Top 12 Dental Skills to Put on Your Resume
In the competitive field of dentistry, standing out to potential employers is crucial, and your resume is the perfect tool to showcase your expertise and capabilities. Highlighting the top dental skills on your resume not only demonstrates your proficiency and dedication to the profession but also positions you as an ideal candidate in a pool of applicants.
Dental Skills
- Invisalign
- CEREC
- Digital X-rays
- Periodontics
- Endodontics
- Prosthodontics
- Orthodontics
- Laser Dentistry
- CAD/CAM
- Dental Implants
- VELscope
- Eaglesoft
1. Invisalign
Invisalign is a brand of clear, removable aligners used in orthodontics as an alternative to traditional metal braces for straightening teeth.
Why It's Important
Invisalign matters because it offers a discreet, comfortable, and effective path to straighter teeth, supporting better oral hygiene and aesthetics without brackets or wires.
How to Improve Invisalign Skills
Sharper outcomes come from precise planning, steady follow-through, and smart coaching.
Enhanced patient education: Set clear expectations on wear time (aim for ~22 hours/day). Use visual aids, progress photos, and simple checklists to keep patients on track.
Accurate diagnostics and planning: Rely on high-quality 3D scans, thorough records, and bite analysis. Calibrate staging and attachments thoughtfully to match biomechanics to the case.
Regular monitoring: Use virtual check-ins when appropriate, plus mid-course assessments. Adjust promptly if tracking drifts.
Compliance tools: Reminders, wear-time trackers, and scheduled swap days help patients stick to the plan.
Refinement protocol: Build refinements into expectations. Measure fit and movement objectively, then re-scan and reset when needed.
Ongoing training: Stay current on staging strategies, attachment design, IPR protocols, and complex case selection.
How to Display Invisalign Skills on Your Resume
2. CEREC
CEREC (Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics) is a dental technology for creating high-quality ceramic restorations—crowns, veneers, inlays, and onlays—in a single visit using computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM).
Why It's Important
Single-visit dentistry saves time, avoids temporaries, and delivers precise, esthetic results. Patients love the convenience. Teams appreciate the control.
How to Improve CEREC Skills
Keep software current: Updates improve design tools, milling strategies, and reliability.
Invest in training: Hands-on courses and study clubs sharpen scanning, design, occlusion, and stain-and-glaze finesse.
Maintenance matters: Follow a strict calibration, bur replacement, and cleaning schedule for scanners and mills.
Choose materials wisely: Match indications to ceramics (lithium disilicate, zirconia, hybrid ceramics) for strength and aesthetics.
Refine workflows: Standardize prep design, isolation, scan strategy, and bonding protocols for predictable outcomes.
How to Display CEREC Skills on Your Resume
3. Digital X-rays
Digital X-rays use electronic sensors instead of film to capture images of teeth and surrounding structures, delivering immediate, detailed views with significantly reduced radiation exposure.
Why It's Important
Fast images, fine detail, lower dose. Better diagnoses and smoother treatment planning, without the chemicals or delays of film.
How to Improve Digital X-rays Skills
Upgrade sensors and generators: High-resolution sensors and stable X-ray generators sharpen detail and consistency.
Dial in image settings: Standardize exposure settings by view; use image enhancement tools judiciously to reveal contrast without over-processing.
Reduce dose: Follow ALARA, use rectangular collimation and appropriate exposure factors, and rely on selection criteria—not routine schedules.
Training: Regular positioning refreshers for assistants and hygienists cut retakes and boost clarity.
Maintenance and QA: Calibrate equipment, verify sensor health, and run periodic quality audits.
Seamless data flow: Integrate imaging with your charting and practice management for effortless retrieval and sharing.
How to Display Digital X-rays Skills on Your Resume
4. Periodontics
Periodontics focuses on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases affecting the gums and supporting bone.
Why It's Important
Healthy gums are the foundation. Control inflammation, protect bone, prevent tooth loss, and support systemic wellness.
How to Improve Periodontics Skills
Regular periodontal maintenance: Individualized intervals, thorough debridement, and tailored home-care coaching.
Meticulous daily hygiene: Correct brushing technique, interdental cleaning, and adjuncts like water flossers when needed.
Risk reduction: Tobacco cessation, glycemic control, and management of contributing factors such as xerostomia or occlusal trauma.
Nutrition support: A balanced diet rich in vitamins and minerals to support tissue health and healing.
Adjunctive therapies: Antimicrobial rinses or localized agents, and when indicated, surgical therapies or regenerative approaches.
How to Display Periodontics Skills on Your Resume
5. Endodontics
Endodontics treats the dental pulp and tissues surrounding the root, most often through root canal therapy to save infected or damaged teeth.
Why It's Important
Pain relief, infection control, tooth preservation. Keeping natural teeth maintains function, esthetics, and bite harmony.
How to Improve Endodontics Skills
Advanced diagnostics: Incorporate CBCT when indicated, vitality testing, and careful interpretation of referred pain patterns.
Modern instrumentation: Use nickel–titanium rotary or reciprocating systems, apex locators, and ultrasonic tips for efficient shaping and refinement.
Irrigation mastery: Prioritize irrigant activation (sonic/ultrasonic), proper volumes, and final rinse protocols to disinfect complex anatomy.
Visualization: A dental operating microscope elevates precision in locating canals, removing obstructions, and managing perforations.
Biocompatible materials: Favor bioactive sealers and repair cements that encourage healing and tight seals.
Minimally invasive access: Conserve tooth structure while maintaining straight-line access and adequate disinfection.
Outcome review: Track successes and complications, debrief tough cases, and refine protocols continually.
How to Display Endodontics Skills on Your Resume
6. Prosthodontics
Prosthodontics restores and replaces missing or damaged teeth to bring back function, comfort, and appearance.
Why It's Important
Eat comfortably, speak clearly, smile confidently. Comprehensive restoration supports oral and overall health.
How to Improve Prosthodontics Skills
Go digital: Digital impressions, CAD/CAM design, and 3D printing boost precision and speed.
Material selection: Choose between zirconia, lithium disilicate, hybrid ceramics, or metal-ceramic based on load, esthetics, and space.
Occlusion protocols: Standardize jaw relation records, verification, and occlusal schemes for durable restorations.
Interdisciplinary planning: Coordinate with perio, endo, ortho, and surgery for complex reconstructions and implant-supported cases.
Patient-centered design: Align shade, shape, and phonetics with patient expectations; prototype when needed.
How to Display Prosthodontics Skills on Your Resume
7. Orthodontics
Orthodontics diagnoses, prevents, and treats irregularities of the teeth and jaws using braces, aligners, and adjunctive techniques to correct alignment and bite.
Why It's Important
Aligned teeth function better, are easier to clean, and reduce long-term risks like uneven wear, TMJ strain, and periodontal breakdown.
How to Improve Orthodontics Skills
Elevate diagnostics: 3D imaging and digital models sharpen treatment planning and risk assessment.
Clear aligner expertise: Master attachment design, staging, overcorrections, and elastic protocols for complex movements.
Temporary anchorage devices: Use TADs to control anchorage, shorten treatment times, and tackle challenging biomechanics.
Digital workflow: Digital impressions, simulations, and remote progress checks streamline visits and improve engagement.
Continual learning: Keep pace with new wires, brackets, aligner materials, and retention strategies.
How to Display Orthodontics Skills on Your Resume
8. Laser Dentistry
Laser dentistry uses focused light to treat a range of conditions. It can reshape gums, aid in cavity preparation, remove diseased tissue, and assist with whitening—often with less discomfort and quicker healing.
Why It's Important
Precision with minimal trauma. Less bleeding, less anesthesia, faster recovery. Patients notice the difference.
How to Improve Laser Dentistry Skills
Structured training: Formal courses and certifications for diode, Er:YAG, and CO2 lasers build safe, predictable technique.
Right tool, right tissue: Match wavelength and settings to soft tissue, hard tissue, or photobiomodulation indications.
Safety first: Protective eyewear, plume evacuation, signage, and documented protocols for every procedure.
Equipment upkeep: Routine calibration, fiber/c tip care, and validation of power output extend lifespan and accuracy.
Patient communication: Simple explanations, before-and-after photos, and clear post-op instructions boost confidence and acceptance.
How to Display Laser Dentistry Skills on Your Resume
9. CAD/CAM
CAD/CAM in dentistry uses computer-aided design and manufacturing to create precise restorations—crowns, veneers, inlays, onlays, and bridges—either in-office or via a lab.
Why It's Important
Accuracy, speed, and customization. Fewer visits, tighter fits, and happier patients.
How to Improve CAD/CAM Skills
Update software: Newer design tools and milling strategies reduce adjustments chairside.
High-quality scanning: Capture clean margins with sound isolation and scan paths that minimize stitching errors.
Lean workflow: Standardize prep designs, verify occlusal clearance, and pre-plan contours to cut remakes.
Proactive maintenance: Keep mills calibrated, burs fresh, and scanners clean for consistent results.
Team training: Cross-train assistants and technicians to design, stain/glaze, and finish restorations efficiently.
Use proven materials: Select blocks and pucks with reliable strength and esthetics for the indication.
Collaborate: Share digital designs with lab partners for complex cases and iterate quickly.
How to Display CAD/CAM Skills on Your Resume
10. Dental Implants
Dental implants are artificial tooth roots, typically titanium or zirconia, surgically placed in the jawbone to support crowns, bridges, or dentures.
Why It's Important
They restore function and esthetics, help maintain bone, support facial structure, and can last for many years with proper care.
How to Improve Dental Implants Skills
Treatment planning: Use comprehensive records and 3D imaging to plan position, angulation, and prosthetic space. Surgical guides elevate precision.
Surface and material choices: Select implants with proven surface treatments that promote rapid, stable osseointegration; consider zirconia in select esthetic cases.
Surgical protocol: Aseptic technique, atraumatic handling, and careful torque control reduce complications.
Soft-tissue management: Preserve keratinized tissue, contour emergence profiles, and stage provisionals to sculpt esthetics.
Prosthetic design: Favor screw-retained where possible, ensure cleansability, and verify occlusion to protect the interface.
Risk mitigation: Screen for parafunction, uncontrolled systemic disease, and smoking; plan grafting or sinus elevation when indicated.
Maintenance: Establish recall intervals and hygiene protocols to prevent peri-implant disease.
How to Display Dental Implants Skills on Your Resume
11. VELscope
VELscope is a non-invasive oral screening device that uses tissue fluorescence to help identify abnormalities—including early changes that may not be visible under white light.
Why It's Important
Earlier detection leads to earlier action. That can change outcomes for potentially serious lesions.
How to Improve VELscope Skills
Training and calibration: Standardize exam techniques, lighting conditions, and photo documentation for consistent results.
Interpretation protocols: Combine findings with clinical exam and history; establish clear criteria for re-evaluation, adjunctive tests, or biopsy referral.
Workflow integration: Store images in the chart, set recall flags, and track lesion changes over time.
Patient awareness: Educate on risk factors and the value of screening, especially for tobacco and alcohol users.
Quality improvement: Review outcomes, correlate with pathology reports, and refine referral pathways.
How to Display VELscope Skills on Your Resume
12. Eaglesoft
Eaglesoft is comprehensive dental practice management software for scheduling, billing, charting, imaging, and reporting to streamline operations and support patient care.
Why It's Important
One place for clinical notes, images, claims, and schedules. Less friction, fewer errors, more clarity for the whole team.
How to Improve Eaglesoft Skills
Timely updates: Keep the software current for new features and security fixes.
Team training: Use formal onboarding and refreshers for scheduling, charting, imaging bridges, and reporting.
Customize workflows: Tailor templates, clinical note macros, and form sets to your practice’s routines.
Integrations: Connect imaging solutions and e-services to cut duplicate entry and speed tasks.
Data hygiene: Back up routinely, archive inactive records appropriately, and audit databases for performance.
Security and compliance: Role-based permissions, strong passwords, encryption, and documented HIPAA policies protect patient data.
Feedback loop: Encourage staff to flag bottlenecks; iterate settings and templates to remove friction.
How to Display Eaglesoft Skills on Your Resume
