The Average Salary of a Pediatric Dentist
Pediatric dentistry, also known as pedodontics, is a specialized field whose practitioners are trained to treat children from infants through teenage years. Although pedodontists are trained to care and diagnose oral conditions in children, they’re also better equipped to deal with younger patients, with treatments and a bedside manner that are in place to encourage children to be comfortable with their visit to the dentist – and how to handle children who are uncooperative.
Other People Are Reading
-
Average Pedodontist Salary
-
As of November 2010, the average pedodontist earned $142,802 annually, according to Salary List, although the site accumulated information on recent job openings that were advertising salaries up to $300,000. Dentists who worked in private practices made significantly more than those employed by the federal government or in hospitals, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Outlook Handbook. Specialist dentists who worked in a private practice earned a median annual salary of $178,070 as of May 2008.
Other Earnings
-
As a general practice, many dentists’ income aren’t limited just to their salaries. Most dentists, specialists and non specialists alike, could expect bonuses and profit-sharing payments that reached up to $19,971 and $20,000, respectively, according to Salary.com’s Nov. 2010 statistics.
-
Payment by Regions
-
The city in which a pedodontist practices also affects his annual earnings. Specialist dentists earned on average $244,990 in New Hampshire as of May, 2008, according to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, while those in Arkansas commanded earnings of only $103,300 during the same time period.
Comparison with Non-Specialist
-
Pedodontists’ earnings are higher than general dentists' because of their specialization. The average salary for a dentist in the United States as of November 2010 was $133,248, according to Salary.com, which is, on average, 6.7 percent less than a pedodontist earns.
Education Requirements
-
Of the nation’s 57 dental schools, most require a bachelor’s degree to qualify. Additional schooling of two to three years in dental school in addition to those years in college is required.
-
References
- Photo Credit Comstock/Comstock/Getty Images
