Dental Assistant

What the Numbers Say About Dental Assistant

As of the March 2025 reporting window, 3,541 people work in the Dental Assistant occupation (OPM code 681) across federal agencies, 0.2% of the 2,289,472-strong federal civilian workforce. Headcount moved sideways by 0.0% from the prior period, a modest but trackable signal for anyone considering this specialized federal career path.

The average salary for Dental Assistant is $57,138 per year, placing it 48.0% below the overall federal civilian average of $109,869. Salaries moved up by 2.4% from the prior period, a broad shift as locality pay tables and grade-level adjustments moved through the workforce. Average length of service in this role is 9.4 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.

Dental Assistant sits inside the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family (code 6), which contains 45 related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Dental Assistant postings should also review these sibling occupations, since federal hiring managers often cross-post positions across closely related codes when recruitment is difficult. All figures here come directly from OPM FedScope Employment Cubes, the same official source referenced in federal workforce planning, budget justifications, and GAO reports.

Within the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family, Dental Assistant ranks #19 of 45 by headcount, accounting for 1.0% of the family's combined 356,984 employees. Its average salary ranks in the bottom half (9th percentile) of pay among Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group occupations.