Overview of this occupation
Dental Practitioners diagnose and treat dental disease, restore normal oral function using a broad range of treatments, such as surgery and other specialist techniques, and advise on oral health.
What they do:
- Administer anaesthetics or sedatives
- Administer health care, medical treatments or medical procedures
- Develop medical treatment plans
- Diagnose dental and oral health issues
- Examine mouth, teeth, gums or related facial structures
- Improve existing teeth or replace lost teeth
- Operate on patients
- Prescribe medications
- Provide preventative oral health care
- Treat dental and oral health issues
What technology tools they use:
- Computer aided manufacturing (CAM) technologies
- Graphics or photo imaging software
- Medical examination, measurement, and monitoring devices
- Medical imaging apparatus
- Medical treatment devices
- Patient management systems and electronic health records
- Technical design and modelling software (2D and 3D)
What their interests are:
- Creative – they enjoy designing, creating and decorating; composing, dancing and singing; writing and storytelling.
- Practical – they enjoy working with equipment, operating machinery and fixing things.
- Scientific – they enjoy investigating, experimenting, discovering new ideas and analysing data.
Source: Australian Skills Classification, job and Skills Australia, Commonwealth of Australia. Used under Creative Commons BY 4.0 licence and Jobs and Skills Australia, ABS Census 2016, Customised Report.
Quick facts
Dental Practitioners
The number of people employed in an occupations as their main job across all Australian states.
The projected increase in employment in Australia from May 2023 to May 2028.
The distribution of people employed in an occupation in NSW.
Earnings are before tax and include amounts salary sacrificed.
This shows the median age of all workers in this occupation.
Those who usually work less than 35 hours per week.
See footnotes for source details and additional information.
Skills and knowledge
What are they good at?
This table lists skills and knowledge categories according to how relevant they are for this occupation.
High expertise | Intermediate |
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High expertise
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Intermediate
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Source: Australian Skills Classification, Jobs and Skills Australia, Commonwealth of Australia. Used under Creative Commons BY 4.0 licence.
Education and qualifications
Dental Practitioners – Skill level 1
Occupation at Skill Level 1 have a level of skill commensurate with a bachelor's degree of higher qualification .
At least five years of relevant experience may substitute for the formal qualification
Source: Conceptual basis of ANZSCO, ABS Survey, Release Nov 2021.
Qualifications in this workforce
This table shows the distribution of employment by highest qualification completed (in any field of study).7
Source: ABS, 2021 Census of Population and Housing based on place of usual residence.
Use this as a guide for understanding what qualifications are the most common in this field. For personalised support on your education journey, talk to a Careers NSW specialist.
Talk to one of our specialists
At any career stage you can talk with a specialist from Careers NSW about your goals and how you can achieve them.