Dental Assisting.
Learn the chairside, radiography, infection-control, laboratory, and office skills used in dental practices. CCI’s Dental Assisting program combines classroom instruction, hands-on practice, and a supervised externship as you prepare for entry-level dental assisting work and begin building toward California’s separate RDA pathway.
No pressure. Just answers.
- Program length
- 9 months
- Campus — Lancaster
- 1
- Radiation Safety · Coronal Polishing · Infection Control
- 3 Board-Approved
01 | 06
Start your Dental Assisting path in Lancaster.
Dental Assisting is currently offered at CCI’s Lancaster campus. Explore the campus, then review the current class schedule, externship expectations, and upcoming start information.
Choose the campus that works for you
Class and externship schedules may change. Evening students must remain available for externship assignments during regular business hours, and CCI cannot guarantee evening externship placement.
How You’ll Learn
Learn. Practice. Apply.
The program moves from dental-science and patient-care foundations to guided chairside, laboratory, and radiography practice and a supervised externship.
- learn
Dental Science and Patient Care
Build foundations in dental anatomy, preventive care, terminology, infection control, patient communication, and professional responsibilities.
- practice
Chairside, Lab, and Radiography Skills
Practice operatory preparation, instruments, chairside procedures, dental materials, impressions, radiographic techniques, sterilization, and coronal polishing with instructor guidance.
- apply
Supervised Dental Externship
Apply classroom and lab learning in an approved dental setting while developing professional workflow, patient-care, and chairside experience under qualified supervision.
What you’ll build
The skills behind chairside care. The systems that support the practice.
Dental Assisting connects patient support, operatory readiness, radiography, laboratory processes, infection control, and office coordination. You’ll build practical skills while learning the boundaries and responsibilities of the Dental Assistant role.
Maintain infection control
Practice cleaning, disinfection, sterilization, personal protection, and routines that help protect patients and the dental team.
Build dental radiography skills
Study radiation safety, patient preparation, exposure techniques, image processing, and the fundamentals of producing usable dental radiographs.
Prepare the operatory
Organize instruments, materials, equipment, and treatment areas so dental procedures can begin safely and efficiently.
Work with dental materials and lab processes
Practice impressions, casts, trays, restorative materials, dental dams, matrices, wedges, and common dental-laboratory workflows.
Support chairside care
Learn instrument transfer, suction, patient positioning, procedure support, and communication while working within permitted Dental Assistant duties.
Coordinate patients and records
Develop scheduling, documentation, billing, records, legal and ethical awareness, and professional communication.
Your Journey
Classroom and chairside foundations to externship
The program progresses through dental science, infection control, chairside practice, radiography, laboratory skills, office procedures, Board-approved course training, and a supervised externship.
- Modules 1–2
Dental and Patient Foundations
Begin with the language, anatomy, preventive-care, and communication foundations used throughout dental assisting.
- Dental profession and terminology
- Preventive care and nutrition
- Dental anatomy
- Head and neck foundations
- Patient communication
Build the foundation for safe dental assisting practice.
- Modules 3–4
Infection Control and Preclinical Skills
Develop the infection-control, sterilization, pathology, and tooth-morphology knowledge that supports safe practice.
- Infection prevention
- Sterilization
- OSHA practices
- Oral pathology
- Tooth morphology
Prepare for increasingly hands-on chairside and laboratory training.
- Modules 5–6
Chairside and Dental Laboratory Skills
Connect procedure support with instruments, dental materials, impressions, casts, trays, and laboratory workflows.
- Dental instruments
- Procedure support
- Dental materials
- Impressions and casts
- Trays and laboratory workflows
Move from foundations into practical chairside and laboratory skills.
- Modules 7–8
Radiography, Practice Management, and Approved Course Skills
Develop radiography and approved-course skills while building the office, legal, ethical, and emergency-readiness knowledge used in dental practice.
- Radiation Safety
- Coronal Polishing
- Infection Control
- Scheduling and records
- Billing, law and ethics
- Emergency readiness and BLS
Complete key classroom and Board-approved course preparation before externship.
- 144 hours
Supervised Dental Externship
Apply classroom and laboratory learning in an approved dental office while strengthening professional workflow and career preparation.
- Supervised dental-office experience
- Chairside workflow
- Patient communication
- Professional documentation
- Employer evaluation
- Career preparation
Complete the Dental Assisting program and begin building qualifying field experience.
Credentials & Career
What comes next
Program completion prepares graduates for entry-level Dental Assisting work and can place them well along a separate pathway toward Registered Dental Assistant licensure.
From Dental Assisting to the RDA pathway
- Complete CCI’s Dental Assisting program
- Earn CCI’s included course certificatesRadiation Safety · Coronal Polishing · Infection Control · BLS
- Begin working as a Dental Assistant
- Build qualifying work experienceYour training can put you well along the RDA pathway. For graduates using California’s education-and-work-experience pathway, roughly six additional months of qualifying employment may bring the combined education-and-experience timeline to the Board’s 15-month minimum. Applicable hour requirements also apply.
- Complete remaining Dental Board requirements and pursue RDA licensure
Completing CCI’s Dental Assisting program does not itself grant an RDA license. Registered Dental Assistant licensure is a separate California Dental Board process. Applicants must qualify through an applicable Board pathway and satisfy all current coursework, education and/or work-experience requirements, fingerprinting, application, examination, and other licensing requirements.
Review California RDA requirementsWhere Dental Assistants may work
- General dentistry
- Orthodontic practices
- Pediatric dentistry
- Oral-surgery practices
- Periodontic practices
- Endodontic practices
- Prosthodontic practices
- Dental laboratories
- Dental supply or insurance environments
- Other settings appropriate to training and permitted duties
Getting Started
Admissions and student support
Admissions helps applicants understand the Lancaster program, complete enrollment requirements, and prepare for classroom, laboratory, and externship training.
Admissions stages
- Speak with Admissions and tour the Lancaster campus
- Review eligibility, schedule, costs, and Program Quick Facts
- Complete the required entrance process
- Submit required education, identity, health, and other enrollment documentation
- Complete orientation and pre-program requirements
Student support
- Instructor guidance
- Tutoring and academic support
- Chairside and laboratory practice
- Externship coordination
- Career-services assistance
- Financial-aid guidance for those who qualify
- Student-services and accommodation support
FAQs
Frequently asked questions
CCI’s current Lancaster Quick Facts describe an approximately 9-month, 36-week program with 720 published program clock hours.
Dental Assisting is currently offered at CCI’s Lancaster campus.
The curriculum covers dental science, infection control, chairside support, dental materials, laboratory processes, radiography, office procedures, patient communication, and professional responsibilities.
Yes. The program includes a 144-hour supervised externship in an approved dental setting.
Yes. Externship schedules depend on the site. Evening students must remain available during regular business hours, and CCI cannot guarantee an evening externship placement.
CCI Lancaster is currently listed by the California Dental Board as an approved provider for Radiation Safety, Coronal Polishing, and Infection Control. These courses are important components of the RDA pathway, but additional Dental Board requirements also apply.
Review approved educational programs and coursesCurrent CCI Quick Facts list a Dental Assisting completion certificate, Radiation Safety certificate, Coronal Polishing certificate, 8-Hour Infection Control certificate, and BLS card.
No. CCI offers a Dental Assisting program, not an RDA program. Graduates who later pursue RDA licensure must qualify through a separate California Dental Board pathway.
Review California RDA requirementsCCI’s program is approximately nine months long. Graduates using California’s education-and-work-experience pathway may reach the Board’s 15-month combined education-and-experience minimum after roughly six additional months of qualifying employment, assuming the applicable 1,280-hour threshold is also satisfied. Remaining Board courses and licensing requirements still apply.
Review California RDA requirementsDepending on the applicant’s pathway, current requirements include Pit and Fissure Sealants, the California Dental Practice Act, Basic Life Support, qualifying education and/or work experience, fingerprinting, an approved application, and the Combined Written and Law and Ethics Examination. Other current requirements may also apply.
Review California RDA requirementsFinancial-aid guidance is available for those who qualify. Admissions and Financial Aid can explain current options and required documentation.
Review the Lancaster Dental Assisting Program Quick Facts, CCI’s current Student Catalog, General Disclosures, and current California Dental Board resources below.
Official documents
Program resources
Review CCI’s current Lancaster program information, institutional disclosures, and the California Dental Board resources that govern the separate RDA pathway.
- LancasterLancaster Dental Assisting Quick FactsPDFRevised May 1, 2025Open PDF
- InstitutionalCCI Student CatalogPDFEffective June 1, 2026–May 31, 2027Open PDF
- InstitutionalGeneral DisclosuresConsumer information, institutional reports, and School Performance Fact SheetsView disclosures
- RegulatoryCalifornia RDA RequirementsCurrent RDA pathways, required courses, fingerprinting, application, and examination requirementsView requirements
- RegulatoryDental Board Approved Educational Programs and CoursesCurrent California Dental Board provider lists for approved programs and coursesView resource
Your next step
See where your Dental Assisting training could begin.
Visit CCI’s Lancaster campus and get answers about classroom training, chairside practice, externship expectations, included Board-approved courses, and the separate RDA pathway.
No pressure. Just answers.