Program Length, Schedule, and Time Commitment
The Dental Hygiene Program at Amarillo College is completed over two academic years and includes five consecutive semesters: fall, spring, a required summer term, fall, and spring. The program combines classroom instruction, laboratory practice, preclinical education, and supervised patient care.
The Commission on Dental Accreditation describes dental hygiene education as a rigorous and intensive curriculum requiring at least two years of academic preparation.
Program Length
The Amarillo College Dental Hygiene Program is completed over two academic years and includes five consecutive semesters: fall, spring, a required six-week summer term, fall, and spring.
View the Complete Program Map (pdf)
The Program Map lists the required application courses, semester-by-semester course sequence, credit hours, and total degree requirements. The uploaded 2026–2027 map shows 18 credit hours of required courses completed before the program and 50 credit hours completed during the five-semester professional sequence, for a total of 68 credit hours.
View the Program Structure by Semester (pdf)
The program structure shows how students progress through five consecutive semesters of coursework and clinical education. Each semester builds on the previous one, beginning with preclinical preparation and advancing to supervised patient care, professional practice, and readiness for graduation and licensure.
View the Dental Hygiene A.A.S. in the Amarillo College Catalog
Weekly Schedule
The Dental Hygiene Program requires weekday availability, generally Monday through Friday. Class, laboratory, and clinic times vary by semester.
Students should plan for:
- Daytime classes, laboratories, and clinic sessions
- Early arrival for clinic preparation
- Time after clinic for cleanup, documentation, and faculty review
- Occasional program meetings, remediation sessions, community activities, or other required experiences
- A required six-week summer clinic term, generally held from mid-May through the end of June
- Schedule changes from one semester to the next
Students should not expect to select only morning, afternoon, or evening sections. The clinical and laboratory schedule is organized around program requirements, faculty supervision, patient care, and facility availability. The current information-session materials describe the program as a Monday-through-Friday commitment with early mornings, long days, and a required summer clinic semester.
NOTE: Exact days and times are published before each semester and may change based on clinical, instructional, and college scheduling needs.
Understanding the Time Commitment
Credit hours alone do not represent the total amount of time students spend completing the program. Dental hygiene education includes scheduled instruction and significant work outside the classroom and clinic.
Students should expect to spend time on:
- Reading and studying
- Written assignments and examinations
- Laboratory and clinical skill practice
- Patient assessment and care planning
- Clinical documentation
- Reviewing radiographs and patient records
- Preparing for competency evaluations
- Completing remediation when assigned
- Contacting, scheduling, and confirming patients
- Preparing instruments, supplies, and required materials
- Participating in community and professional activities
A student’s weekly commitment will vary by semester, patient needs, clinical progress, and study habits. Students should plan for the program to require the time and attention of a full-time responsibility.
Program commitment and financial-aid status
Program intensity and financial-aid enrollment status are not the same. Some semesters may carry fewer credit hours than the college’s definition of full-time enrollment, even though classes, clinic, studying, patient management, and preparation require substantial weekly time.
Students should speak with the Amarillo College Financial Aid Office about how their semester credit load could affect grants, loans, scholarships, and other assistance.
Attendance and Participation
Regular and punctual attendance is expected in every class, laboratory, clinic session, meeting, and required program activity.
Clinical and laboratory learning depends on direct instruction, supervised practice, patient care, and competency evaluation. Missed time cannot always be recreated through written assignments or independent study.
Students are expected to:
- Arrive prepared and on time
- Remain for the entire scheduled session
- Participate in learning activities
- Meet dress and professional-conduct expectations
- Complete assigned preparation before class, laboratory, and clinic
- Communicate promptly when an emergency affects attendance
Detailed attendance, tardiness, absence, and progression requirements are provided in course syllabi, the Dental Hygiene Program Handbook, and the Clinic Manual.
Working While Enrolled
Outside employment is strongly discouraged because of the program’s weekday schedule and the amount of preparation required outside scheduled class and clinic hours.
Students who plan to work during the program should consider:
- Limiting weekly work hours
- Avoiding work during scheduled program hours
- Allowing enough time for study and clinical preparation
- Planning for changing schedules each semester
- Preparing financially for the required summer term
- Discussing scheduling expectations with their employer before the program begins
The program cannot guarantee that a student’s class or clinic schedule will remain the same from one semester to the next.
Clinical Patient Responsibilities
Students provide supervised dental hygiene care to patients as part of their education. Students are responsible for helping identify, schedule, confirm, and communicate with patients who meet their clinical learning needs.
Students should understand that:
- Clinic appointments may last several hours.
- Some patients require more than one appointment.
- Patients may cancel or fail to attend.
- Students may need backup patients.
- Clinical requirements must be completed within established deadlines.
- Missed appointments can affect a student’s ability to complete required patient experiences.
- Professional and timely patient communication is expected.
Patient recruitment and patient management require time outside scheduled clinic sessions. The information-session presentation identifies patient recruitment, reliability, and communication as significant parts of the program commitment.
Transportation and Personal Planning
Reliable transportation is needed for travel to Amarillo College West Campus and any required off-campus educational or community experiences.
Before entering the program, students should develop plans for:
- Transportation
- Childcare and family responsibilities
- Reduced employment hours
- Tuition, instruments, supplies, and other program expenses
- Summer enrollment
- Backup arrangements for emergencies
- Personal study time
- Patient communication and scheduling
Students who commute from outside Amarillo should account for travel time, weather, early start times, and long clinical days.
Physical and Professional Demands
Dental hygiene education includes prolonged sitting, fine motor activity, repetitive hand movements, bending, reaching, close visual work, and sustained concentration. Students must also communicate effectively, manage time, respond professionally to feedback, and make decisions in a patient-care environment.
Applicants who need disability-related accommodations should contact Amarillo College Disability Services as early as possible. Requests are reviewed individually according to college policy. Accommodations may support access to education but do not remove required academic, clinical, professional, or patient-safety competencies.