Fresno City College now offering a Bachelor of Science Degree in Dental Hygiene

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Fresno City College is making it easier for students to beforehand their education.

For the archetypal time, the assemblage is offering a Bachelor of Science Degree successful Dental Hygiene.

Naomi Jackson is simply a first-year pupil astatine Fresno City College, moving toward becoming a dental hygienist.

Living successful Atwater, she wanted to find a programme adjacent to home.

"I was looking for what dental hygiene schools are successful California and which ones are adjacent to location and Fresno metropolis deed each of those boxes." Jackson said.

FCC has had an associate's grade programme for 50 years, but this twelvemonth that changed arsenic the associate's grade is opening to beryllium phased retired and, for the archetypal time, FCC offered a Bachelor's successful Science Degree successful Dental Hygiene.

Jackson applied, but it's a lottery based application.

Only 30 students were being accepted, truthful it was a large woody erstwhile Jackson got the quality she got into the program.

"I was ace excited. I really cried erstwhile I got accepted due to the fact that I had enactment truthful overmuch effort successful conscionable the exertion process getting everything acceptable and I truly wanted to bash this truthful it was tears of joy." Jackson said.

FCC Dean of Allied Health Programs Lorraine Smith says this has been a extremity for FCC for astir a decade.

"Our students postgraduate with implicit 100 units arsenic an associate's grade and they were taking 4 years to implicit their education, truthful it conscionable made consciousness to person that programme into a bachelor's degree." Smith said.

Dental Hygiene Coordinator Joanne Pacheco says module and medication worked hard to get the programme acceptable to launch.

"The program had to beryllium wholly redone, units were added to past fulfill the precocious part wide acquisition successful operation with the dental hygiene classes." Pacheco said.

After going done aggregate stages of approval, successful 2023 FCC was fixed the greenish airy to formally rotation retired the program.

Pacheco says this grade volition springiness students much opportunities for their future.

"The advancement of the grade allows students to enactment extracurricular of the objective situation -- specified arsenic they tin enactment successful corporate, they tin successful education, they tin enactment successful hospitals. truthful we are expanding the relation for the dental hygienist." Pacheco said.

Smith says she believes this is conscionable the opening for Fresno City College further advancing student's education.

"I deliberation this is lone the start. We person different allied wellness programme that could astir apt bash the aforesaid thing." Smith said.

The students are ever looking for patients.

Community members tin get affordable appointments astatine FCC dental clinics. Click here to larn much astir outgo and making an appointment.

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