Dental hygiene programs are most expensive at private, nonprofit colleges and universities, with an average total cost higher than $85,000, according to the ADA's Health Policy Institute.
The institute used data from the 2021-2022 survey of dental education programs to calculate the total cost of tuition, fees and other related costs including textbooks, uniforms and lab fees at five different types of institutions.
Here is the average total cost of dental hygiene programs across different institution types:
Private, nonprofit colleges and universities: $85,951
Private, for-profit colleges and universities: $69,003
Public universities: $31,515
Public community colleges: $19,559
Public technical colleges and institutes: $19,292