B.S. in Dental Hygiene (2+2)
Prepare for a health career helping patients and their dental care.
Registered dental hygienists are licensed oral health care professionals. They provide direct patient care services that limit the extent of cavities and periodontal disease as well as promote the overall health and well-being of the oral environment and head and neck region. At the University of Mississippi, students complete two years of pre-requisites while enrolled in Allied Health Studies before applying to the professional dental hygiene program of their choice.
Key Benefits
Students complete two years of pre-requisite courses while enrolled in the Allied Health Studies degree at UM in preparation for the two years of courses in a competitive-entry dental hygiene program to ultimately earn a Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene. Students are then prepared to apply for and obtain a dental hygiene license.
Graduate Outcomes
UM students who are admitted to and graduate from competitive dental hygiene programs are employed as clinical practitioners, educators, researchers, administrators, managers, preventive program developers, and consultants. Registered (licensed) dental hygienists practice according to the requirements of individual state dental practice acts.
Experiences Offered
Allied Health Studies was designed with health professions students in mind. It allows our students the flexibility to obtain prerequisites for the vast amount of health professions programs in the country, while also working toward a four year degree. Students will gain a liberal arts foundation, while also having the ability to mix and match classes based on their health professions area of interest, such as dental hygiene.
Course Requirements
The Bachelor of Science in dental hygiene is a two-phase program, which prepares graduates for a professional credentialing examination. The first phase consists of 60 semester hours in Allied Health Studies at UM with a 2.5 minimum GPA. The second phase is in a professional program such as the dental hygiene program offered at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, MS. At least 8 hours of observation of 2 licensed or registered dental hygienist, in two separate clinical environments is required.
Admissions Requirements
Students who attend the University of Mississippi in Oxford for their pre-requisites are not automatically admitted to the dental hygiene program at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Admission is competitive, and different dental hygiene schools have different entrance and pre-requisite requirements.