Dental Assistant Jobs in Mesa, AZ
Dental assistants in Mesa typically earn about $18 to $29 an hour, with the metro median near $24, and practices across the East Valley's largest city are hiring. Here are the current openings, followed by who is hiring and how to get certified to take X-rays in Arizona.
Current dental assistant Openings in Mesa, AZ
Listings marked External are sponsored openings provided by the Jobs2Careers network.
Dental Assistant Work in Mesa
Mesa is a long, spread-out city, and its dental offices follow the rooftops, from northeast Mesa near Red Mountain and the Loop 202 to the older neighborhoods along Main Street and the fast-growing southeast. The large retiree and winter-visitor population in east Mesa adds seasonal patient volume in the cooler months. Several Mesa offices are backed by national dental support organizations such as Heartland Dental and MB2 Dental, which typically brings benefits packages, daily pay options and sponsored continuing education that a solo practice may not offer.
Mesa is also a training town for dentistry. A.T. Still University's Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health runs its dental school on its east Mesa campus off Still Circle, and Pima Medical Institute trains dental assistants on South Dobson Road near the US 60. That steady pipeline of new assistants keeps entry pay competitive, while experienced assistants who hold Arizona radiography and coronal polishing certificates have the most leverage.
Top Mesa Employers Hiring Dental Assistants
These Mesa practices have posted dental assistant openings on their own careers sites:
- Heartland Dental - supports Longbow Dental Care on North Recker Road in northeast Mesa, hiring full-time assistants with Arizona radiation health and safety certification, Monday to Friday with weekends off.
- Rodeo Dental - the family and orthodontic dental group hires full-time assistants in Mesa and will train newcomers with a high school diploma.
- Sun Valley Pediatric Dentistry - an MB2 Dental partner practice hiring pediatric dental assistants, with Spanish a plus and radiography certification allowed within 90 days of hire.
- Rauch Family Dentistry - an MB2 Dental partner general practice that hires experienced assistants holding dental assistant and radiology certificates.
Dental Assistant Salaries in Mesa
- Entry level: about $18 to $21 per hour for new assistants and recent program graduates.
- Experienced: roughly $22 to $26 per hour with radiography certification and a few years chairside.
- Senior and specialty: $27 to $29 per hour for lead, expanded function, surgical and orthodontic assistants.
These are estimates based on federal wage data for the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler metro, where the median dental assistant earns about $23.92 an hour, and on pay ranges in Mesa postings. Arizona radiography and coronal polishing certificates, specialty experience such as pediatrics or oral surgery, bilingual Spanish and the size of the practice move pay the most, and group-supported offices usually add health, dental and paid time off.
How to Become a Dental Assistant in Mesa
Arizona has no general license for chairside dental assisting, so many Mesa offices will hire and train you with a high school diploma. Taking X-rays is different: the Arizona State Board of Dental Examiners requires a radiography certificate, earned by passing the Dental Assisting National Board's Arizona radiography exam or, for assistants certified in a qualifying state, by credential. Coronal polishing needs a separate Board-approved certificate through DANB, and expanded function work has its own certificate. Pima Medical Institute's Mesa campus offers a dental assistant certificate of about nine months, and East Valley Institute of Technology on West Main Street runs a dental assistant program for high school students that prepares them for the radiation health and safety exam.
What the Job Involves
Dental assistants seat patients, take and update medical histories, set up and break down operatories, and pass instruments to the dentist during fillings, crowns, extractions and cleanings. They sterilize instruments, take digital X-rays and intraoral scans, pour models, chart in practice software, and explain post-treatment care. In pediatric and orthodontic offices the job also means calming nervous kids and keeping a fast schedule moving.
Skills Employers Look For
- Arizona radiography certification, or the ability to earn it quickly
- Four-handed chairside dentistry and instrument knowledge
- Infection control and sterilization procedures
- Digital X-ray and intraoral scanner experience
- Dentrix, Eaglesoft or similar practice software
- Bilingual English and Spanish
- Calm, friendly patient communication
Career Path and Advancement
Most Mesa assistants start chairside in a general or pediatric office, earn the Arizona radiography certificate, then add coronal polishing and expanded function certificates to take on more procedures. From there the ladder runs to lead assistant, treatment coordinator and office manager, especially inside group-supported practices with several East Valley offices. Some assistants use the experience as a stepping stone to dental hygiene school or to dental school, including A.T. Still University's program in Mesa.
Related Careers in Mesa
If dental assisting interests you, these Mesa healthcare guides are a good next look:
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need a license to be a dental assistant in Mesa?
Arizona does not issue a general dental assistant license, so you can work chairside without one. You do need an Arizona radiography certificate before you take X-rays, and separate certificates for coronal polishing and expanded functions, all overseen by the Arizona State Board of Dental Examiners.
How much do dental assistants make in Mesa?
New assistants usually start around $18 to $21 an hour, experienced certified assistants earn about $22 to $26, and lead or specialty assistants can reach $27 to $29. The Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler median is about $23.92 an hour.
How do I get my X-ray certification in Arizona?
Most assistants pass the Dental Assisting National Board's Arizona radiography exam, often after a training program or review course. If you already hold radiography certification from a state that required a written exam, you can apply to the Arizona State Board of Dental Examiners for certification by credential.
How long does dental assistant training take in Mesa?
Pima Medical Institute's Mesa campus lists its dental assistant certificate at about nine months. Some Mesa offices also hire untrained assistants and teach them on the job while they prepare for the radiography exam.
What hours do Mesa dental assistants work?
Most dental offices run daytime schedules, and Heartland Dental's Longbow Dental Care in northeast Mesa advertises Monday to Friday with weekends off. Most Mesa postings are full-time, so ask about start times and any Saturday rotation before you accept an offer.
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