Boost Earnings with a Master’s in Dental Technology

Are you a second or third-year dental technology student thinking about what to do next? After you graduate, you can enter into employment and start climbing the career ladder. But if you want to fast-track your career, nurture growth and maximise earnings, a master’s degree could be the best route for you.

Postgraduate study is a fantastic investment, and there’s nowhere better to upskill than the University of Bolton, where we put students, and their needs first. Here are some of the ways a master’s in dental technology can boost your earning potential.

Gain specialist skills that set you apart

One of the easiest ways to fast-track your career path and access higher earnings is to have advanced skills in your chosen specialism. While a master’s degree isn’t required for some entry-level dental technician jobs, having a second degree can help you stand out against competition.

According to the Prospects.ac.uk, a trainee dental technician with no qualifications can expect to earn £16,000 to £18,000. With undergraduate qualifications, the entry-level salary is closer to around £22,000. But with a specialism or further training, you can earn in excess of £40,000. So earning potential is much higher for second degree holders who have specialist skills.

The same applies for NHS salaries, with specialists qualifying for a higher band. As shared on Prospects.ac.uk, salaries usually range between £25,655 and £31,534 for NHS dental technicians, which is band 5 according to the NHS Agenda for Change. But specialist technicians can earn between £32,306 and £39,027 (band 6), and highly specialist roles can range from £40,057 to £45,839 (band 7).

 Some dental technician roles you can pursue with an MSc Dental Technology course include:

• Orthodontic technician – this job involves designing and constructing braces to correct misaligned teeth

• Conservative technician – a role that focuses on the design and development of dental crowns and bridges

• Prosthodontic technician – these technicians work on dentures (a growing field that requires people to make models for dentures and other prostheses)

• Maxillo-facial prosthetics technician – this specialism involves facial and dental reconstruction for people who have been affected by trauma or disease

Develop other core skills that employers want

During the University of Bolton’s MSc Dental Technology course, you will also get the chance to work on a number of other skills that will support your career growth. Not only will these skills be important in helping you secure a job during interviews or probationary work periods, but they will help you access more senior roles.

Some of the skills you’ll get to hone while studying MSc Digital Dental Technology at Bolton include commercial awareness, research methodology, critical thinking, problem-solving, and leadership and management skills.

These are highly transferable skills that many employers want to bring into the workplace. So further study can lead to management roles, and it can even prepare you for running your own commercial dental laboratory.

Use your master’s as a stepping stone

A master’s in dental technology is also suitable for students who wish to eventually pursue a PhD. This route leads to academic or research and development careers, where earning potential can be much higher.

Postgraduate training can help you progress further in NHS careers too, with one option being the NHS Scientist Training Programme (STP) for technicians wanting to specialise in reconstructive sciences like maxillofacial prosthetics.

Do senior or specialist roles in dental technology inspire you? If you would like to improve your earnings and open up more job opportunities, a second degree could help you stand out against competition when it comes to recruitment.

As a leading Greater Manchester university with a passion for delivering #UniAsItShouldBe, there’s nowhere better than the University of Bolton to support your career ambitions.

To find out more about applying for the MSc Dental Technology course in 2022 or 2023, see our course page for details.