requisite courses must have a passing grade of “C” or higher.
  3. Completion of Lake Area Technical College’s Dental Assisting Associate of Applied Science Degree or a dental assisting program accredited by the ADA Commission on Dental Accreditation in 2010 or after. If you have not graduated from one of these programs, you should first apply to the LATC Dental Assisting program to complete the necessary requirements. (Please note that due to updates in course content, only graduates from 2010 or after are eligible. Graduates from programs completed in 2009 or earlier will not be eligible at this time.)
  4. Proof of taking and passing all three sections of the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB) Certified Dental Assistant (CDA) exam. DANB certification must be maintained and current. Those applicants that will graduate from an ADA accredited dental assisting program in May of the year they apply, must provide a copy of their DANB application for the June testing date.  Admission to the program will be provisional and contingent upon the applicant showing a passing DANB exam score and DANB certificate prior to and no later than July 31st. For information about taking the DANB, call 1-800-FOR-DANB or 312-642-3368. 
  5. Documentation of current Dental Assisting license and dates of employment if applicable. (Candidates who have graduated from an accredited Dental Assisting program more than two years prior to applying to the Dental Hygiene Program must have maintained their Dental Assisting licensure.)
  6. Must have a current CPR certificate in Basic Life Support.
  7. Two letters of recommendation are required.
  8. Top applicants will be granted an in-person interview.

*Due to the sequential nature of LATC’s Dental Hygiene Program and the pronounced differences that exist between Dental Assisting programs at other institutions, preference in admission is given to LATC Dental Assisting graduates.

**Please note that the admission process is highly competitive. Applicants selected for interviews will be notified by mail within one week of the application deadline. Information concerning a student’s admissions status will not be given via telephone.