U.S. dental hygiene programs graduated 7,447 people in 2025, the most in at least a decade, according to data from the American Dental Association. Dental leaders say the shortage is getting worse nonetheless.
About one-third of dentists were actively recruiting hygienists in the third quarter of 2026, and more than one in five said those positions had been open for more than six months before being filled, according to the ADA.
“There is no end in sight,” Eric Linden, DMD, a dentist in New Jersey, told Becker’s in October.
The pipeline is growing and new dental schools are opening, but dental leaders say that isn’t closing the gap. Here’s what they are doing instead.
Source: Dentistry’s workforce paradox: More graduates but a deeper shortage? / Becker’s Dental