The dental hygiene program at USI provides you with a curriculum which includes informative courses, laboratory and clinical experiences, and community oral health education experiences. This diversity of offerings prepares you to deliver oral healthcare services and education in a variety of practice settings. As a dental hygiene student at USI, you'll get hands-on experience at USI's Dental Clinic, a state-of-the-art facility that provides affordable services for a diverse community population, including children and adults. While earning your dental hygiene degree, you’ll benefit from small class sizes with a low dental hygiene student to faculty ratio, ensuring plenty of face time with instructors.
Students who are accepted into the program will incur $8,000 of additional costs beyond tuition, textbooks and housing.
For more information about tuition, fees and other costs, visit our Financial Aid Cost of Attendance page.
To apply to the University of Southern Indiana (USI) for undergraduate enrollment:
Upon acceptance to USI, you'll receive detailed information about next steps, including orientation, registration and housing.
There is a secondary application process to be accepted into the Dental Hygiene Program. Students may declare a major in pre-Dental Hygiene upon entering the university or complete a change of major form at any point in time.
Admission to the Dental Hygiene Program is determined through a selective process and is limited to 24 students each academic year. The student's grade point average in the required prerequisite courses determines the admission ranking. Candidates for the program must be eligible for dental hygiene licensure and capable of fulfilling clinical practice requirements.
To be considered for admission to the dental hygiene program, students must complete the following requirements:
Dental hygiene employment opportunities are available in private dental practices, public health clinics, schools, hospitals and in research and educational institutions. Graduates from USI's highly competitive Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene program have an outstanding job placement rate and excellent success on licensure examinations. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has identified dental hygiene as one of the fastest growing professions. Demand for dental hygienists is expected to grow 33 percent in the next decade, as population growth and aging drive up the need for dental hygiene services.
*income information provided by O*NET Online. Occupation opportunities vary by region and experience.
The University of Southern Indiana is committed to making college accessible to those wishing to further their education by providing numerous scholarships, grants, and financial aid options to assist students in managing tuition expenses.
The Dental Hygiene Program is accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association. The Commission is a specialized accrediting body recognized by the United States Department of Education. The Commission on Dental Accreditation can be contacted at 312-440-4653 or at 211 East Chicago Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611-2678. The Commission's web address is: http://www.ada.org/en/coda.
Requirements for licensure and certification vary by profession and by state. USI has reviewed the educational requirements for each state and licensing agency to determine if the academic program here at USI meets the educational requirements to be eligible for licensure/certification in each state or not. Please note that some states may have additional requirements for licensure, such as residency requirements, additional non-academic certifications, etc. that USI cannot determine. We encourage you to check with your state's licensing agency for all requirements needed to obtain licensure.
