I would like to be a Trainee Dental Nurse! My G.C.S.E. are D-G grade, Can i still become a Trainee Dental Nurse with this? Im happy to train, but im unsure how much you get paid? Ive heard its min wage which is £5.73 i don’t think i could really live on that at 24 years old. If i do……….will it be worth it in the end?
Good for you, I have worked as a Dental Nurse for many years and still enjoy my job.
In order to become a D/N you need to find somebody who is willing to take you on as a trainee and yes the wages for a trainee can be pretty bad, but then again they can also be bad for an experienced nurse.
Once you find a trainee position you will then have to get yourself on a course in order for you to gain your Qualification.
You will need either the National Certificate for D/N’s or the NVQ level 2 in order to work as you now have to be registered with the General Dental Council, without these 2 qualifications and registration it is against the law for you to work and call yourself a D/N.
If your lucky enough to find yourself a position and a really good dentist who help and teach you what you need to know, you’ll love it, sadly some dentists are very set in their ways and don’t like the thought of D/N’s gaining knowledge and further qualifications as they don’t want to pay them more money.
Once you qualify you can do so much more, you can do the Radiography exam, Oral Health, Sedation, or you could even train to be a hygienist!
Go for it and I wish you all the very best, where are you located by the way? I know lots of dentists who might be on the look out for a trainee!