Dental hygiene involves the use of a process of care to assess oral health status, develop a dental hygiene diagnosis, and plan and implement preventive and therapeutic services to achieve optimum oral health. This process of care is utilized to support the oral health status of individuals in a variety of clinical settings, and groups in community education and healthcare settings.
The Dental Hygiene Program at the University of Southern Indiana provides a curriculum which includes didactic courses, laboratory and clinical experiences. This diversity prepares the graduate to deliver oral health care services and education in a variety of practice settings.
The Bachelor of Science degree in dental hygiene requires two years of prerequisite courses and two academic years of professional education courses. Prerequisite courses may be taken at any accredited college or university. Courses completed at another university must be comparable to those offered by USI and must transfer for credit. Dental hygiene courses taken while enrolled in the University of Southern Indiana dental assisting program must be completed within three years of entering the dental hygiene program. A grade of C or better is required in all courses to be applied to the dental hygiene degree. An overall grade point average of 2.5 is required for graduation from the program.
Prerequisite courses cannot be taken on pass/fail option. All chemistry, biology, health professions, nutrition, and math prerequisite courses must be completed by the end of the spring semester in the year the student desires admission to the program. The remainder of the prerequisite courses must be completed prior to beginning the dental hygiene professional curriculum.
Students seeking admission to the dental hygiene program must also be accepted for admission to USI. Admission to the University and completion of the prerequisite courses does not guarantee admission to the dental hygiene program. Admission into the dental hygiene program is limited to 24 students each academic year. Students are accepted into the dental hygiene program based on the cumulative grade point average in the required prerequisite courses. Twenty-four students with the highest grade point average in the required prerequisite courses are offered admission into the program each year. Applicants meeting academic requirements must also be in good health, be eligible for dental hygiene licensure, and capable of fulfilling clinical practice requirements.