Dental Hygienist FAQs

Students MUST be a Current Student (applied and accepted to SCTCC).

All prerequisite courses MUST be complete prior to applying to the program with a minimum GPA of 3.5 earned in these courses.

Each prerequisite and General Education course may be taken 3 times.

Consult with an advisor about the impact of repeated courses.

ATDH Exam score (effective for Fall 2025 program start date).

The Dental Hygienist program is a 4-semester program that begins each Fall semester.

16 students are accepted each fall semester.

The Dental Hygienist program is a full-time program only.

Once accepted to the program, classes are all held on-campus or at Clinical sites.

The Dental Hygienist application window is open December 1st through January 15th.

Dates are estimated and subject to change. Review Dental Hygiene page for updates.

First year classes (semester 1 & 2) are held Mon-Friday from 9:00 AM- 5:00 PM

(8 hours a week in lab, 12 hours of lecture/didactic and additional open lab practice sessions).

• Study time and practice time is roughly double time spent in classes.
• The focus is on learning dental hygiene theory, terminology and basic clinic skills.
• Students will start seeing dental patients in spring of second semester.

Second year classes (semester 3 & 4) are 4-5 days per week depending on the semester.

• Majority of hours per week in the dental clinic with patients (12 hours per week).
• Lecture and lab hours amount to 10-12 hours per week.
• Additional time is spent on skills and practicing with instruments and equipment to increase experience and competency.
• Spring (semester 4) includes off campus activities at various community dental health sites providing oral hygiene instruction to underserved populations in the community.

The St. Cloud Technical and Community College (SCTCC) Dental Hygienist program is accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation.

St. Cloud Technical & Community College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.