Dental Hygiene, Bachelor of Science (524P, 524)
Department website: http://www.wku.edu/alliedhealth
Program Coordinator
Joseph W. Evans, joseph.evans@wku.edu, (270) 745-6274
Program Accreditation
Commission on Dental Accreditation (Program of Dental Hygiene).
Allied health is defined as all the professional, technical and supportive workers in patient care, public health and health research. Allied health professions encompass a wide distribution of personnel with various levels of health education and training, which enables them to function as a member of the health care team.
Programs of Dental Hygiene
Students with an interest in the program of dental hygiene may contact the dental hygiene program coordinator. When planning a program of study in this program, each student should be aware of the University’s academic requirements and regulations contained in this catalog in the chapter “Academic Information.” Specific attention should be given to the subsections in the chapter entitled (a) Academic Programs, (b) Colonnade Program Requirements and (c) Academic Requirements and Regulations. Students should be aware that this academic program might require additional scholastic regulations and standards not specified in the catalog. To obtain a copy of these regulations, students should contact the program office.
Enrollment in the program of dental hygiene is limited and special admission information and other special rules, standards and requirements should be obtained directly from the program office (Academic Complex, Room 236G) or from the program website (https://www.wku.edu/dentalhygiene/).
The baccalaureate degree curriculum is designed to prepare dental hygienists with a background for teaching, for organization and management, for research, as well as for clinical dental hygiene.
The educational experience offered prepares the graduate hygienist to effectively carry out the duties as prescribed by licensure. Hygienists are prepared for varied career opportunities, which include the following settings: general dentistry practice, specialty practices, public health, military installations, hospitals or clinics, research facilities or public school dental hygiene.
Although 18 hours of Colonnade courses (including Anatomy & Physiology and Microbiology) are prerequisites, most beginning dental hygiene students will have successfully completed one or more years of college.
Program Requirements (66 hours)
A baccalaureate degree requires a minimum of 120 unduplicated semester hours. More information can be found at www.wku.edu/registrar/degree_certification.php.
Students who began WKU in the Fall 2014 and thereafter should review the Colonnade requirements located at: https://www.wku.edu/colonnade/colonnaderequirements.php.
For admission to the program, students must complete the following prerequisites.
Prerequisites for Admission into the Major
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 131 | Human Anatomy and Physiology | 4 |
| BIOL 207 | General Microbiology | 3 |
| BIOL 208 | General Microbiology Laboratory | 1 |
| ENG 100 | Introduction to College Writing | 3 |
| PSY/PSYS 100 | Introduction to Psychology | 3 |
| CHEM 109 | Chemistry for the Health Sciences | 4 |
| Total Hours | 18 | |
Program Requirements
A degree in dental hygiene requires 120 semester hours, including 66 hours in the major plus 9 hours of additional support courses, and leads to a Bachelor of Science degree. The curriculum may be completed in eight semesters and one summer term within four years.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Courses | ||
| DH 201 | Dental Radiology I | 3 |
| DH 204 | Periodontics | 3 |
| DH 206 | Dental Pharmacology | 3 |
| DH 210 | Dental Materials and Expanded Functions in Restorative Dentistry I | 1 |
| DH 212 | Oral Anatomy | 3 |
| DH 222 | Preventive Dental Hygiene Care | 2 |
| DH 226 | Dental Materials and Expanded Functions in Restorative Dentistry II | 2 |
| DH 230 | Oral Histology and Embryology | 3 |
| DH 270 | Pre-Clinical Dental Hygiene | 3 |
| DH 271 | Clinical Dental Hygiene I | 4 |
| DH 302 | Dental Radiology II | 2 |
| DH 303 | Community Dental Health | 4 |
| DH 304 | Advanced Periodontology | 4 |
| DH 307 | General and Oral Pathology | 3 |
| DH 309 | Pain Control in Dentistry | 4 |
| DH 323 | Research Methods | 3 |
| DH 324 | Practice Management and Ethics | 3 |
| DH 370 | Clinical Dental Hygiene II | 5 |
| DH 371 | Clinical Dental Hygiene III | 5 |
| Total Hours | 60 | |
Electives
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Select 6 hours from the following: | 6 | |
| Local to Global Healthcare Issues | ||
| Intercultural Communication | ||
| Health Care Organization and Management | ||
| International Comparisons of Health Care Systems | ||
| Clothing and Human Behavior | ||
| Human Sexuality | ||
| Health Disparities and Health Equity | ||
| Health and Aging | ||
| Human Values and the Health Sciences | ||
| Women’s Health | ||
| Social Psychology | ||
| Aging in Society | ||
| Diversity in American Society | ||
| Diversity and Social Welfare | ||
| Total Hours | 6 | |
Additional Courses
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| COMM 145 | Fundamentals of Public Speaking and Communication | 3 |
| HMD 211 | Human Nutrition | 3 |
| SOCL 100 | Introductory Sociology | 3 |
| Total Hours | 9 | |
Finish in Four Plan
| First Year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||
| ENG 100 | 3 | COMM 145 | 3 | ||
| PSY 100 or PSYS 100 | 3 | BIOL 207 & BIOL 208 | 4 | ||
| MATH 109 | 3 | HIST 101 or HIST 102 | 3 | ||
| BIOL 131 | 4 | CHEM 109 | 4 | ||
| SOCL 100 (or World Language Requirement) | 3 | ||||
| 16 | 14 | ||||
| Second Year | |||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer | Hours |
| DH 222 | 2 | DH 271 | 4 | DH 309 | 4 |
| DH 270 | 3 | DH 230 | 3 | ||
| DH 212 | 3 | DH 206 | 3 | ||
| DH 210 | 1 | DH 226 | 2 | ||
| DH 201 | 3 | DH 204 | 3 | ||
| HMD 211 | 3 | ||||
| 15 | 15 | 4 | |||
| Third Year | |||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||
| DH 370 | 5 | DH 304 | 4 | ||
| DH 302 | 2 | DH 371 | 5 | ||
| DH 303 | 4 | DH 323 | 3 | ||
| DH 307 | 3 | DH 324 | 3 | ||
| SOCL 100 (if not previously taken or Major/Minor/Elective) | 3 | ||||
| 17 | 15 | ||||
| Fourth Year | |||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||
| ENG 200 | 3 | ENG 300 | 3 | ||
| Colonnade - Social & Cultural | 3 | Colonnade - Arts & Humanities | 3 | ||
| Colonnade - Local to Global | 3 | Major/Minor/Elective | 3 | ||
| Major/Minor/Elective | 3 | Major/Minor/Elective | 3 | ||
| 12 | 12 | ||||
| Total Hours 120 | |||||