Job prospects Registered Dental Assistant in Nova Scotia

Explore current and future job prospects for people working as a "registered dental assistant" in Nova Scotia or across Canada.

Job opportunities in Nova Scotia

These outlooks were updated on November 29, 2023.

Prospects over the next 3 years

The employment outlook will be moderate for Dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants (NOC 33100) in Nova Scotia for the 2023-2025 period.

The following factors contributed to this outlook:

• Employment growth will lead to a moderate number of new positions.
• Not many positions will become available due to retirements.
• There are a moderate number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.

The number of dentists in Nova Scotia has been increasing, resulting in a shortage of dental assistants. Demand for this occupation is very strong with vacancies frequently occurring throughout the province, improving the likelihood that a jobseeker will find employment in the community of their choice. In response to the strong demand for dental assistants, one of the colleges offering dental assisting accreditation added a training location in Dartmouth in 2020. Full-time, part-time, and fill-in positions are available, increasing the chance that applicants will find a position with their preferred number of hours.

Here are some key facts about Dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants in Nova Scotia:

• Approximately 900 people work in this occupation.
• Dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants mainly work in the following sectors:
  • Ambulatory health care services (NAICS 621): 93%
• The distribution of full-time and part-time workers in this occupation is:
  • Full-time workers: 90% compared to 82% for all occupations
  • Part-time workers: 10% compared to 18% for all occupations
• 35% of dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants work all year, while 65% work only part of the year, compared to 62% and 38% respectively among all occupations. Those who worked only part of the year did so for an average of 40 weeks compared to 42 weeks for all occupations.
• Less than 5% of dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants are self-employed compared to an average of 11% for all occupations.
• The gender distribution of people in this occupation is:
  • Men: less than 5% compared to 51% for all occupations
  • Women: more than 95% compared to 49% for all occupations
• The educational attainment of workers in this occupation is:
  • no high school diploma: less than 5% compared to 10% for all occupations
  • high school diploma or equivalent: 5% compared to 27% for all occupations
  • apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma: 22% compared to 12% for all occupations
  • college certificate or diploma or university certificate below bachelor's: 63% compared to 22% for all occupations
  • bachelor's degree: 6% compared to 20% for all occupations
  • university certificate, degree or diploma above bachelor level: less than 5% compared to 10% for all occupations

Breakdown by region

Explore job prospects in Nova Scotia by economic region.

Source Labour Market Information | Prospects Methodology

Labour market conditions over the next 10 years

Explore current and future job prospects for people working as a "registered dental assistant" Dental assistants (NOC 33100) or across Canada.

Learn more