For the first time ever, we don’t just have one best state in which to be a dental assistant. For our 2012 “best and worst states to be a dental assistant” rankings, we have two at the top.
Minnesota and Virginia share this year’s honor as “the best state to be a dental assistant.” It’s the third time that Minnesota has reigned as the best state (it also earned the title in 2008 and 2009). Virginia, which finished fourth in last year’s rankings, is on top for the first time ever.
Iowa, last year’s “best state,” earned its fourth consecutive top 10 finish with a fifth-place showing.
The biggest rise of any state? Utah jumped from #27 in 2011 to #6 in 2012.
The top 10 states ...
1. Minnesota and Virginia (tie) – 84 (last year – MN #6 and VA #4)
3. New Hampshire – 85 (last year #3)
4. North Dakota – 88 (last year #2)
5. Iowa – 94 (last year #1)
6. Utah – 97 (last year #27)
7. Colorado – 104 (last year #16)
8. Vermont – 110 (last year #13)
9. Massachusetts – 112 (last year #9)
10. Wisconsin – 114 (last year #10)
To see our rankings from 1 to 50, please CLICK HERE.
A huge shake-up happened at the bottom of the rankings where Nevada, the “worst state” in 2011, finished the 2012 survey at #36. Ironically, it switched places with West Virginia, which plummeted from #36 to #50 (the “worst state”) in 2012.
The biggest drop of any state? Arkansas fell from #20 to #48. Its neighbor to the west (and Dental Assisting Digest’s home state), Oklahoma, finished at #45 (down from #19 in 2011). Editor’s Note: We are not at all happy about that.
The bottom 10 states ...
41. South Carolina – 187 (last year #47)
42. Illinois – 188 (last year #32)
43. New Mexico – 191 (last year #40)
44. Kentucky – 198 (last year #25)
45. Oklahoma – 199 (last year #19)
46. Louisiana – 205 (last year #44)
47. Alabama – 208 (last year #45)
48. Arkansas – 218 (last year #20)
49. Mississippi – 236 (last year #48)
50. West Virginia – 239 (last year #36)
To see our rankings from 1 to 50, please CLICK HERE.
This year, we used the following six factors to determine the “best and worst states to be a dental assistant.”
1. Average annual salary for dental assistants
2. Chief Executive’s survey of the “Best and Worst States for Business”
3. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Survey (taking an overall look at health and happiness)
4. State-by-state rankings from America’s Health Rankings
5. Annual dental visit per state from America’s Health Rankings
6. Cost of living
Each state was assigned a number from 1 to 50 based on where they were ranked in each of the six categories, then the numbers for those six categories were added together for each state. The lower the state’s overall number, the better their overall ranking.
